The Temple Gallery

in association with ETR, Lausanne, Switzerland

17th November – 1st December 2016

BYZANTINE GLORIES

Ravenna, Venice and Sicily

Mosaics and Churches

Empress Theodora wife of Justinian the Great. Mosaic portrait in the Church of San Vitale, 6th century

Itinerary for the Temple Gallery Visit to Italy incorporating Ravenna, Venice

and Sicily 17th November – 1st December 2016

Thursday 17th November: London BA 0540 dep. 08.40 to Bologna arr. 11.45 then

by coach (2/3 hours) to Ravenna Byron Hotel

18th Fri: Orthodox Baptistry; Archiepiscopal Chapel

(Dante’s Tomb); Arian Baptistry; San Giovanni Evangelista (426 AD. 13th-century mosaics

depicting the Crusades). Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

19th Sat: Mausoleum of Galla Placidia; Basilica of San Vitale; Antiquities Museum

20th Sun: Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe; Tomb of Theodoric.

21st Mon: morning bus to Venice (3/4 hours) Hotel La Residenza (Campo Bandiera e

Moro). Visit to San Giorgio dei Greci

22nd Tue: San Marco, Museo Correr, [opera: La Traviata Palazzo Barbarigo

Minotto]

23rd Wed: Torcello; Chiesa dei Frari (Titian, Vivarini); Querini Stampalia Museum (Bellini)

24th Thur: Accademia; San Giorgio Maggiore (Palladio, Tintoretto)

25th Fri: bus to Vicenza: Leoni Montanaro Palazzo, Palladio; Museo

Civico (Paolo Veneziano) night in Padua, Hotel Majestic Toscanelli

26th Sat: Padua, Basilica San Antonio, Scrovegni Chapel

27th Sun: AZ 1466 dep. 12.10 to Rome arr. 13.25; AZ 1159 dep. 17.05 to Reggio

Calabria arr. 18.15 Lungomare Hotel or Lido

28th Mon: Riace Bronzes, ferry to Messina, bus to Cefalu (2 hrs) to Palermo (1hr)

Hotel Ai Cavalieri (or Hotel Politeama)

29th Tues: Palermo: Cathedral, Capella Palatina

30th Wed: Palermo: Monreale

1st December Thurs: AZ 1782 dep. 10.20 to Rome ; AZ 204 dep. 13.30 to London

arr. 15.20

‘The average western European reader may have a fairly clear (if not entirely

accurate) picture in his mind of ancient Rome; but where Byzantium is concerned –

about which, in this country at least, there seems always to have been a conspiracy of

silence – he has always remained a little vague.’ So writes John Julius Norwich in his

introduction to the Penguin edition of Robert Graves’ Count Belisarius.

The trip we are planning here will go a long way to dispel that vagueness. My own

lifetime of study has convinced me that seeing ourselves - situated in what we call the

‘history of western civilisation’ - is somewhat flat until we include a third dimension;

namely, Byzantium. Without Byzantium there would have been no Orthodox culture

in Russia and no Renaissance in Europe. In fact, as we shall see, from the 5th century

and for the next thousand years, Italy was intimately bound up with Constantinople;

Ravenna and Sicily, at different times, being part of the Byzantine Empire. We may

begin to see this in perspective as we experience the wonders, miraculously preserved,

of Byzantine art concentrated in Ravenna and Sicily, while Venice ‘the hinge of

Europe’ connects us to the religious, artistic and intellectual supremacy of

Constantinople.

Today the burning questions of our society are churned in the mill of politics and

economics whereas in Byzantium theology and religion were the energies that

galvanised all levels of society. The forces poured into the creation of churches and

mosaics in Ravenna and Sicily flowed from the highest spiritual, philosophical and

artistic aspirations of that creative age. They can still energise us and provide us with

insights into the great truths that Galla Placidia and people like her sought to

understand and live by.

Thursday 17th November: London BA 0540 dep. 08.40 to Bologna arr. 11.45 then

by coach (2/3 hours) to Ravenna Byron Hotel

Ravenna

O lone Ravenna! many a tale is told

Of thy great glories in the days of old:

Two thousand years have passed since thou didst see

Caesar ride forth to royal victory.”

( Ravenna, Oscar Wilde’s 1878 Newdigate Prize-winning poem)

“Of all the cities in Romanian lands,

The chief, and most renowned, Ravenna stands,

Adorned in ancient times with arms and arts,

And rich inhabitants, with generous hearts.”

(The Divine Comedy, Inferno, 1320 by Dante Alighieri)

…‘unequalled collection of early Christian mosaics.’

(Italian Hours, 1909 by Henry James)

Built as a naval port by the Emperor Augustus in the first century, Ravenna later

became the pivot between Byzantium, or the Eastern Roman Empire, and the Western

Roman Empire of which it was the capital after the fall of Rome in 410. In the 5th

century it came under the rule of Theodoric the Great, one of history’s most

fascinating characters. Theodoric, the great Ostrogothic general, had a privileged

childhood in the imperial court at Constantinople. A brilliant and ruthless soldier, he

regained Italy from the failing Western Empire dominated at the time by the Goths.

He ruled from Ravenna, where his mausoleum survives, together with several

churches he had decorated with mosaics. Like most of the Germanic tribes Theodoric

followed Arian Christianity and this is reflected in the details of some mosaic

decorations. Although Arianism was considered a heresy by the Orthodox, both forms

co-existed peaceably during his reign. After Theodoric’s death Ravenna returned to

Byzantium and eventually was the capital of the Kingdom of Lombardy. Eight early

Christian monuments of Ravenna are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

18th Fri: Orthodox Baptistry; Archiepiscopal Chapel

(Dante’s Tomb); Arian Baptistry; San Giovanni Evangelista (426 AD. 13th-century mosaics

depicting the Crusades). Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo;

19th Sat: Mausoleum of Galla Placidia; Basilica of San Vitale; Antiquities Museum

20th Sun: Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe; Tomb of Theodoric.

Orthodox Baptistry or Baptistry of Neon

The oldest surviving monument (and all that survives of the Orthodox Cathedral demolished in 1733) in Ravenna

built, circa 400. Called the Orthodox Baptistry to distinguish it from the Arian Baptistry built fifty years later by

Theodoric. Named after Bishop Neon who presided over its construction. Carl Jung wrote of a visionary

experience when he was here in 1930 by which Galla Placidia was related with his personal anima.

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

The Good Shepherd, early 5th c, mosaic still in the ‘naturalistic’ or Hellenistic style of early Christianity.

Byzantine iconography would soon avoid, for example, the contraposto of the central figure. Aelia Galla Placidia

(388 – 450), a fastidious, highly educated devout Orthodox Christian, was related through family or by marriage to

six Roman Emperors and two Barbarian Kings and, from the age of nine, was a major force in state politics. She

was the daughter of Theodosius I, (379 – 395) the last emperor to rule over the whole of the Roman Empire and

the granddaughter of Valentinian I. She ruled as Regent for Valentinian III from 423 until his majority in 437. She

was consort to Ataulf, King of the Goths from 414 until his death in 415, and briefly Empress consort to

Constantius III in 421. She was also sister of the Emperors in the West Honorius and Arcadius. Placidia sponsored

the restoration of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and built numerous churches.

Arian Baptistry

Built by Theodoric who was an Arian Christian. In his reign Arian Goths and the Orthodox Christians lived

peaceably together worshipping in separate buildings. Elsewhere in the Empire, and eventually everywhere,

Arianism was eradicated with severity. Some regard the Empty Throne here as a reference to Arianism. However

it may refer to an aspect of esoteric Christianity, i.e. to a truth beyond or higher than the capabilities of the human

mind. We will meet the theme again in Saint Mark’s in Venice.

Archiepiscopal Chapel

This tiny oratory contains the highly unusual image of Christ dressed as a warrior trampling on a lion and a snake.

Possibly an expression of anti-Arian views, circa 500

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

Mosaics from the reign of King Theodoric (496-526).

Repression of Arianism. After Theodoric’s death mosaic restorers ‘airbrushed’ him (or most of him) out of the

picture.

Mausoleum of Theoderic

built in 520

Basilica of San Vitale (548),

The building has two ambulatories, one above the other, circulating the central space. The continuous movement

of columned arches, barrel vaults, apses and semi-domes gives the space a most pleasing, almost operatic, effect.

The church was begun by Theodoric’s daughter Amalasuntha and finished in 540, just at the time that Justinian

regained Ravenna for the Empire. It was the model for Charlemagne’s 9th century Palatine Chapel in Aachen.

Justinian accompanied by representatives of the Army, Officials of the Imperial Court and the Church, the

foundations of his status as the most powerful man on earth.

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe

Unusual symbolic representation of the Transfiguration. The church was built by the banker Julian Argentarius and

Ursicinus Bishop of Ravenna between 526 and 547. (Ravenna reverted to Byzantium in 540)

21st Mon: morning by private bus along the Adriatic cost to Venice (3/4 hours) Hotel

La Residenza (Campo Bandiera e Moro). Visit to San Giorgio dei Greci

22nd Tue: Museo Correr, San Marco, [opera: La Traviata Palazzo Barbarigo

Minotto]

23rd Wed: Torcello; Chiesa dei Frari (Titian, Vivarini); Querini Stampalia Museum (Bellini)

24th Thur: Accademia; San Giorgio Maggiore (Palladio, Tintoretto)

Venice

In the eleventh century the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I granted the Republic of

Venice astonishingly favourable rights by which they could trade in the Empire

without paying taxes in exchange for Venetian support against the Normans.

Throughout the late Middle Ages Venetians thrived in the games of ‘trade, piracy,

robbery and war … intimately and inextricably intermingled’ that were features of life

in the Mediterranean. The combination of their geographical location and their

distinctive political constitution provided unique opportunities that would lead to

fabulous riches from which the world’s first and greatest tourist site came into being.

After the West’s scandalous sack of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade (1204)

Crete and Corfu passed into Venetian control. Throughout the 14th century, and after

the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, waves of Greeks, encouraged by the Senate,

settled in Venice. By 1500 there were more than 4,000, comprising the largest foreign

community in the Republic and the ensuing cultural exchanges would influence the

Italian intellectual life and arts sometimes profoundly. The Italo-Byzantine style of

painting had appeared in the 13th century and the Veneto-Cretan School rose to its

greatest heights in the 15th and early 16th centuries.

San Marco

Interior West dome showing Pentecost and the Empty Throne. This great late 11th century basilica, originally the

Doge’s private chapel, was modelled on the great Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople and has affinities

with the Sophia Cathedral in Kiev, Cathédrale Saint-Front de Périgueux, Basilica of Sant'Antonio di Padova and

other Greek Cross churches built at the same time.

Museo Correr

The Picture Collection has Venetian paintings from the 13th to the 16th centuries. There are several works by

Bellini and examples from Antonella de Messina, Paolo da Veneziano, Vivarini. Pisanello and other great names.

Academia

Giorgione, La Tempesta, 1507 Crucifixion, Byzantine icon 1460

Works, by Bosch, Bellini , Canaletto, Carpacio, Giogione, Piero della Francesca, Mantegna et al.

Hellenic Institute (San Giorgio dei Greci)

Noli mi Tangere Veneto-Cretan icon detail of an icon by George Klontzsas Permission to have their own church was originally given to the Greeks of Venice in 1456. It was a contentious

issue, building did not begin until 1536 and only finished in 1577. The Hellenic Institute was founded in 1951 as a

centre for the study of Byzantine and post-Byzantine history. There is a small, high quality collection of Byzantine

and Cretan icons.

Torcello Cathedral

On an island 8 km from Venice the Cathedral is celebrated for its 11th century mosaics including the elongated

figure of the Virgin who stands in isolated dignity in the vast golden semidome.

25th Fri: bus to Vicenza: Leoni Montanaro Palazzo, Palladio; Museo

Civico (Paolo Veneziano) night in Padua, Hotel Majestic Toscanelli

26th Sat: Padua, Basilica San Antonio, Scrovegni Chapel

Vicenza

Palazzo Leoni Montanari

The Palazzo Leoni Montanari, housing a collection of Russian and Geek icons sponsored by the Banca Intesa

Sanpaolo. The exhibtion includes the celebrated icon of the Nativity, Novgorod 1475.

Palladian Villas

Palladio, Villa Rotonda 1592 The Renaissance architect Andreas Palladio much influenced English buildings in the grand 18th century style such

as Stowe or Stourhead, designed by such men as Burlington, Adam and Kent.

Padua Scrovegni Chapel

Giotto Frescoes, 1305

It can be highly instructive to see Giotto’s work in the

light of the prevailing Byzantine iconography that he so dramatically abandoned. Giotto is popularly thought of as

the beginning of Western painting. The context of this itinerary may help us see that he is the part of the transition

between Byzantium and the West

27th Sun: flight: Venice - Rome - Reggio Lungomare Hotel or Lido

28th Mon: Riace Bronzes, ferry to Messina, bus to Cefalu (2 hrs) to Palermo (1hr)

Hotel Ai Cavalieri (or Palermo Hotel Politeama)

Reggio Riace bronzes

Monumental bronze statues of 5th c. BC, discovered in 1972 and regarded by many as the finest examples of late

Classical Greek work in existence.

Sicily

29th Tues: Palermo: Cathedral, Capella Palatina

30th Wed: Palermo: Monreale, La Martorana (Santa Maria dell' Ammiraglio)

By the 6th century the Ostrogoths occupied most of the Western Roman Empire

though Justinian, the Emperor in Constantinople, was making plans for reunification.

Sicily was the first part of Italy to be regained for Byzantium by its greatest general,

Count Belisarius. In 535 Justinian made Sicily a Byzantine province though its

position was never really secure and it continued to be fought over by Goths, Vandals

Byzantines and Lombards. For three hundred years it was an Arab emirate until it fell

to the Normans in 1072 becoming, under Roger I and Roger II, the Kingdom of Sicily

part of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1198 the crown passed to Fredrick II, one of the

most enlightened men of the Middle Ages who established in Sicily and South Italy

Europe’s first centrally governed kingdom with an efficiently administered

bureaucratic system.

Thus in the 12th and 13th centuries Sicily became the most luminous centre of culture

in the Mediterranean, attracting scholars, scientists, poets, artists, and artisans of all

kinds both from Europe and the Middle East. The governance was by the rule of law

and there was social order and justice, rare commodities in the Middle Ages.

Muslims, Jews, Byzantine Greeks, Lombards, and Normans worked together to form

a society that historians have said created some of the most extraordinary buildings

that the world has ever seen.

Santa Maria dell' Ammiraglio (La Martorana)

Nativity Mosaic detail showing Roger II receiving his crown from Christ. He was a powerful Norman king

here styling himself here in the regalia of a Byzantine Emperor. (1140-1180)

A more typical image would be that of head and shoulders only, as we see elsewhere. The enthroned figure is

unusual for a dome.

Basilica of Monreale

The Cathedral, a testament to the Normans as a world power, is built on a Latin plan but decorated with mosaics

by Byzantine artists between 1174 and 1182.

Cefalu Cathedral

Cefalu , built in the 1130s, predates Monreale by fifty years. The Christ Pantocrator, by the master mosaicist from

Constantinople, is regarded as the finest example of late Byzantine art in Italy and one of the greatest icons of

Christ in the world.

Capella Palatina

The Royal Chapel of the Norman kings of Sicily. Built at different times throughout the 12th century the chapel

combines a variety of styles: Norman architecture, Arabic arches, Fatimid painting and Byzantine dome and

mosaics.

1st December Thurs: AZ 1782 dep. 10.20 to Rome ; AZ 204 dep. 13.30 to London

arr. 15.20