In the early 14th century, the reconstruction project under the patronage of Theodoros Metochites turned the Church of the Chora Monastery into one of the most important representatives of Late Byzantine architecture. This construction project not only reinforced the building structurally but also elevated it to the status of a masterpiece distinguished by its mosaic…
Sixty years after the publication of Paul A. Underwood’s monumental monograph on Karyie Camii (ca. 1315-1321), in order to properly understand the mosaic and pictorial decoration of the Constantinopolitan Monastery, it is necessary to take the Princely Church of Curtea de Argeş (ca. 1364-1369) as a reference landmark. Contrary to the opinion of Underwood, this…
This communication revisits the imperial processions of Byzantium’s Middle and Late periods, analyzing the sacred markers through which the emperor engaged during these rituals. The principal sacred elements and saints invoked in the emperor’s symbolic gestures and acts of reverence—ranked by frequency—include the Cross, the Gospel, Saint Constantine the Great, the apostles, saints liturgists and…
Gregory of Nazianzus, a fourth-century author and bishop, was a well-travelled man. His most extensive journeys however, were only made after he died. His relics were first moved from Nazianzus to Constantinople. During the fourth crusade of 1204, they were then brought to Rome, where pope Gregory XIII transported them to one of the central…
The mosaic in the south vestibule of Hagia Sophia was created to commemorate a victory over the Bulgarians in the 10th century (or, according to other theories, over the East Slavs in 971); the most probable date is the early 11th century, although the dating is still debated (an overview of these discussions will be…