THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE

• TIME LINE
 Emperor Constantine I (reigned AD 306–337) to be the first "Byzantine Emperor". It was he who
moved the imperial capital in 330 from Rome to Byzantium, refounded as Constantinople, or Nova Roma
("New Rome").

In 395 A.D. the Roman Empire was dismembered , Its western part fell to the barbarians while the
eastern part played an important role in world history for more than a thousand years.

The Byzantine emperors converted neighboring people to Christianity and, with their powerful fleet,
ruled the seas up to the 8th century A.D.

CONSTANTINE
AD 306–337 THE CITY OF CONSTANTINOPLE
EASTERN ROMAN EMPIRE

BYZANTINE EMPIRE

FALL OF BYZANTINE EMPIRE

In 1096 A.D. the "Frankish" infiltration of the Levant began with the First Crusade. The Crusaders overran
the Greek lands.

In 1453, Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks after a siege of two months .

Miniature showing Turks siege of the empire

 RELIGION
In 313 ac Christianity became the official Religion
Of Byzantine.

 The church of Constantinople became, between the 6th and 11th centuries, the richest and most influential
center of Christendom

Hagia Sophia, (532 a c).

 ARCHITECTURE

•The architecture of Byzantine empire is a continuation of the roman architecture.

•The earliest of the monuments of the Byzantine empire is S.vitale (526-547 a.d) built under the reign of Justinian
•It had an octagonal plan with the domed central core.
•Large windows on every level which flooded the interior with light.
•The use of arches , domes , vaults were took forward in the Byzantine architecture.
•The exterior was very simple as compared to the interiors

•
VITALE, RAVENNA

INTERIOR

JUSTINIAN AND ATTENDANTS

(MOSAIC)
•The most imposing achievement of Byzantine architecture is the Church of Holy Wisdom or Hagia Sophia .
•Built in a short span of five years (532-537 a.d) under the reign of Justinian.
•Has a huge dome which stands out boldly.
•Dome is based on the square base on four huge arches.
•The use of pendentives ( spherical triangles) made the construction of domes easier and economical.
•For 900 years it was the centre of Christianity.
•It became a mosque after the conquest of Turks.
•The four minarets were added later.
•The mosaic works were covered with white wash by Turks.
• now it is functional as a museum.
 ART
•Byzantine art developed out of the art of the Roman empire .

•Early Byzantine art

The most salient feature of Byzantine art was its “abstract,” or anti-naturalistic character.
Early Byzantine art was also marked by the cultivation of ivory carving.
Silver plates were another important form of luxury art

Depiction on silver plates

Miniatures of the 6th-century Rabula Gospel

display the more abstract and symbolic
nature of Byzantine art. Leaf from an ivory diptych
• Later on in the 9th – 11th century the Byzantine architecture witnessed changes like
Modest in scale
More monastic in spirit
More ornate exteriors
Preference for elongated proportions

•The most important church of this period is St.mark at Venice

•Very lavishly decorated
•Spacious interior
•Famous for mosaics

ST.MARK’S (VENICE)

St.Marks,venice St.Basil’s
JUSTINIAN

• Justinian renovated, rebuilt, or founded anew countless churches within Constantinople.

• The decoration of San Vitale includes important mosaics of Justinian and
his empress, Theodora, although neither ever visited the church.
• Ivory sculptures

ivory sculptures

Mosaic from San Vitale in Ravenna,

Ivory sculpture depicting Justinian
showing the Emperor Justinian and
Bishop Maximian of Ravenna surrounded
by clerics and soldiers.
• ICONOCLASM (725-843 A.D)

• Intense debate over the role of art in worship led eventually to the period of
"Byzantine iconoclasm.“
• Destruction within a culture of the culture's own religious icons and other symbols
or monuments, usually for religious or political motives.
• Iconoclasm severely restricted the role of religious art, and led to the removal of some
earlier apse mosaics and the sporadic destruction of portable icons.
 • MACEDONIAN ART (867-1050 A.D)
Revival of the Christian art with the new rulings of a new church council in 843
Continuation of the Byzantine art with few developments

• COMNENIAN AGE(1025-1204 A.D)

• Ivory sculpture and other expensive mediums of art

gradually gave way to frescoes and icons, which for the
first time gained widespread popularity across the Empire.

• Apart from painted icons, there were other varieties –

notably the mosaic and ceramic ones.

• Some of the finest Byzantine work of

this period may be found outside the
Empire: in the mosaics of Gelati, Kiev,
Torcello, Venice, Monreale, Cefalù
and Palermo.

An example of Macedonian ivory work

Christ and Peter, mosaic

• PALAEOLOGAN AGE (1261-1453 A.D)

• The Palaeologan Dynasty was the last golden age of Byzantine art
• The increasing cultural exchange between Byzantine and Italian artists
developed a new interest in landscapes and pastoral scenes in the
byzantine artists
• The traditional mosaic-work gradually gave way to detailed cycles of narrative frescoes.

Wall painting. Parekklesion,

the Chora Monastery,
Constantinople, 1321. The Deesis.
 Costume
 During the long reign of the empire , there were two periods of especial
brilliance and prosperity when the dominance and influence of
Constantinople were paramount:

 Under the emperor JUSTINIAN in sixth century A.D

In first few centuries the influence of Rome was still strong and draped
style of costume predominated in the cut of the dress .
 Second 9th – 13 th century - Here dress showed more features of Persian ,
Assyrian , Egyptian and Anatolian designs , the fabric and color were from
the beginning , strongly eastern and eastern style of costume began slowly
to assert itself in form of trouser , footwear , head-coverings , above all in
decoration and jewellery .

 Luxury fabrics and jewels flowed into the empire and thus costume attained
a richness of color , fabric and ornament which far exceeded that of the
great day of Rome .
 Most dazzling attire were produced here and envied or copied by rest of
the world .
 textile
The chief feature which characterized Byzantine dress was the beauty of
the fabric due to development of textile .
 The dress became costly , magnificence also quality of stiffness and
luminosity
 These fabrics introduced a new kind of cut which displayed them
advantage
 Wool and Linen gave way to simple , straight garments without fold , giving
a stiff , more formal appearance , at once hieratic and dignified .
 Quality of fabric stemmed from the beautiful woven pattern and extensive
use of silk
 Designs were floral and geometrical and motif being circles , palmettes ,
all kind of flower and leaves – incorpating mythological and dramatic
animals and birds .
 Borrowing first from the Romans, geometric designs were filled with
fantastic creatures or religious images or elaborate repeating floral motifs.
 In the eighth through tenth centuries interaction from the Eastern and
Muslim countries influenced patterns so they became more stylized and
elaborate.
 These influences effected the shape of garments as well, with the introduction of
short stand-up collars and the widening of sleeves on dalmaticas

 Emperor Justinian introduced the manufacture of silk to Constantinople , and

thus its use became widespread by court and the very rich .

 Imperial dress was characterized by purple and gold

 Caravans from far east brought even more exotic , beautiful fabrics and these
were studied and copied .

 In the 9th and 10th century the garments of well to do were especially vivid in red ,
violet , gold , yellow and green .
Fabrics

Linen: The predominant fabric in the Byzantine empire ,Linen is the fabric created from the spun
fiber of the flax plant, spun and tabby woven

Cotton: Imported from Egypt, cotton was a luxury fabric in Byzantium.

Wool: Wool was woven and used in many weights, from fine veils to winter dalmaticas and
tunica to heavy winter cloaks. Wool was also felted in cloth for use in shoes and hats

 SILK In the sixth century Byzantium obtained the secret of the silk worm and began its own silk
industry , There they wove brocades, damasks, and samite, a heavy lustrous fabric

In the 10th century silk was combined with goat or camel hair sometimes shot with gold or silver
,called 'bougram' or 'boquerant’ for the city where it was made

Baudekyn is another silk-based fabric, with a weft of silk and a warp of gold threads.

Another silk fabric, Cendal, was a thinner , less-expensive fabric woven plain or in stripes.
 Fragments of a linen tunic, fourth-fifth century

Fragments of a linen tunic woven with a shoulder-square and short band in linen and
brown wool.
Fragment of a woolen cloak woven with a large tapestry roundel in undyed and
lavender-blue wool. East Roman period, 3rd – 4th century
Linen tunic, woven with long tapestry bands and neck-panels, in linen and brown wool,
depicting animals and armed men. Byzantine period, fifth-sixth century.
Child's sleeveless wool tunic woven with long tapestry bands in linen and
multicolored wool, with a pattern of foliage. 6th -7th century.
Tapestry square of linen and blue wool, depicting Thetis asking Hephaistos to forge
new armour for her son Achilles 5th -6th century.
Papyrus with designs for a tapestry band and square depicting Orpheus and water-
creatures. 6th -7th centuries.
 Fragments of a tunic of fine linen woven with a short tapestry band and square in
multicolored silk and fine goat's-wool, depicting a horseman and water-creatures.
 DRESS
The Byzantine dress were simple and easy to construct. The primary article of dress was
called a tunica

The main over-garment worn both by men and women is called the dalmatica , is triangular,
with narrowing sleeves or flaring sleeves.

The stola is unchanged from Roman times.. In seventh and eight centuries the stola developed
bell-shaped sleeves and became undistinguishable from the dalmatica.

Outer wear consisted of different style cloaks

The people of the Byzantine used all manner of woven, embroidered and beaded surface
embellishment, particularly on Church vestments and court dress.

The Byzantines were very fond of vibrant, bright colors, reserving royal purple for the emperor
and empress.
 The limbs are covered and sleeves extended to wrist for both sexes
 Women ‘s gown s are often patterned all over , though both sexes wore
garments ornamented with panels and roundles of decoration applied to the
materials .
 Masculine cloak was fastened on the shoulder .
 Women wore a palla , which was draped around the shoulder and when
necessary over the head .
 In 5th – 6th century women still wore the dalmatica with it ‘s loose long
sleeves and clavus decorations
 As time passed these dress became more richer and glittering .
 In the second period of prosperity color became deep and strong , with
extensive use of violet and red , silk material were encrusted with jewels
and pearls
 Imperial dress included , long panel material with gold and jewellery
embroidery , like a scarf tied round the body , its ends hanging loose
 The tunica served as the basic undergarment of both men and women, or
the only garment for the working class and poor.
 The Byzantines were very fond of vibrant, bright colors, reserving royal
purple for the emperor and empress.
 Their dress is richly ornamented with embroidery and trim.
 The highest classes ornamented with jewels, particularly pearls.
 Fabrics consisted of linen for tunicas and some dalmaticas, stolas,and
cloaks;
 Silk for richer tunicas, dalmaticas, stolas and cloaks.
 Dalmaticas and cloaks were of wool as well.
 Egyptian cotton was found in tunicas, though very rarely.
 Tunica The basic Byzantine undergarment, essentially a t-tunic constructed
of linen, silk and occasionally Egyptian cotton.
The Dalmatica
The main over-garment worn both by men and women is called the dalmatica. This
garment began a t-tunic, but became more tailored in eighth century.
The essential line of a dalmatica is triangular, with narrowing sleeves or flaring
sleeves.
it’s essential line is triangular, with narrowing sleeves or flaring sleeves
 The line of the 1000 A.D. dalmatica was triangular, widest at the hem.
 Dalmaticas were worn both belted and unbelted.
Men's dalmaticas sometimes have hem slits at center or sides to facilitate walking and
riding.
 A few colored dalmatica existed in red, ochre, yellow and orange.
They sewed pearls, gemstones and metal/enamel plaques on their garments.
The upper class dalmatica would be trimmed with tapestry woven fabrics, ornamented
with clavi and segmentae, sleeve stripes, and occasionally on the hem.
The Stola
The stola of Byzantium is a woman's garment, unchanged from the Roman time
period.
 It consists of a large folded rectangle, woven with a neck slit and sewn closed from
wrist to hem.
 shaped as a wrist to wrist, neck to foot rectangle, with openings at the neck and wrists
The Stola is worn belted high under the bust
In seventh and eight centuries the stola developed bell-shaped sleeves and became
undistinguishable from the dalmatica.
 Tunica

The tunica was not constructed of cut fabric like modern garments, but woven entire
like a giant cross, with a neck slit woven in the center.
 Sometimes the neck opening was ornamented
Linen tunic woven with long tapestry bands in linen and purple wool.
The tunica served as the basic undergarment of both men and women, or the only
garment for the working class and poor.
 Paenula A full circle cloak with a central neck opening, sometimes hooded. It’s length
varied from hip to foot
 Pallium : A very rich, hem length, jeweled court tabard, worn by men.
 Paludamentum :
 A semi-circular or trapezoidal shaped cloak with tablions along the
straight edges
 Putting on the paludamentum was a ceremonial act on setting out for war.
The paludamentum was generally crimson , scarlet , or purple in colour,
sometimes white.
It was fastened at the shoulder with a clasp, called a fibula whose form and size
varied through time.
Superhumeral
An elaborate embroidered and sometime jeweled collar. When extensions wear
added to the superhumeral, it became a pallium

This was the imperial decorative collar.

It could be of cloth of gold or similar material, then studded with gems and/or immense
amounts of embroidery.
The collar would come over the collarbone to cover a portion of the upper chest.
The back portion of the pallium would be cut fairly long so that it could be wrapped
about the body and hang gracefully over the left arm.

superhumeral
 Cloaks
The most common paludamentum was a hip-length, semi-circular cloak, worn pinned
at the right shoulder
Both of these styles are likely to be ornamented on the straight edge with tablions,
square or diamond shaped

The second style of paludamentum, a trapeziod-shaped cloak, also pinned at the right
shoulder.

 The third cloak is called the paenula, a circle with only a neck opening, sometimes
hooded.
Outer wear consisted of three different style cloaks , the paludamentum in semi-circle
or trapazoid shapes and the paenula, a full circle cloak.
Clavi
The vertical stripes of ornament running down from the shoulders on tunicas ,

These are typically an embroidered cloth strip attached to the garment

Segmentae A roundel or square element at the end of a clavi.

The clavi could be tapestry woven into the garment at the same time.

Other clavi were appliqued on from another piece of tapestry, embroidered cloth or
even commercially made trim.

clavi
 Footwear
 Very little is known of Byzantine footwear, no examples have survived, and
images show little.
 The leather boot in black or colored was normal footwear for men .
 At court red leather was most usual , embroided with pearl .
 Sandals were also worn , especially by ladies and soft ankle-clinging shoes
with pointed toes for general indoor use .
 These were brightly colored and decorated in gold and jewelled embroidery
.
 Royal footwear does show jewels and embroidery
 Women's shoes are portrayed as little points protruding from under gowns
 Some of these shoes are ornamented, possible with pearls or gems
Women's shoes are portrayed as little points protruding from under gowns. Some of
these shoes are ornamented, possible with pearls or gems. A mosaic of the Empress
Theodora shows in red, slipper-like shoes. Men's shoes appear slipper-like as well, over
stockings when the tunics were short. Emperor Justinian's shoes in the Ravenna Mosaic are
cut away on the fore foot to reveal his stockings underneath and appear to be covered with
jewels.
 Hair style
 Men were often bare headed or wore the Phryrian cap or hood .
 Ladies encased their hair in a silk cap or pearl net and thus could be accompanied by
a veil .
 Imprial head dresses for both sexes were heavily be jewelled ,
 pendant chains hung from the royal diadem on each side of the face in oriental
fashion .
 Ladies coiffure was encased in jewelled silk coif with diademon top , decorated with
an aigrette or star
 Phrygian hat
Jewelled maniakis and
headdress
 Hats worn in Byzantium are mostly limited to royalty, with ladies choosing to
wear elaborate hair styles, much like the Romans.
 Ladies hair styles were braided or coiled, wound around the head or at the
nape.
 Hairnets were also worn, sometimes jeweled.
 Loose curls often framed the face. Men's hair styles are chin-length page-
boy cuts.
 Facial hair of all types were seen.
 The few women's hat portrayed were a stuffed and jeweled roll or a pleated
fillet.
 Most ladies wore veils instead.
 Also seen hanging from each side of these hats are three strands of pearls,
called stemma.
 Stemma were also seen hanging from the ladies hair or stuffed roll hats.
Costume components for men

 The tunic was the basic garment .

 For the lower classes, it was the
everyday working garment.
 The more active wearer would gird it
up to the shins or knees with a thin
belt.
 The sleeve and hem length would
change according to the class of the
wearer and the weather.
 The dalmatic was an over-tunic with
shorter, fuller sleeves
 Both tunic and dalmatic were
decorated with embroidered bands or
clavi.
 Tunics were belted and, for both men
and women, adorned with the pallium -
a long, embroidered band that hung
from a collar
The Emperor Justinian and his court and clergy, c.510 (Quicherat)

Emperor Justinian and court. Left to center - paludamentum plus

tablion over tunic talaris.Center to right priests - dalmatic
pallium, note
cross on scarf, crown on head - stemma,shoulder patch called
segmentae.
 Tunic talaris, dalmatic over it.
Pallium (narrow toga)
ruler is holding mappa and scepter
signs of rank

Emperor Anastase in consular dress, a late toga

(Quicherat)
Emperor Justinian (482-565), Empress
Theodora
Emperor Justinian 6th century
Earlier attire of Later attire of byzantine
byzantine emperor emperor
 Greek bishop
Officers of the emperor

Byzantine saint Byzantine Ascetic

from 9th century

Heldric abbot

Nicephore Botaniate
, emperor , 1078
A consul of lower
empire
A Patrician
A roman abbot and
bishop from the 10th Patriarchs from 9th
century century
Soldier and Chancellor Deacon, Bishop, Levite - Church Official
.
Red cap , tunic and shoes . Dalmatica grey
cloak with gold edge ,
Light grey patterned trousers , 6th century
Gold , jewelled garments . Tablion on cloak ,10th -11th century
Byzantine religious Byzantine dress gold , decorated gown with
jewelled belt and collar . White palla and under
undergown .
Byzantine gentlemen Byzantine religious
Byzantine gentlemen
Byzantine nobles
9th-10th Century Byzantines from Stibbert
Costume Components of Women

 A white under tunic was layered

under a coloured tunic
 Roman-style palla or cloak until
10th century.
 After the 7th century, double-
layered tunics were worn, the
under tunic with long, fitted
sleeves.
 The dalmatic replaced the outer
tunic - elbow-length wide sleeves
and knee-length.
 The pallium was a circle dropped
over the head with tabs hanging
front and back, often encrusted
with decoration - seen at left.
 Hair was usually covered: veils,
turbans with a crown, or a padded
roll.
Servant, Byzantine Empress and Princess
Byzantine lady
Byzantine commoners
Sixth Century - Byzantine Empire
Attendants and Empress Theodora
Byzantine Court Dress of the 6th Century from Stibbert
The Court of Theodora
Empress , jewelled silk cloak
with tablion Maniakis and
jewelled headdress 6th century
Paludamentum over a stola. fabric patterns, silk
fabric

Maniakis and stemma , jewels, pearls.

Mosaics are from Ravenna, Italy.

Byzantine lady
 The Empress Theodora , wife of Justinian, and her suite 510 a.c

Empress Theodora and court. Paludamentum, maniakis - collar,

lorum (women) tablion (men) stola/chemise (dress) stemma (crown
Elements common to both

 Other elements included slippers

with decorative cutwork, and boots
ending below the calf.
 Jewelry is pictured as an integral
part of the costume - for example,
the wide jeweled collars of the
Empress - and included earrings,
bracelets, and rings.
 Court Dress for the upper-class
men and the Empress: a
paludamentum or rectangular
cloak worn pinned on the right
shoulder with a large fibula or
brooch.
 It is often shown with a square
appliquéd panel on the front edge,
called the tablion
Byzantine costumes from Kretchmer
 The Emperors wore a jeweled
crown - the stemma -with
pendants of beads or pearls,
 A wide jeweled collar – the
maniakis. Both are shown in
colour of
cloaks purple.
the royal
Clerical Costume
 Early Christian church leaders adopted the
everyday dress of the late Roman Empire as the
model for ecclesiastical vestments
 Symbolic accessories were added gradually, and
by the 9th century
 The alb was the first layer - a long white linen tunic
with narrow sleeves and a slit for the head, tied with
a cincture or belt.
 The chasuble was an oval, poncho-shaped garment
that slipped over the head like the earlier Roman
paenula.
 The pallium, developed from the Greek himation
and was a feature of Byzantine dress.
 The original was folded into a narrow strip, and then
reduced to a circle with tabs hanging front and
back. It featured embroidered crosses, as seen at
left.
 The stole was a narrow band worn over the
shoulders and allowed to hang down the front. It
was worn during the Mass.
The cope was a voluminous half-circle cape, remnant of a hooded cloak, that was often
elaborately embroidered.
This image also shows the mitre, a double pointed cap with tabs hanging down the back,
a headdress reserved for bishops.
Accessori
es
 Sudarium, an elaborate embroidered handkerchief;
 contabulatim, a long embroidered cloth, sometimes fan-folded and wound
around the body;
 pallium, a very rich, hem length, jeweled court tabard, worn by men;
 and the superhumeral, an elaborate embroidered and sometime jeweled
collar.
 When extensions wear added to the superhumeral, it became a pallium.
 The men's pallium would be hem length in front and much longer in the
back.
 The back of the pallium was draped around the torso and hung over the left
arm, like Roman togas.
 The only woman to wear a superhumeral or pallium was the empress. The
Pallium and Superhmeral are the garments that are most recognizable as
Byzantine Dress.
 Sudarium An elaborate embroidered handkerchief.
Tablions Ornamental squares or rectangles of embroidery that adorned a paludamentum.

Perfumes was liberally applied and hand-kerchiefs were carried.

contabulatim
jewellery

Black Pearl Necklace with

Religious Medallion and Maniakis and stemma note
Pendant jewels, pearls
Byzantine Gold and Gem Earring
  Small heavy solidi were struck in
the early seventh century by the
Byzantines in Carthage.

 Shows the Byzantine emperor

Heraclius (reigned AD 610-41)
and his son, with a 'cross on
steps' on the reverse (back) of the
coin and with Latin inscriptions.

Byzantine solidus
  She is shown wearing Byzantine-
influenced costume with a diadem with triple
pendants, a mantle and a single disc brooch.

An inscribed gold seal-ring

 Jewellery and accessories that could
have been worn by a noble lady or
princess.
The gold is very pure and is decorated with
garnets, green glass, shell and pearls in the
cloisonné technique.
The headdress, earrings and collar
show fashions around the time from AD
493 to 526.
Shown here are two mounts (probably from a
purse or casket), part of a collar of pendants,
A gold pin with a length of chain from a
headdress,
An earring, a finger-ring and the chapes
from two knife-sheaths.
A second, double chain may have been used
to hang the knives from a belt.
Christian motifs, such as a cross, fish
and birds' heads; the larger mount is in the
shape of a helmet.
Paenula Pallium
THANK YOU

DHIRENDRA SINGH
TARKESHWAR SINGH