New evidence for church decoration in the early ninth century

This paper examines church decoration during the Transitional period (ca. 650-850), focusing on unpublished elements from the Fatih Camii (Hagios Stephanos?) in Zeytinba?? (Trilye). Located on the south shore of the Sea of Marmara, the church may be securely dated to the early years of the ninth century. Among the variety of decorative details uncovered during an unauthorized restoration in 1997 are more than a dozen fragments of opus sectile. The variety of these panels expands the corpus of geometric patterns known from the period; in addition, opus sectile seems to have been used both on the walls and the floor.

On the fringe. The painted ornament of the Holy Tinity chapel at Koutsovendēs, Cyprus

The paper explores the painted ornament of the Holy Trinity chapel at the monastery of Saint John Chrysostom Koutsovend?s in Cyprus, founded by Eumathios Philokal?s (ca. 1100). When compared to that of other early Komnenian monuments on the island, the painted ornament at Holy Trinity stands out for its intricacy, diversity, and high-quality of execution, while its sophistication is demonstrated to be in keeping with the ambitious and erudite character of the painted ensemble as a whole. Not least, rather than being on the fringe, the painted ornament appears to have been fully integrated into the iconographic programme of the chapel, reiterating through metaphor the patron?s hope for salvation.

Reliquary-chapel of saint Demetrios at the Davitgareji Desert

The paper addresses a recently discovered rock-hewn chapel in the Davitgareji Desert, which has preserved late twelfth-early thirteenth century wall paintings dominated by a cycle of St Demetrios. The cycle, which finds no parallel in Georgia, is remarkable in many regards and raises important questions as to the chronology and geographical spread of such cycles, the provenance of unknown iconographical redactions, the history of the relics of St Demetrios, the function of the chapel dedicated to the saint, and the interaction between Georgian and Byzantine artistic and cultural traditions, in general.

The murals in the church of the virgin Eleousa in Vljusa and Byzantine painting of the second half of the eleventh century

The author gives an analysis of the style of the murals in the Church of the Virgin Eleousa in Veljusa (1080-1093), pointing out the distinctive manner of the outstanding artist, similar in many ways to works produced by the previous generation, such as the frescoes in Saint Sophia in Ohrid. At the same time parallels are drawn between the Veljusa frescoes and works by Constantinopolitan artists of the last third of the eleventh century, including miniatures in manuscripts and the Daphni mosaics. A few additions to the interpretation of the church?s iconographic programme are also proposed.

Dve bronzovye kadil'nicy iz Nacional'nogo muzeja Gruzii

The present paper examines two bronze censers with Christological relief compositions from the Georgian National Museum. The analyses of their stylistic and iconographic features shed more light on the dissemination of the bronze censers produced in the East Christian artistic centers. The paper attempts to determine the time and place of creation of these liturgical objects. I will also offer some observations concerning the relationship between metal incense burners of Syro-Palestinian origin and those made in different places throughout Christendom.

Reconstruction of the outer shapes of the Holy Archangels Church near Prizren - revisited

Slobodan Nenadovic?s well-known monograph on the forms of the original building of the Holy Archangels Monastery near Prizren has laid the ground for ?ur knowledge of the main architectural characteristics of Tzar Stefan Dusan?s funerary endowment. However, in his reconstruction of these forms, Nenadovic was not certain enough about the shape of the main dome, the pedestals of the small domes, the narthex, the pediments, and the portal, as well as about the details inside the church itself. By analyzing certain stone fragments, it is possible to reconsider certain dilemmas regarding the building?s external architecture.

On the icons of Sinai and Raithou martyrs in Saint Catherine’s monastery at Sinai, with an overview of the cult and iconography of these saints in East Christian art

The first part of the paper discusses the written testimonies about the history of the cult of the holy fathers of Sinai and Raithou at St. Catherine?s monastery and the visual representations of these saints in East Christian art. The Sinai icons in question are then analysed in two ways. First, the choice of figures of the saints in the upper registers of the icons is considered. On the other hand, the iconography of the forty Sinai and Raithou martyrs is studied in greater detail. It is shown that representations of the celebrated holy monks were used to paint their ?portraits?.

Το εορτολόγιο της εκκλησίας ως κύριος παράγων στην εικονογράφηση βυζαντινών ναών

This article deals with some groups of saints in the iconographic programs of Byzantine churches. The main criterion for their presentation is the church calendar, more specifically, the fact that they are commemorated collectively in the liturgy. This iconographic practice seems to have first come into use in the churches of Constantinople, where the collective celebration (synaxis) of multiple saints took place. The largest group of saints commemorated in this way is the Seventy Apostles.

Iconographical details of Western origin in some scenes of the Crucifixion from the end of the sixteenth and the seventeenth centuries

The article discusses the presence of iconographical details of Western origin in the scene of Christ?s Crucifixion in the post-Byzantine period. It focuses on the role of works by painters from the Cretan and Epirote schools in their distribution among the next generation of icon-painters. From here a detailed examination of the compositions of the Crucifixion on three monuments in the territory of modern-day North Macedonia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, dated to the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, is carried out. The comparison with monuments from the same period originating mainly in Greek territories leads to hypotheses regarding the painters? provenance or the place of their education. A rare version of the scene from the second half of the seventeenth century from the territory of Bulgaria is also discussed.

Icône crétoise inédite de St. Romain qui guérit un cheval de la "sklepa" (dernier quart du XVe siècle) de la Collection de Rumen Manov

Dans le pr?sent article nous publions une ic?ne in?dite de saint Romain, qui gu?rit un cheval de la "sklepa", du dernier quart du XVe si?cle, de la Collection de Rumen Manov. L?ic?ne est l?oeuvre d?un peintre anonyme de l?Ecole cr?toise, qui a probablement pris comme mod?le la scene identique de l?eglise de Saint Phanourios (deuxieme quart du XVe siecle) ? Valsamonero en Cr?te. L?ic?ne est d?une valeur exceptionnelle, car elle est la seule, ? notre connaissance, qui pr?sente saint Romain dans un tel contexte, ? la difference de la peinture murale, proposant quatre sc?nes semblables, qui ne sont connues qu?en Crete et datent de la seconde moiti? du XIIIe au deuxi?me quart du XVe si?cle.