Archaeological evidence suggests that in certain regions of Byzantium, including Constantinople and Nicaea, existing icons were destroyed or plastered over. In these decades, imperial legislation barred the production and use of figural images simultaneously, the cross was promoted as the most acceptable decorative form for Byzantine churches. The controversy spanned roughly a century, during the years 726–87 and 815–43. In the Byzantine world, Iconoclasm refers to a theological debate involving both the Byzantine church and state. For example, in ancient Egypt, the carved visages of some pharaohs were obliterated by their successors during the French Revolution, images of kings were defaced. Iconoclasm literally means “image breaking” and refers to a recurring historical impulse to break or destroy images for religious or political reasons. The Hodegetria image was not only enormously popular in the East, but also had an enormous impact on representations of the Virgin and Christ Child in western Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance ( 60.173). The original wooden panel icon attributed to Saint Luke was housed in the Hodegon Monastery in Constantinople, a foundation made famous by its sacred spring whose waters cured the blind, guided to the spring by the monastery’s brethren. One of the most famous Byzantine icons of all time, the Virgin Hodegetria image was copied widely in Byzantium in all media ( 17.190.103). In this composition, the Virgin cradles the Christ Child in her left arm and points toward him with her right hand. The ability to miraculously replicate was a common feature of acheiropoieta.īy the twelfth century, a wooden panel image of the Virgin Hodegetria (“the guide”) was attributed to the miraculous creation of the evangelist, Saint Luke. The most famous acheiropoieta included the Mandylion, a white cloth imprinted with the face of Christ, and the Keramion, a ceramic tile which received the impression of Christ’s face from the Mandylion. A significant number of acheiropoieta originated in the Early Byzantine period, before the advent of Iconoclasm in the early eighth century. This category of miraculously created image was accorded special veneration throughout the history of Byzantium. Icons created by divine agency were known as acheiropoieta (“not made by (human) hands”). Miraculous healings and good fortune were among the requests.Īcheiropoieta, or Icons “Not Made by (Human) Hands” In Byzantine theology, the contemplation of icons allowed the viewer direct communication with the sacred figure(s) represented, and through icons an individual’s prayers were addressed directly to the petitioned saint or holy figure. Alternatively, icons could be of a more permanent character, such as fresco and mosaic images decorating church interiors. Icons could be mounted on a pole or frame and carried into battle, as has been suggested for the Saint Demetrios icon ( 1970.324.3). Some were suspended around the neck as pendants, others (called “triptychs”) had panels on each side that could be opened and closed, thereby activating the icon. Icons ranged in size from the miniature to the monumental. While today the term is most closely associated with wooden panel painting, in Byzantium icons could be crafted in all media, including marble, ivory, ceramic, gemstone, precious metal, enamel, textile, fresco, and mosaic. Icons (from the Greek eikones) are sacred images representing the saints, Christ, and the Virgin, as well as narrative scenes such as Christ’s Baptism ( 2013.980a–d) and Crucifixion.
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