Byzantine Monumental Painting
Monumental painting is one of the arts in which the Byzantines excelled the most and where their heritage is most evident. It is mostly synonymous with religious painting, as almost nothing else has survived, and it was likely the primary form of artistic production. Although regional cultural centers emerged in the late period, the evolution of Byzantine painting is closely linked to the history of Constantinople, the primary center of Byzantine spiritual and artistic creation. This city managed to establish its artistic influence throughout the empire and well beyond its borders.
However, the history of Byzantine painting is largely shaped by what has been preserved. Constantinople itself has not preserved enough monuments to trace its evolutions and trends in detail. Nonetheless, we can get a sense of these developments by looking at other monuments preserved in regions dominated by the empire or influenced by Byzantine culture and art. While Constantinople set the artistic trends for the empire, local traditions and influences also shaped regional artistic production. Additionally, the decentralization of power in the late Byzantine period led to the rise of regional cultural centers like Arta, Trabzon, and Mystras, which played a significant role in the artistic flourishing of the Palaiologan era.
The history of Byzantine painting was also deeply influenced by iconoclasm, the religious conflict over the use of religious images, which led to the temporary suppression of religious icons in the 8th and 9th centuries. This period of iconoclasm had a profound impact on the development of Byzantine art, as it resulted in the destruction of many religious images and a shift in artistic production. Following the restoration of the veneration of icons in the 9th century, monumental painting returned to prominence, and religious iconography became central to Byzantine artistic expression.
Four major periods can be distinguished in this evolution, roughly corresponding to the historical eras of Byzantium: the Early Christian period (330-630), the Proto-Byzantine period (630-843), the Middle Byzantine period (843-1204), and the Late Byzantine period (1204-1453).
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