CHAPTER VI

EARLY CHRISTIAN AND BYZANTINE ARCHITECTURE, A.D. 250-600

HOUSE CHURCH AT DURA EUROPOS, NORTHERN MESOPOTAMIA, c. 231

- similar layout to that of the Hellenistic house at Priene

- rectangular assembly hall of 5 m by 13 m for about 60 people
- DESCRIPTION: a normal domestic house converted for worship some time between 233 and
256, when the town was abandoned after conquest by the Persians

- an example of architecture of labour

SANTA SABINA, ROME, c. 422-432

- southwest direction of facade

- DIMENSIONS: 61 m by 29.9 m

- WIDTH OF NAVE: 17.1 m

- the nave is lit by high, arched clerestory windows, while the side aisles are relatively dark,
creating a transcendal, heavenly appearance on the luminous upper part of the interior

- ARCHITECTURAL FORM: straight line (main nave) to a point (altar)

- the arcaded columns are abstractions of human beings in procession toward the altar
- the arches above the individual columns unite in a gesture similar to the joining of human hands
in an expression of a union in love, or persons bowing to each other in an expression of respect,
peace and love

- ARCHITECTURAL MEANING: concretization of spiritual space through dematerialization and a

special kind of illumination

- COLUMNS: support the arcades; height is 91/2 times its diameter; spaces between columns is 5
times its diameter

- 24 columns of Proconnesian marble with perfectly matched Corinthian columns and bases
(rescued from the temple of Juno)

- CONTRAST TO SANT APOLLINARE NUOVO: the arches of the nave rest solemnly on the
columns and establish a continuity between supporting elements and those supported; the eye
glides up easily from the base of the column, toward the shaft, to the Corinthian capital, to the
arch above it, and then onto the next column, repeating this movement toward the altar in a slow
and solemn pace
- the impost blocks on top of the columns of the Sant Apollinare Nuovo create a break between
the arch and the capital of the columns, telling the viewers eye to glide across the series of
arches above the columns; this results in a faster tempo and downplays the vertical relationship
while emphasising the horizontal

- CONTRAST TO BASILICA ULPIA: from its predecessor, the Basilica Ulpia, two important
changes were madea quantitative change, which was the reduction of a superhuman scale to
a more intimate and personal and human level, and a qualitative change, which was the change
from a static space to a dynamic space

SANTA COSTANZA, ROME, c. 345

- built under Constantine I as a mausoleum for his daughter Constantina (Costanza) and his other
daughter Helena, wife of Julian

- MAUSOLEUM: circular, with an ambulatory surrounding the central dome

- STRUCTURE: circular and centralised
- basically 2 rings supported by columns placed around a vertical central axis; there ring sits on
the columns while the lower ring encloses a circular ambulatory whose space flows between the
columns into the axial cylinder

- ARCADE: on top of 12 pairs of granite columns decorated with composite capitals; supports the
drum below the dome; separates the area of the ambulatory beyond (dimmer and darker areas)

- CLERESTORY: has 12 windows which shine light into the central area
- number of arches, pairs of columns, and windows may refer to the 12 apostles
- AMBULATORY: barrel-vaulted; 22.6 m in diameter
- ROOF: dome and vault
- DOME VAULT: 19 m high
- ARCHITECTURAL FORM: central point; concentric form (circular rings); superimposed cross;
centralised and longitudinal space; highly centralized, concentric, and centripetal form

ARCHITECTURAL MEANING: there is dynamic, but it is calm, rhythmic, and fluent

the centralized domed interior space is associated with the dome of heaven
the space around a point symbolises the place where earth and heaven meet
the superimposed cross with emphasis on the longitudinal axis explains that every centre
implies directions, and that there is no centre or goal without a path, in which the final goal is to
be with Christ
- the way the columns are paired points the viewer to the centre of the interior
- eye movement is drawn toward the centre due to the light coming from the clerestory windows

- CONTRAST TO SAN VITALE: the Santa Constanza promotes a two-fold centripetal movement
circular, following the ambulatory, and linear, towards the centre

- the semicircular niches of the San Vitale expand outward, eating into the ambulatory, creating a
centrifugal movement

- CONTRAST TO THE PANTHEON: both structures contain alternating semicircular and

rectangular niches; depths of niches in the Pantheon is hidden by screen columns; the view of
the depths of the niches in Santa Constanza is unobstructed
- the dome of the Santa Costanza is supported by only 12 pairs of columns at 30-degree intervals,
with a nearly 1:2 ratio of its diameter compared to its height, making the structure naturally
unstable; the dome of the Pantheon, on the other hand, has a 1:1 ratio of its height and
diameter, and its base is supported all throughout in 360 degrees

SANT APOLLINARE NUOVO, RAVENNA, c. 504

- built by Theodoric after 500 A.D.

- 24 columns of Greek marble divide the interior into a nave and two aisles, the nave ending in a
rounded apse

- a procession of 26 martyrs lead from the palace to the apse

- CONTRAST TO SANTA SABINA: the impost blocks on top of the columns create a break
between the arch and the capital of the columns, telling the viewers eye to glide across the
series of arches above the columns; this results in a faster tempo and downplays the vertical
relationship while emphasising the horizontal
- the impost blocks create a series of equidistant points horizontally, which then appears as a
horizontal band; this configuration is repeated at the column bases

- BANDS OF MOSAIC ABOVE THE ARCADE: underline and accentuate the accelerated
horizontal movement toward the altar

- MOSAIC: representational meaning or expression of the Christian and his fellowmen on his way
toward his final goal (altar); the choice of materials used (hard and glossy surface) supports the
artists aim to let eyes glide smoothly toward the altar; the clerestory windows and ceiling also
support this accelerated movement, but less emphatically

SAN VITALE, RAVENNA, c. 526-547

- begun by Bishop Eccless in 526, under the rule of the Ostrogoths

- richly ornamented
- STRUCTURE: octagonal plan
- central section is surrounded by 2 superimposed ambulatories
- DOME: supported mainly by 8 points; stabilised by the semicircular niches
- APSE: flanked by two chapelsprothesis and diaconicon

- CONTRAST TO THE PANTHEON: the Pantheon uses paired columns and niches, but the
niches are recesses in the circular outside wall and closed off by two columns; the San Vitales
paired columns create semicircular niches between the piers of the inner ring
- the paired columns in the Pantheon are made structurally active and form an inner ring
supporting the dome; the columns in the San Vitale transfer the supporting function to 8 massive
piers
- the Pantheon is a static space which hardly invites any movement, while the San Vitale is
dynamic (centrifugal movement)

- CONTRAST TO THE SANTA COSTANZA: the semicircular niches of the San Vitale expand
outward, eating into the ambulatory, creating a centrifugal movement; the Santa Constanza
promotes a two-fold centripetal movementcircular, following the ambulatory, and linear,
towards the centre

- ARCHITECTURAL FORM: centralized arrangement with a superimposed longitudinal axis;

highly centralised, concentric, and centrifugal space

- ARCHITECTURAL MEANING: the dome of heaven is reached only after passing through some
predatory low and difficult spaces (effort to reach destination)

- in the sanctuary (the space for the altar), the geometry is abruptly altered, expressing the
predominance of where heaven and earth meet

- the faithful are gathered in the main circular space, symbolising unity and togetherness in the
Christian community into a forceful way

OLD SAINT PETERS, ROME, DEDICATED c. 330

built by Constantine
believed to be the most important design in the history of church architecture
103.6 m long
wide central nave stood over 30 m high; its length was almost equal its height and twice the
width of the nave of a great Gothic cathedral
- houses 3000 to 4000 worshipers
- the apse of the altar is located west so that the basilicas facade could be approached from
Rome itself
- DIMENSIONS: 64 m wide with its double aisles on each side; 90 m long

CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE, JERUSALEM, c. 345

an attempt to integrate the longitudinal plan with the central one

the rotunda of the Holy Sepulchre resembles superficially that of Santa Constanza
the relationship of the circular and longitudinal arrangement is rather loose and rambling
Constantines most important church foundation in the east

SS. SERGIUS AND BACCHUS, possibly begun c. 527, completed before 536

- known as the Little Hagia Sophia

- its plan is a development of the tetraconch form with surrounding ambulatory
- an octagonal core is expanded on the four diagonal sides by exedrae, and the east and the west
sides are open, respectively to the chancel and towards a narthex

- has an octagonal nave with semicircular niches, similar to that of the San Vitale
- built by Justinian
- a system of half domes support and surround the main dome

HAGIA SOPHIA, c. 532-527

- built by the orders of Justinian, by the Greek scientists Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of
Tralles

- greatest achievement in engineering because of its structure

- linear and centralized form

- compared to the Holy Sepulcher, the Hagia Sophia achieved the combination of the central and
linear form in a single structure

- one of the greatest achievements in architecture

- now non existing atrium
- double narthex
- NAVE: dominated by a dome
- DOME: supported by pedantries and buttresses, similar to Hagia Irene
- EAST-WEST DIRECTION: half domes, subdivided into three smaller, half domes, supported by
smaller buttresses below

- NORTH-SOUTH DIRECTION: buttresses

- EAST: the direction toward the altar
- AMBULATORY: continuous passage around the nave
- BUTTRESSES: hollowed out to promote passage inside the aisles
- DIMENSIONS (Klassen): 71 m by 77 m; 30 m diameter of dome; 20.5 m depth of side aisles
(NE and SW directions); 55 m in height

- DIMENSIONS (Fletcher): 54.9 m high; 67.1 m wide; 76.2 m long (excluding the double narthex);
32.6 m diameter of dome; buttresses measure 7.62 m by 18.3 m

- a ring of 40 windows sit at the base of the dome, allowing a circle of light to shine into the
interior, thus creating the illusion that the dome is floating in a bed of light; this phenomenon
transforms the architecture into a spiritual, magical, mystical vision

- BAALBEK: 8 Corinthian columns

- CONTRAST TO THE PANTHEON: the base of the dome of the Pantheon is supported by a
continuous wall, while the base of the dome of the Hagia Sophia is supported by only four points
(pendentives and buttresses)
- the diameter and height of the dome of the Pantheon has a 1:1 ratio, while that of the Hagia
Sophia has a 1:1.8 ratio

- the system of half domes situated on two sides of the central dome absorb its lateral thrust and
relays the load to the three smaller half downs located directly below it, and then to the ground

- THE HAGIA SOPHIA IS A GENUINE AND SUCCESSFUL SYNTHESIS IN SEVERAL WAYS:

- structurally it fuses the two most grandiose architectural spaces of ancient Rome, the Basilica of
Maxentius and the Pantheon, into one

- spatially it combines for the first time completely and successfully the longitudinal scheme of the
basilica with a centralised arrangement

- historically it brings the development from the S. Constanza to San Vitale and SS. Sergio's and
Bakchos to a genuine climax and conclusion

- STRUCTURAL: the base of the dome rests on pendentives, which are spherical triangles
between four supporting arches, resting on the main four piers below

- the bracing against the lateral thrust of the dome has been done in the east-west direction
through semicircular lower domes on either side transmitting the forces to two or three still lower
and smaller semicircular domes; in the transverse north-south direction, the lateral thrust of the
dome is transmitted to four huge buttresses which reinforce the central piers, but which are not
visible on the inside

- SPATIAL: the Hagia Sophia has a complete integration and a perfect balance between
longitudinality and centrality, between the solemn horizontal processional axis and the vertical
symbolic center

- HISTORICAL: a space within a space; the inside space is the major and higher one, the outside
space is lower and secondary

- functional differentiation where the central space was for the emperor, his court and his clergy,
the surrounding space for the people

- WINDOWS: the 40 windows at the base of the dome give the peculiar illusion that the dome
rests upon the light that floods through them

- light becomes the agent that seems to dissolve material substance and transform it into an
abstract spiritual vision

HAGIA IRENE, begun 532 or shortly after, but extensively reconstructed after 740

- replaced a church which was a cathedral before the first Hagia Sophia was built, and which was
-

badly damaged by fire in 532

its nave resembles a Greek cross
the weight of its dome is carried by pendentives and then transferred to four buttresses
prototype of Hagia Sophia
cruciform in plan

CHAPTER VII
ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE, A.D. 850-1600
THE GREAT MOSQUE OF SAMARRA ON THE TIGRIS RIVER, IRAQ (NORTHWEST OF
BAGHDAD), c. 848-852

- also known as the Malwiya

- consisted of an immense walled courtyard planned on a ratio of three to two, 155.4 m by 237.7
m, surrounded by 4 aisles except on the south side where 9 aisles form the prayer chamber

- the internal structure of mud-brick piers and timber pole-joisted riffs has long since disappeared.,
but the massive brick outer walls remain, buttressed at intervals of 15.8 m by half-round towers

- over half of its ten-acre area was covered by a wooden roof, carried by 464 supports arranged in
aisles around the open central court

- MALWIYA TOWER: the enormous helicoidal minaret at the northern end, isolated from the
mosque, but on the main axis

- this form of helical ramp around a massive core seems to have been original in its own terms
- 52 m high; 33 m wide spiral ramp made of sandstone
- central and linear form (centripetal and vertical)
- DIMENSIONS: 245 m by 158 m or 239 m by 156 m (!?)

MOSQUE AL HAKEM, CORDOBA, SPAIN, begun c. 786

- 848: Abd ar-Rahman II

- 961 and 968: al-Hakim
- 987: al-Mansur
- comparable in size with the Malwiya and Abu Dulaf mosques in Samarra
- simple but distinctive architectural style
- had 1293 columns originally but now only 856 remain
- 23000 sqm (2.3 hectares) or 14000 sqm (1.4 hectares) (!?)

MOSQUE ALHAMBRA

one of the most elaborate and richly decorated of Muslim palaces

740 m (east-west) by 205 m (north-south)
HALL OF THE AMBASSADORS: 12 m square, 23 m high
COURT OF THE LIONS: 35 m by 20 m
HALL OF THE TWO SISTERS: the two sisters are two large marble slabs measuring 500 cm by
220 cm
- MUQARNA: stalactite ornaments
- ARABESQUE GRILL WORK

TAJ MAHAL

- 58 m square in plan
- CENTRAL INNER DOME: 24.7 m high and 17.8 m in diameter, surmounted by an outer shell 61
m in height

- the perfect, pure, and everlasting love Shah Jahan had for his wife Mumtaz is expressed
architecturally through the perfect symmetry of the entire complex

- ironically, Shah Jahan himself, destroyed that architectural abstraction, when he was buried next
to his wife, a higher cenotaph marking his grave

- JAWAB: reply

DEFINITION OF TERMS
1. CLERESTORY - the upper window-level of a large enclosed space, rising above adjacent
roofs; in particular it is the upper window range of a basilican building above the arcade and
triforium; a portion of an interior rising above adjacent rooftops and having windows admitting
daylight to the interior
2. MARTYRIUM - a church or other building erected over a site which bears witness to the
Christian faith, either by referring to an event in Christs life or passion, or by sheltering the
grave of a martyr, a witness by virtue of having shed his blood; a circular building, based on the
point and interpreted as the center, erected over the tomb of a martyr
3. APSE - a vaulted semicircular or polygonal termination, usually to a chancel or chapel; a
semicircular or polygonal projection of a building, usually vaulted and used esp. at the
sanctuary or east end of a church
4. BASILICA - an early Christian church, characterised by a long, rectangular plan, a high
colonnaded nave lit by a clerestory and covered by a timbered gable roof, two or four lower
side aisles, a semicircular apse at the end, a narthex, and often other features, such as an
atrium, a bema, and small circular apses terminating the aisles
5. ATRIUM - the forecourt of an early Christian church, flanked or surrounded by porticoes
6. AMBULATORY - the covered walk of an atrium or cloister; an aisle encircling the end of the
choir or chancel of a church
7. BAPTISTERY - a part of a church or a separate building in which baptism is administered
8. NARTHEX - a portico or vestibule before the nave of an early Christian or Byzantine church,
occupied by those not yet christened
9. ICONOSTASIS - a screen or partition on which icons are placed, separating the bema from the
nave of an Eastern church
10. EXEDRA - a large apsidal extension of the interior volume of a church
11. NAVE - the principal or center part of a church, extending from the narthex to the choir or
chancel and usually flanked by aisles
12. AISLE - any of the longitudinal divisions of a church, separated from the nave by a row of
columns or piers
13. BEMA - the sanctuary space surrounding the altar of an Eastern church; a transverse open
space separating the nave and the apse of an early Christian church, developing into the
transept of later cruciform churches
14. DIACONICON - a sacristy in an early Christian or Eastern church, usually on the south side of
the bema
15. SACRISTY - a room in a church where the sacred vessels and vestments are kept; also called
VESTRY
16. PROTHESIS - a chapel in an Eastern church where the Eucharistic elements are prepared,
usually on the north side of the bema
17. SARCOPHAGUS - a stone coffin, esp. one bearing sculpture or inscriptions and displayed as a
monument
18. ALTAR - the table in a Christian church upon which the Eucharist, the sacrament celebrating
Christs Last Supper, is celebrated; also called COMMUNION TABLE
19. SANCTUARY - a sacred or holy place, as that part of a church in which the principal altar is
placed
20. PENDENTIVE - a spherical triangle forming the transition from the circular plan of the dome to
the polygonal plan of its supporting structure; three dimensional true arch (pendentives are
spherical triangles between four supporting arches, which rest on the main four piers)
21. OCULUS - circular opening, esp. one at the crown of a dome
22. PENDENTIVE DOME - a spherical dome formed by removing four segments so that it merges
with its pendentives and sits on a square plan
23. SQUINCH - an arch, corbel, vault, or lintel built across the upper inside corner of a square
tower to support the side of a superimposed octagonal structure; three-dimensional corbel arch
24. MINARET - a lofty, slender tower attached to a mosque, having stairs leading up to one or
more projecting balconies from which the muezzin calls the Muslim people to prayer

25. MINBAR - a pulpit in a mosque, recalling the three steps from which Muhammad addressed
his followers and from which the imam delivers his sermons; also MIMBAR
26. QIBLA - the wall in a mosque in which the mihrab is set, oriented to Mecca; also QIBLAH,
KIBLA, KIBLAH
27. MIHRAB - a niche or decorative panel in a mosque designating the qibla
28. NICHE - a usually semicircular in plan, arched recess in a wall, usually for a statue or an
ornament
29. TRANSEPT - the major transverse part of a cruciform church, crossing the main axis at a right
angle between the nave and choir