Sunday, August 19, 2012

Byzantine Architecture


     
Hagia Sophia

Social Community

Byzantine Empire is the last direct heir to the Roman and the first Christian nation. People of Roman and Byzantine law systematized his Senate also imitate the pattern of the Roman senate, but still supported by the Monastery of the political field and to seek advice on the Mystics.
Three aspects of Byzantine life that stands out is religious, royal intrigue and popular circuses spectacular (magic).
City life was centered around three important buildings: the group Hypodrom building, the Palace of the holy empire and the Church of Hagia Sophia, where the three buildings represent three elements, namely the people of the Byzantine world, the emperor of power and religion. The third building is located adjacent and connected by matching Mese or middle way, a way has always worked with and used for religious ceremonies (protocol roads leading to important buildings).


Art and Architecture

One of the most important aspect for the new city of Constantinople is not a duplicate of the city of Rome is a city built the first Christian church of Hagia Sophia and completed many other churches.
Mosaic art decor motif that bright and sparkly booming. While the architecture of many-sided with a dome roof springing up everywhere, Mount Yugoslavia, Romania valley digurun Byzantine Syria who developed a hierarchy of similar forms.
The results of development of the city of Constantinople, including many buildings including two buildings teatre, 8 baths, baths prbadi 153, five granaries, eight aqueducts, 14 churches, 14 castles and 4388 houses are quite large, and many public facilities, such as home sick, and housing markets that are not listed city residents hold about 600,000 inhabitants.

Architectural Character

Byzantine church is a basilica form was originally developed to form the pattern itself after the pattern of the Byzantine church that is the Dome of the Compound, the dome of the ball as well as centralized Plan. Because this area is directly opposite the Asia Minor area, then many of the incoming influence among other things, the domes to cover the floor plan or polygonal-4 in terms of church, cemetery and baptistery, begun this century developed in 5.
Practical use of the dome, using a very simple roof construction with timber roof Old Christian denominations, as well as the flow of the Roman archway of stone.
Of Roman concrete construction system developed by leaps and bounds. Dome that is a hallmark of eastern region, a model of the roof of Byzantium which is an amalgamation of the Construction of the dome and the corner of Greek and Roman models.
Type-type dome placed over the terms of the plan-4 is equipped with a small window above, called Pendetive, which at the time of the Roman dome cover only a sketch of a circular or polygonal. While the material is used pendetive brick or pumice stone material called Purnise. Dome built without the use of temporary support (formwork). The main spherical dome symbolizes heaven according to his teachings, while the corner domes called Squinch to illustrate his teachings in the form of a mosaic of Bema or sacred booth space with Naos or the parent or nave, separated by Iconostatis or insulation, as a screen of picture "curtain".
The exterior shape, sometimes not associated / no unity in the form of the interior.
Byzantine architecture is divided into three periods, namely the early, middle and end.
The early Byzantine period, from the beginning of the 6th century until the mid-9th century was the century of experimental design of the building. Basilica of the elongated form is still used, but does not fit with local practices that offer Mass in the middle of the main hall of the church and open space in one corner, s ehingga basilica floor plan that extends not to the ceremony. While the Greek cross wing at the long fourth, more suitable for the ceremony.
Most churches are small, the inside of the impressive bright and spacious due to the simplicity of the form of pilasters and arch without decoration and light obtained from opening windows and doors Leber, also made holes in the roof of the dome.
In the middle period between the late 9th century until the mid-13th century no longer use a base type of the church building, in this period used four different central forces, each consisting of a dome that formed the core of a wide range of combinations among other aspects-8 and square, while the domed corner connected to a core by reducing the size of the pilasters, so impressive at large. Soft impression obtained from the intricate ornaments, and the inside becomes dim. While the simplicity and firmness lost form in the previous period.
Final period is similar to the medieval period, while the vertical element of development is emphasized in both the outside and inside. Church of the middle period usually have a spherical dome, at the period end has 5 dome ball, which is a large dome in the middle and smaller domes on each corner.

Comparative Analysis

Plan:
rectangular polygonal, which is covered with a dome roof and a small dome surrounding the main dome, so centered and symmetrical shape.
The same short wings each side pasa, mengambi cross shape.
Wall:
Wearing a brick materials, and on the inside (interior) coated with a mosaic made of colored marble yangmenggambarkan teachings.
Door and window openings:
½ circular arcs are used to support the gallery and on the door and window openings
½ small windows around the base circle of the dome (pendetive)
Roof:
method of making a roof of stone material or concrete
Dome formed by type - simple (usually ½ circle)
shaped melon (cantaloupe dome)
compound (compound)
Column:
constructive columns, with the mast head (capital) stylized Corinthian and Composite.
Sky Line:
Overall view, the church is a group izantium dome that surrounds many of the main dome is symmetrical, so impressive vertical.

The Byzantine buildings

  1. The Church of Hagia Sophia 
    Built during the first emperor Constantin and repaired again after the fire and was destroyed by Emperor Justinian in 517 AD. This building is a masterpiece of the Byzantine period, the largest and highest among the other churches in Constantinople. This church was the center of the Orthodox Christian world government. 
    Church reaches 305 meters width and height of ± 548 meters, around the walls are decorated with colorful mosaics and golden cmerlang. Architects (at the time of Justinian) are of Miletus and Anthemius Isodorus of Tralles. 
    This building in 1453 AD, was occupied by the Turks and converted into a mosque, with lost parts ornate images of living things.
  2. Forum Constantinous 6 is a great forum among the city's public forum, dominated by porfir. Here the emperor celebrated his victory, the merchants met to discuss their business and other activities of the population.
  3. Hypodrom Adjacent to the church of Hagia Sophia, this building serves as a place to race performances train at first, then developed to show a versatile, spear fighting, acrobatics and others. The building is very similar to the Circus Maximus in Rome, where the arena reaches 396 meters long.

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