Iconoclasm
the destruction of religious icons and other images or monuments for religious or political motives
c.500-800
Early Medieval Art
c.780-900
Carolingian Art
c.900-1000
Ottonian Art
c.1000-1200
Romanesque Art
c.1200-1400
Gothic Art
liturgy
the order of events in a church service, public religious ritual
Tabernacle
Tabernacle
bema
a platform from which men could read scripture and teach
313 C.E
emperor Constantine legalized Christianity with the Edict of Milan
Roman basilicas
long rectangular buildings, often with a central nave (a wide, center aisle) and two side aisles. There was at least one semicircular apse, often at one end of the building, in which the magistrates sat and heard their cases.
ambo
an even higher platform, accessed by stairs, from which the Gospel was read and sermons were preached�in which case the bema was reserved for the recitation of prayers and the reading of the Epistles or Old Testament.
transept
added near the apse-end of the building to form a cross-shape and provide additional space
altar
wooden table-like structures; they then transitioned into stone
narthex
entry, was the world
nave
main hall, was the Kingdom of God
sanctuary
altar area�like the Holy of Holies�was heaven.
chancels
waist-high walls, were used to separate the congregation from the altar for very practical reasons like keeping dogs away from the bread and the wine of the eucharist or retaining large crowds on major holidays. However, with time, these partitions were made higher and more ornate, peaking in the late Middle Ages when they often reached the ceiling of the church and completely obstructed the congregation's view of the altar
dado
lower walls
Tertullian
early Christian author living in the second and third centuries, wrote a treatise titled On Idolatry in which he asks if artists could, in fact, be Christians.
St. Augustine of Hippo
believed art was full of lies and had no place in christianity
tufa
the stone of rome
catacomb of priscilla
burial sites five miles under the city of rome
cubiculum
larger rooms in the catacombs
loculi
horizontal shelves for burial in the catacombs
martyrs
people killed for being christian
Edict of Milan
313 CE. Decree by Charlemagne allowing Christians to openly practice
Roman First Style Wall Painting
plaster built up and then painted to imitate marble panels
iconography
the language of images
foreshortening
a form viewed at an angle
orant
pose of prayer
spolia
repurposed pagan columns
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