Comparative Arts

1. Comparative Arts Judaism, Early Christianity, and Byzantine Civilization September 22, 2010

2. Hebrews • Characterized by movement, exile, desire to maintain identity of their nation • Originate in the Mesopotamian basin in 2000 BCE – the Tigris and Euphrates delta was believed to be where the Garden of Eden was • Before the establishment of the Israelite civilization, what is now Israel was dominated by Phoenician, Philistine and Canaanite tribes. The biblical account of a mass emigration to the Land of Israel may not be accurate. Many archaeologists believe that Israelites arose as a subculture within Canaanite society. • The ‘Hebrew bible’ is a neutral, non-denominational term (AKA ‘Old Testament’) • It is a compilation of hymns, prophecies and laws transcribed by various authors between 800 and 400 BCE, about 1000 years after the events occurred which it describes • Hebrews differed from other fertile crescent cultures as they were monotheistic (believed in one god)

3. Rough boundaries of the Israel / Palestine area in ancient times How does the land of Israel in ancient times relate to the conflict in Israel in the present? What is the conflict about?

4. The Emergence of Judaism • Western civilization has been strongly influenced by ancient Hebrews, or Jews, as they came to be known: • Jew produced a ‘religion of the book’ (what Christians refer to as the ‘Old Testament’), providing a spiritual and moral foundation for much of ‘western’ culture • Judaism did not seek converts • While there are not many material remains of ancient Jewish culture (due to persecution), there are many long-standing traditions that have been carried out over the centuries and even the milliennia

5. Jewish belief • Creation: • Hebrews believed that God created heaven and earth • Humans no longer live in the original paradise – why? • Wandering patriarchs – a pattern of exile that characterizes Jews from ancient times • Hebrew bible features etiological stories, stories about the origins and causes of things: • Patriarchs: • Abraham was the first of the Patriarchs, who believed the were favored by God • Abraham and his followers made the promise of the Covenant, an agreement between God and his people: God agrees to be the Hebrew deity if the Hebrews agree to be his people and follow his will

6. Jewish belief • Creation: • Hebrews believed that God created heaven and earth • Humans no longer live in the original paradise – why? • Wandering patriarchs – a pattern of exile that characterizes Jews from ancient times • Hebrew bible features etiological stories, stories about the origins and causes of things: • The Great Flood • Tower of Babel • Creation and fall of humans • Patriarchs: • Abraham was the first of the Patriarchs, who believed the were favored by God • Abraham and his followers made the promise of the Covenant, an agreement between God and his people: God agrees to be the Hebrew deity if the Hebrews agree to be his people and follow his will

7. Dead Sea Scrolls • Discovered in eleven caves in the 1940s and 1950s in what is now Israel near the Dead Sea • Collection of about 900 documents written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek • The scrolls are of great religious and historical significance: • They include the oldest known surviving copes of Biblical documents • They demonstrate the variation of Old Testament scriptures that used to exist until the ‘canonization’ of the Old Testament in 100 CE • The books of the Hebrew Bible were composed over a period of 1,500 years, from 3,000 BC to the 2nd century BCE • Originally written in Hebrew – present-day Bible in English has been influenced by several translations: Greek, Latin, Renaissance English • What are some inherent problems or challenges with this?

8. Caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in the 1940s and 50s, near the ancient settlement of Qumran Ruins from the ancient settlement of Qumran

9. 10 Commandments According to the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), the Ten Commandments were spoken by God to the people of Israel and given to Moses in the form of two stone tablets: • You shall have no other gods before me. • You shall not make for yourself any carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. • You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. • Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who iswithin your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. • Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you. • You shall not murder. • You shall not commit adultery. • You shall not steal. • You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. • You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

10. What ancient cultural artifacts did Hebrews leave behind? • Very little! Most of it was destroyed as the Jewish people were conquered, persecuted and exiled

11. King Solomon’s Jerusalem • In about 1000 BCE, Saul was the first king to unite Israel (the 12 tribes formed by each of Jacobs sons) • His son, David (who killed the giant Goliath with a slingshot), started a massive building campaign which was finished by his son, Solomon • In Solomon’s time, Jerusalem was one of the most beautiful cities in the Middle East • http://news.discovery.com/archaeology/jerusalem-city-wall-possibly-build-by-solomon-discovered.html

12. Jerusalem today – Solomon’s temple was destroyed by Babylonians in 586 BCE -invading Persians freed them from the Babylonians and the temple was rebuilt in 516 BCE, expanded by King Herod in 19BCE, destroyed along with the rest of Jerusalem by the Roman Empire in 70 CE

13. King Solomon’s Jerusalem • In about 1000 BCE, Saul was the first king to unite Israel (the 12 tribes formed by each of Jacobs sons) • His son, David (who killed the giant Goliath with a slingshot), started a massive building campaign which was finished by his son, Solomon • David (1000-961 BCE) was Israel’s greatest king • Militaristic period • Captured Jerusalem and made it his capital • In King Solomon’s time, Jerusalem was one of the most beautiful cities in the Middle East • http://news.discovery.com/archaeology/jerusalem-city-wall-possibly-build-by-solomon-discovered.html

14. Some of the most ancient Jewish art is found outside of Israel: Menorahs and the Ark of the Covenant, wall painting in a Jewish catacomb, 3rd century CE, Rome – the form of the Menorah likely derives from the Tree of Life, an ancient Mesopotamian symbol

15. Jerusalem today – Solomon’s temple was destroyed by Babylonians in 586 BCE -invading Persians freed them from the Babylonians and the temple was rebuilt in 516 BCE, expanded by King Herod in 19BCE, destroyed along with the rest of Jerusalem by the Roman Empire in 70 CE

16. Early Christianity • Why was Judaism fundamental to the emergence of Christianity?

17. Early Christianity • Why was Judaism fundamental to the emergence of Christianity? • Jews held the belief that a Messiah would come into the world to save humankind • Many apocalyptic Hebrew writings predicted the coming of a Savior • John the Baptist paved the way for Jesus followers by preaching that a Messiah was at hand • Those who believed Jesus when he preached the Kingdom of God was imminent became the first Christians. • Christians believe: • Jesus is God and Savior • Followers share eternal life with Jesus in heaven • Jesus rose from the dead after being crucified by Romans

18. Brief intro to Jesus • Jesus was a Jew • Public ministry of Jesus began when Jesus was 30, when his followers believe he turned water into wine at a wedding near his hometown of Nazareth • The teachings of Jesus are central to Christian beliefs and values – he spoke in a way regular people could understand • No one knows what Jesus looked like – various interpretations: 530 CE, Rome – totally different from more fair Renaissance depictions

19. Influences on Christianity and Jewish parallels • Greek, Roman, Middle Eastern and Jewish influences on Christianity • Christians borrowed heavily on Jewish traditions and beliefs: • Common vision of a God who makes moral demands on his subjects • Strong ethical standards • Ritualistic traditions – Jewish Passover and Christian Easter • Weekly holy day (Saturday for Jews, Sunday for Christians)

20. Mother and child images from around the Mediterranean: ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, ancient Rome – this image had significance across cultures, closely linked with ‘Mother goddess’

21. Early spread of Christianity – spread throughout the Mediterranean due to missionaries, especially Paul

22. Spread of Christianity • Not everyone was convinced by the concept and ideas of Jesus • Many viewed Christians as a wacky cult • Many blamed Christians for bad events • Roman authorities wanted Christians to also worship the Roman gods along with Jesus • 313 CE – Roman Emperor Constantine made it legal to be Christian • The Christian church was never united – much variation in how Christianity was practiced across the Mediterranean • The Great Schism of 1054 CE – the church split into two branches: 1) Eastern Church, based in Constantinople and lead by the patriarch 2) Roman church, lead by the pope Pope Benedict XVI, leader of the Catholic church Patriarch of Eastern Orthodox church, Bartholamew I

23. Early Christian art • No early Christian art – images seen as idol worship • First art illustrated the bible for illiterates Old St. Peter’s, Rome, 333 Ce

24. Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome, 430 CE -located on the site of a temple dedicated to a Roman goddess -long axis draws eye towards the altar -post and lintel construction = limited space -wood ceiling = constant threat of fire -drab exterior, elaborate interior meant to be admired What similarities do you see with ancient Roman temples?

25. Architecture developments in early Christian culture • Domed roofs began to be built: Santa Costanza, Rome, 350 CE • Central (round) rather than axial plan • Dome, rather than post and lintel, offers uninterrupted space

26. Architecture developments in early Christian culture • Domed roofs began to be built: Santa Costanza, Rome, 350 CE • Central (round) rather than axial plan • Dome, rather than post and lintel, offers uninterrupted space • Plain, unadorned brick exterior

27. Architecture developments in early Christian culture • Domed roofs began to be built: Santa Costanza, Rome, 350 CE • Central (round) rather than axial plan • Dome, rather than post and lintel, offers uninterrupted space • Plain, unadorned brick Exterior • Interior: ornate, rich materials • Light enters through clerestory windows, ambulatory features mosaics • Santa Costanza’s basic layout was used by later Byzantine architects

28. Early Christian Era Sculpture and Painting • Very little sculpture was made during this period – considered idol worship • Jesus the Good Shepherd, 3rd century CE, marble, Rome

29. Early Christian Era Sculpture and Painting • Very little sculpture was made during this period – considered idol worship • Jesus the Good Shepherd, 3rd century CE, marble, Rome • Most early Christian sculpture is in the form of reliefs carved on sarcophagi • Sarcophagus of JuniusBassus, 359 CE, marble More focused on recognition of individuals than on realistic representations of human bodies – big heads on tiny bodies

30. Byzantine Civilization • 330 CE, Roman Empire in severe economic and political decline, Rome was disease-ridden, was so weakened that it was sacked several times (first for 800 years) • Emperor Constantine shifted his capital from Rome to Byzantium, which he renamed Constantinople • During the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe’s largest and wealthiest city • Page 141: “By the end of the fifth century, Roman power had disintegrated, and the empire had been replaced by a patchwork of barbarian kingdoms”.

34. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy

35. Byzantine Civilization • 330 CE, Roman Empire in severe economic and political decline, Rome was disease-ridden, was so weakened that it was sacked several times (first for 800 years) • Emperor Constantine shifted his capital from Rome to Byzantium, which he renamed Constantinople • During the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe’s largest and wealthiest city • Call ‘Byzantium’ of the Byzantine Civilization after Constantinople’s original name • Thrived for hundreds of years until the arrival of Islam • In 15th century, Constantinople was controlled by Muslim forces • Page 141: “By the end of the fifth century, Roman power had disintegrated, and the empire had been replaced by a patchwork of barbarian kingdoms”. What is problematic about this statement? Who decides what is a ‘barbarian kingdom’ and what is not? What exactly is meant by ‘barbarian’?

39. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, 526-47 CE -typically plain, unadorned exterior

40. Ravenna Constantinople

41. Two types of centrally planned buildings in early Christianity: Santa Costanza: Circular plan San Vitale: octagonal plan

42. San Vitale: -complex interior space -advantage of a central dome – creates a large covered space Disadvantage: visitor’s eye attracted up into the dome rather than toward the altar -Light enters on three levels -polished marble surfaces, glittering mosaics -why is there such a contrast between the interior and exterior?

43. Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome – visitor’s eye drawn towards the altar

44. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy – How can we characterize the depictions of people?

45. Empress Theodora • -typically Byzantine features: • Larges eyes • Small mouth • Long nose • Slender and weightless body • Drapery of dress gives no idea of the body underneath • Appears frozen • Lack of concern for realism

46. Capitals designed to appear lace-like – masks the solidity and strength of the material