Macedonian art is the art of the

Macedonian Renaissance Macedonian Renaissance ( el, Μακεδονική Αναγέννηση) is a historiographical term used for the blossoming of Byzantine culture in the 9th–11th centuries, under the eponymous Macedonian dynasty (867–1056), following the uphea ...

Byzantine art Byzantine art comprises the body of Christian Greek artistic products of the Eastern Roman Empire, as well as the nations and states that inherited culturally from the empire. Though the empire itself emerged from the decline of Rome and lasted u ...

. The period followed the end of the

Byzantine iconoclasm The Byzantine Iconoclasm ( gr, Εικονομαχία, Eikonomachía, lit=image struggle', 'war on icons) were two periods in the history of the Byzantine Empire when the use of religious images or icons was opposed by religious and imperial a ...

and lasted until the fall of the

Macedonian dynasty The Macedonian dynasty (Greek: Μακεδονική Δυναστεία) ruled the Byzantine Empire from 867 to 1056, following the Amorian dynasty. During this period, the Byzantine state reached its greatest extent since the Muslim conquests, a ...

, which ruled the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

from 867 to 1056, having originated in the theme of Macedonia. It coincided with the Ottonian Renaissance in

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

. In the 9th and 10th centuries, the Byzantine Empire's military situation improved, and art and architecture revived. "Macedonian" refers to the ruling dynasty of the period, rather than where the art was created. The court-quality pieces have, as with other periods, traditionally thought to have mostly been created in the capital,

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

, or made by artists based or trained there, although art historians have begun to question whether this easy assumption is entirely correct.

Painting and mosaic

New churches were again commissioned, and the Byzantine church mosaic style became standardised. The best preserved examples are at the

Hosios Loukas Hosios Loukas ( el, Ὅσιος Λουκᾶς) is a historic walled monastery situated near the town of Distomo, in Boeotia, Greece. Founded in the mid-10th century, the monastery is one of the most important monuments of Middle Byzantine architec ...

Monastery in mainland

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

and the Nea Moni Katholikon in the island of

Chios Chios (; el, Χίος, Chíos , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greek island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. Chios is notable for its exports of masti ...

. The very freely painted frescos at Castelseprio in Italy are linked by many art historians to the art of Constantinople of the period also. There was a revival of interest in classical Hellenistic styles and subjects, of which the

Paris Psalter The Paris Psalter (Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale, MS. gr. 139) is a Byzantine illuminated manuscript, 38 x 26.5 cm in size, containing 449 folios and 14 full-page miniatures. The Paris Psalter is considered a key monument of the so-called Mace ...

is an important testimony, and more sophisticated techniques were used to depict human figures. There was also a naturalistic style and more complex techniques from ancient Greek and Roman art mixed with Christian themes used in art.

Sculpture

Although monumental sculpture is extremely rare in Byzantine art, the Macedonian period saw the unprecedented flourishing of the art of

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals i ...

sculpture. Many ornate ivory

triptych A triptych ( ; from the Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided ...

s and

diptych A diptych (; from the Greek δίπτυχον, ''di'' "two" + '' ptychē'' "fold") is any object with two flat plates which form a pair, often attached by hinge. For example, the standard notebook and school exercise book of the ancient world w ...

s survive, with the central panel often representing either

deesis In Byzantine art, and in later Eastern Orthodox art generally, the Deësis or Deisis (, ; el, δέησις, "prayer" or "supplication"), is a traditional iconic representation of Christ in Majesty or Christ Pantocrator: enthroned, carrying a boo ...

(as in the

Harbaville Triptych The Harbaville Triptych is a Byzantine ivory triptych of the middle of the 10th century with a Deesis and other saints, now in the Louvre. Traces of colouring can still be seen on some figures. It is regarded as the finest, and best-preserved, ...

) or the Theotokos (as in a triptych at

Luton Hoo Luton Hoo is an English country house and estate near Luton in Bedfordshire and Harpenden in Hertfordshire. Most of the estate lies within the civil parish of Hyde, Bedfordshire. The Saxon word Hoo means the spur of a hill, and is more common ...

, dating from the reign of Nicephorus Phocas). On the other hand, ivory

casket A casket jewelry box is a container that is usually smaller than a chest, and in the past were typically decorated. Whereas cremation jewelry is a small container, usually in the shape of a pendant or bracelet, to hold a small amount of ashes. ...

s (notably the Veroli Casket from

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

) often feature secular motifs true to the Hellenistic tradition, thus testifying to an undercurrent of classical taste in Byzantine art. There are few important surviving buildings from the period. It is presumed that

Basil I Basil I, called the Macedonian ( el, Βασίλειος ὁ Μακεδών, ''Basíleios ō Makedṓn'', 811 – 29 August 886), was a Byzantine Emperor who reigned from 867 to 886. Born a lowly peasant in the theme of Macedonia, he rose in the ...

's votive church of the

Theotokos of the Pharos The Church of the Virgin of the Pharos ( el, Θεοτόκος τοῦ Φάρου, ''Theotokos tou Pharou'') was a Byzantine chapel built in the southern part of the Great Palace of Constantinople, and named after the tower of the lighthouse (''pha ...

(no longer extant) served as a model for most

cross-in-square A cross-in-square or crossed-dome plan was the dominant architectural form of middle- and late-period Byzantine churches. It featured a square centre with an internal structure shaped like a cross, topped by a dome. The first cross-in-square chu ...

sanctuaries of the period, including the monastery church of

in Greece (ca. 1000), the

Nea Moni of Chios Nea Moni ( el, Νέα Μονή, lit. "New Monastery") is an 11th-century monastery on the island of Chios that has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is located on the Provateio Oros Mt. in the island's interior, about 15 km f ...

(a pet project of

Constantine IX Constantine IX Monomachos ( grc-x-medieval, Κωνσταντῖνος Μονομάχος, translit=Kōnstantinos IX Monomachos; 1004 – 11 January 1055), reigned as Byzantine emperor from June 1042 to January 1055. Empress Zoë Porphyrogenita ...

), and the Daphni Monastery near

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

(ca. 1050).

Gallery

File:"Hosios Lukas" monastery, Greece - © UNESCO World Heritage property - panoramio (1).jpg, The 11th-century monastery of

, representative of the

File:Hosios Loukas Crypt (west groin-vault).jpg, Frescoes of Hosios Loukas File:Nea Moni 01.jpg, Mosaics of

File:David-harp.jpg, "David playing the harp", from the

File:Paris psaulter gr139 fol4v.jpg, "David and Goliath", from the Paris Psalter File:Borradaile triptych BM 1923 1205 1.jpg, Borradaile Triptych File:Triptych Harbaville Louvre OA3247 recto.jpg, View of the

References

* J. Durand, L'art byzantin, Terrail, Paris, 2001 * J-M. Spieser, "L'art de Byzance", in C. Heck (dir.) Moyen âge, chrétienté et Islam, flammarion, Paris, 1996 * *

External links

* {{authority control Byzantine art Byzantine architecture

Art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

Painting and mosaic

Sculpture

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading

External links