CHAPTER XXV
THE DATING AND THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE CHURCHES
The dating of the Constantinople churches is a problem of great difficulty, and, in the absence of documentary evidence, we must often be contented with very indefinite suggestions. Many churches are known to have been founded at dates which are evidently earlier than the existing buildings, and have apparently been rebuilt at some later date of which the record has been lost. Other churches are known to have been 'repaired,' and here the question of how far 'repair' means 'rebuilding' is sometimes insoluble. Repair may mean simply a fresh coat of paint.
The architectural characteristics afford a certain clue, and the following chronological scheme has been drawn up by their guidance:—
The pre-Justinian period is characterised by simple construction and detail of a late Roman type. Of this we have one example—the basilica of S. John of the Studion, founded about 463. The existing building appears to be original.
The Justinian period commences with the beginning of the sixth century. It is characterised by the development of the drumless dome on pendentives. The plan is complicated, and the buildings are large in comparison with those of later date. To this period belong SS. Sergius and Bacchus (527 A.D.), the baptistery of S. Sophia, and the 'Great Church' of S. Sophia itself. S. Andrew in Krisei and S. Saviour in the Chora probably date from this period. The carved detail of the former closely resembles that of SS. Sergius and Bacchus, and the plan of the latter connects it with S. Sophia, Salonica (sixth century).
The Justinian period roughly includes the seventh century, and is followed by a long decline, marked by the great iconoclastic controversy which lasted almost until the middle of the ninth century. To this period belongs S. Irene (740 A.D.). In plan it is a double-domed cross church. In the arrangement of the dome-arches and galleries it resembles S. Theodosia, whilst in the presence of a western gallery over the narthex and in the number of columns in the 'nave arcade' it is like S. Sophia.
The accession of Basil the Macedonian (867 A.D.) marks the beginning of the second great period—the 'Basilian Renaissance.' We know that this was a period of great religious activity, and though we have, unfortunately, no known dates to guide us, the development of plan leads us to place a group of churches in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh centuries. These are S. Mary Pammakaristos, S. Mary Panachrantos, S. Theodosia, S. Mary Diaconissa, and SS. Peter and Mark.
They are all churches of considerable size; S. Mary Diaconissa and S. Theodosia being indeed large. They are characterised by the use of the ambulatory and domed cross plans. The carving is coarse and the capitals are of the clumsy Byzantine Corinthian type. The dome is raised on a high drum in S. Mary Pammakaristos and S. Mary Panachrantos, though this may be a later addition. The domes of the other three churches seem to be Turkish. S. Mary Pammakaristos and the south church in S. Mary Panachrantos are identical in plan with S. Andrew in Krisei, and it would be possible to date them earlier had we any evidence whatsoever. Unfortunately both have been very much altered.
S. Theodosia, S. Mary Diaconissa, and SS. Peter and Mark, taken in this order, form a series showing the gradual disappearance of the galleries and the evolution of the domed cross church into the 'four columned' church of the next period.
The Myrelaion (919-945), if the present church is of that date, is an unusually early example of this four-columned type. It is generally considered that this plan type dates at the earliest from the eleventh century. There is, however, no reason to believe that the church was rebuilt later; it is a perfectly normal example of its class, and nowhere is an early example more probable than in Constantinople. The Myrelaion may accordingly be taken as marking the commencement of the late Byzantine period in Constantinople.
The churches are now smaller; the gynecaeum, where present, is placed over the narthex; the use of patterning in the brickwork of the exterior, which occurs in some of the Basilian churches (e.g. the cornice of S. Theodosia), now becomes important, and alternate coursing in brick and stone is used with great effect. From this time onwards narthexes were frequently added to the existing churches.
S. Saviour Pantokrator (1118-1143 A.D.) is the largest late church in Constantinople, and is an unusually large church of its type. S. Saviour Pantepoptes (1081-1118), S. Theodore, and S. John in Trullo, belong to the same class. The last, with its circular dome and apse, is probably the latest of the three. S. Thekla (1057-1059) and Bogdan Serai are examples of hall churches of the same period.
The monastery of Manuel was founded in 829-842 A.D., but the building believed to be the refectory is probably much later. As part of the monastery it might, of course, have been built at any date subsequent to the foundation of the House.
The architecture of the Sanjakdar does not correspond to the date of the foundation of the monastery of the Gastria in the ninth century. The building is certainly of late date, subsequent to the eleventh century. Of the Balaban Mesjedi it is impossible to say anything. It is the remnant of some Byzantine structure.
From 1204 to 1261, during the Latin Empire, we need not look for much building in the Greek Church. Soon after the fall of that empire comes the erection of S. Mary of the Mongols (1261-1282) and Monastir Jamissi (1282-1328). In both cases the architectural character is what we should expect. Following on this we have, in the fourteenth century, the alterations made in S. Saviour in the Chora (c. 1300), and the parecclesion of the Pammakaristos (c. 1315).
This was the last effort of pure Byzantine architecture in Constantinople. During the hundred years preceding the Turkish conquest in 1453 the gradually increasing pressure from the East put a stop to all architectural schemes; the craftsmen and artists fled to Italy, and there took their part in the great revival known as 'The Renaissance.'
Suggested Chronological Table
| Century. | |
| V. | S. John of the Studion, 463. |
| VI. | SS. Sergius and Bacchus, 527-36. |
| S. Sophia, 532-37. | |
| S. Saviour in the Chora (the Justinian foundation). | |
| S. Andrew in Krisei. | |
| VIII. | S. Irene, 740. |
| S. Mary Panachrantos (South Church); possibly earlier. | |
| S. Mary Pammakaristos; possibly earlier. | |
| IX. | S. Theodosia. |
| S. Mary Diaconissa. | |
| SS. Peter and Mark. | |
| X. | The Myrelaion. |
| S. Mary Panachrantos (South Church). | |
| XI. | S. Thekla. |
| S. Saviour in the Chora (restoration in the reign of Alexius I. Comnenus). | |
| S. Saviour Pantepoptes. | |
| S. Saviour Pantokrator. | |
| XII. | S. Theodore. |
| S. John in Trullo. | |
| Refectory of the monastery of Manuel? | |
| Bogdan Serai? | |
| XIII. | S. Mary of the Mongols. |
| Monastir Jamissi. | |
| XIV. | S. Saviour in the Chora, 1306. Final restoration by Theodore Metochites. |
| Parecclesion of the church of S. Mary Pammakaristos, c. 1315. | |
| Sanjakdar Mesjedi (Gastria)? | |
| Balaban Mesjedi? |
Classification of the Churches according to their Type
Basilica.—S. John of the Studion.
Octagon.—SS. Sergius and Bacchus.
Domed Basilica.—S. Saviour in the Chora.
Ambulatory.—S. Andrew in Krisei; S. Mary Panachrantos (South Church); S. Mary Pammakaristos.
Domed Cross Church.—S. Irene; S. Theodosia; S. Mary Diaconissa; SS. Peter and Mark.
Four Column Church.—Myrelaion; S. Saviour Pantepoptes; S. Saviour Pantokrator; S. John in Trullo; S. Mary Panachrantos (North Church); Parecclesion of S. Mary Pammakaristos.
Foiled Plan.—S. Mary of the Mongols.
Halls.—Bogdan Serai; Central Church of the Pantokrator; Monastir Mesjedi; Refectory of the monastery of Manuel; Parecclesion of S. Saviour in the Chora; S. Thekla.
Irregular.—Sanjakdar Mesjedi; Balaban Mesjedi.
BOOKS CONSULTED IN THE PREPARATION OF THIS WORK
Ante-Nicene Christian Library.
Anthologia Graeca epigrammatum, Stadt-Mueller, 1894.
Antoniadi, E. M. Ἔκφρασις τῆς Ἁγίας Σοφίας.
Banduri, Anselmi. Imperium Orientale, sive Antiquitates Constantinopolitanae. Paris, 1711.
Baronius. Annales ecclesiastici. Luccae, 1741.
Belin, M. A. Histoire de la Latinité de Constantinople. 2me édition.
Bell, Miss Lothian. Notes on a Journey through Cilicia and Lycaonia.
Bondelmontius. Librum insularum Archipelagi.
Brockhaus. Die Kunst in den Athosklöstern. Leipzig, 1891.
Brunn, Ph. Constantinople, ses sanctuaires et ses réliques au commencement du XV siècle. Odessa, 1883.
Butler. Architecture and other Arts, II. Syria. New York, 1903.
Chevalier, J. B. Voyage de la Propontide et du Pont-Euxin. Paris, 1800.
Choisy. L'Art de bâtir chez les Byzantins. Paris, 1883.
Choiseul-Gouffier. Voyage pittoresque en Grèce.
Clavijo, Ruy Gonzalez de. Vida de Gran Tamorlan y itinerario. Madrid, 1782.
Constantius, Patriarch. Κωνσταντινιὰς Παλαιά τε καὶ Νεωτέρα, Ancient and Modern Constantinople, Translation by J. P. Brown. London, 1868; Συγγραφαὶ αἱ Ἐλάσσονες. Κωνσταντινούπολις, 1866.
Corpus Scriptorum Historiae Byzantinae. Bonn.
Crusius, M. Turcograecia.
Dehio und Bezold. Die kirchliche Baukunst des Abendlandes.
Dethier, Ph. A. Siège de Constantinople.
Didron. Christian Iconography (Translation from the French). London, 1910.
Diehl, C. Manuel d'art byzantin; Figures byzantines.
Du Cange, C. Historia Byzantina, Pars II. Constantinopolis Christiana. Paris, 1680.
Dürm. Handbuch.
Eastern Palestine Memoirs.
Ebersolt. Le Grand Palais de Constantinople.
Fergusson, James. History of Ancient and Mediaeval Architecture.
Finlay, G. History of the Byzantine Empire.
Freshfield, Edwin. Archaeologia.
Gardner, Miss Alice. Theodore of Studium.
[338]Gerlach. Tagebuch der Gesandtshaft an die Ottomanische Pforte durch David Ungnad, 1573-78.
Goodyear, W. H. Catalogue of an Exhibition of Architectural Refinements. Edinburgh, 1905.
Gyllius, P. De Constantinopoleos Topographia. Elzevir ed. 1632.
Gyllius, P. De Bosporo Thracio. Elzevir ed. 1632.
Hasluck, F. W. Bithynica.
Henderson, A. E. Builder, January 1906.
Kanitz. Serbiens byzantinische Monumente.
Khitrovo, Madame de. Itinéraires russes (Translation from Russian).
Labarte, Jules. Le Palais impérial de Constantinople.
Lampakis, Professor. Les Antiquités chrétiennes de la Grèce. Athens, 1902.
Lenoir. Architecture monastique au moyen âge.
Lethaby. Mediaeval Art.
Lethaby and Swainson. Sancta Sophia.
Leunclavius. Pandectes historiae Turcicae. (Migne, vol. clix.)
Mansi. Sacrorum Conciliorum collectio.
Marin, Abbé. Les Moines de Constantinople.
Migne. Patrologia Graeca.
Miklosich et Müller. Acta et diplomata Graeca. Vienna, 1865.
Millingen, A. Van. Byzantine Constantinople.
Mordtmann. Esquisse topographique de Constantinople.
Mühlmann. Archiv für christliche Kunst, 1886-87.
Muralt, Édouard de. Essai de chronographie byzantine. Geneva, 1873.
Notitia Dignitatum. Ed. Seeck.
Pargoire, Père J. Les Mamas de Constantinople.
Parker. Glossary of Architecture.
Paspates, A. Μελέται Βυζαντιναί.
Paspates, A. The Great Palace. Translation from the Greek by Mr. Metcalfe.
Philes. Carmina.
Pulgher, D. Les Églises byzantines de Constantinople. Vienna, 1878.
Ramsay, Sir William, and Miss Lothian Bell. The Thousand and One Churches.
Riant, Conte de. Exuviae sacrae.
Rivoira, T. G. Lombardic Architecture. (Translation from Italian.) London, 1910.
Rott, H. Kleinasiatische Denkmäler. Leipzig, 1908.
Salzenberg. Altchristliche Baudenkmäler Constantinopels.
Scarlatus Byzantius. Ἡ Κωνσταντινούπολις. Athens, 1862.
Schlumberger, G. L'Épopée byzantine à la fin du sixième siècle.
Schmitt, F. G. Kahrié Djamissi.
Schultz and Barnsley. The Monastery of S. Luke of Stiris. London, 1901.
Schweigger, Solomon. Ein neue Reyssbeschreibung auss Deutschland nach Constantinopel, 1581.
Siderides. Articles in the Proceedings of the Greek Syllogos of Constantinople.
Socrates. Ecclesiastical History.
Strzygowski, J. Orient oder Rom. Leipzig, 1901.
Strzygowski, J. Kleinasien, Die byzantinischen Wasserbehälter von. Dr. P. Forcheimer and Dr. J. Strzygowski.
Texier. Four volumes of Sketches in the Library of the Royal Institute of British Architects. London.
Texier and Pullan. Byzantine Architecture.
Uspenski, T. Articles in the Journal of the Russian Institute at Constantinople.
Villehardouin. La Conquête de Constantinople.
Vogüé de. La Syrie centrale.
Wulff, O. Die Koimisiskirche in Nikaia. Strasburg, 1903.
PERIODICALS
Atti della R. Accademia di archeologia, lettere, e belle arte, vol. xx. Napoli, 1900.
Revue Archéologique.
Byzantinische Zeitschrift.
Bulletin de correspondance hellénique.
Annual of the British School at Athens.
Proceedings of the Greek Syllogos of Constantinople.
Mitteilungen des Deutschen Excursions-Club, Konstantinopel.
English Historical Review.
LIST OF EMPERORS
Latin Emperors of Constantinople
| Baldwin I. | 1204-1205 |
| Henry | 1205-1216 |
| Peter | 1217-1219 |
| Robert | 1219-1228 |
| John of Brienne | 1228-1237 |
| Baldwin II. | 1227-1361 |
Byzantine Emperors at Nicaea
| Theodore I. Lascaris | 1204-1222 |
| John III. Ducas | 1222-1254 |
| Theodore II. Ducas | 1254-1259 |
| John IV. Ducas | 1259-1260 |
Under the Restored Byzantine Empire
| Michael VIII. Palaeologus | 1260-1282 |
| Andronicus II. Palaeologus | 1282-1328 |
| Co-Emperor Michael IX. | 1295-1320 |
| Andronicus III. Palaeologus | 1328-1341 |
| John V. Palaeologus | 1341-1391 |
| Co-Emperor John VI. Cantacuzen | 1341-1355 |
| Manuel II. Palaeologus | 1391-1425 |
| John VII. Palaeologus | 1425-1448 |
| Constantine XII. Palaeologus | 1448-1453 |