The dome of St. Sophia is segmental instead of hemispherical as in the Pantheon, being only one-sixth of the diameter in height, the diameter being 106 ft. 7½ ins.
The architectural features generally were considerably modified, particularly with regard to mouldings, which were almost eliminated. The entablature was also at times dispensed with, and arches springing direct from the capitals of supporting columns were general; a feature which is characteristic of the later Romanesque. The capitals became simple in form, being mostly inverted pyramidal or cushion shapes, in which the abacus is considerably enlarged and as a rule unmoulded.
The carved details reveal simplicity of execution, being merely cut back from the surface, the relief being uniform and greatly in contrast to the plastic feeling of the Roman work. Though the leaves employed were of the acanthus type, they were quite devoid of modelling, being merely channelled with V-shaped grooves; the eyes between the lobes being round and suggestive of the use of the drill, the execution being a reversion to the archaic Greek.
No. 37. Byzantine Panels. St. Appollinare, Nuovo, Ravenna.
Early Christian Art
A notable feature in the Byzantine detail is the prevalence of the circle, frequently grouped in three, four and five, with the respective significance of the Trinity, the Evangelists and the Cross, or Five Wounds. The grotesques of the Pagan detail are conspicuously absent, giving place to forms more in keeping with the new religion, such, for instance, as the cross and the vine.
It is questionable if the polytheism of the average cultured Roman was taken very seriously, but incidental to the religious observances were certain rites and symbolic forms, with which the Christians were familiar, and the early preachers evidently found it a matter of policy to invest some of these with a new meaning. During the period of intolerance and persecution, signs and symbols grew in importance as a