Late Antiquity Review

Late Antiquity: Art, Architecture, and Manuscripts

• Late Antiquity was a period of diverse societies and cultures in Rome, with significant religious significance.
• Rome became monotheistic in the 4th century, with the emergence of Jewish and Christian art that still had Roman influences.
• Dura-Europos, a distant Roman outpost in Syria, reveals insights into late antiquity and its art, similar to Pompeii.
• The synagogue paintings in Dura-Europos depict biblical themes, surprising scholars as they seemed to defy the second commandment.
• Late Antiquity provides a look into early Christianity, which was still outlawed at the time, but gained official status under Emperor Constantine in 313.
• Early Christian art refers to art with Christian subjects rather than references to Jesus, often found in tombs and catacombs.
• Sculptures in early Christianity favored elaborate marble creations, similar to Roman traditions, and were often found in catacombs.
• Old Saint Peters, built in 319 and sponsored by Constantine, resembled the Basilica Ulpia and the Aula Palatina, accommodating thousands of parishioners.
• Mosaics in churches, such as Santa Maria Maggiore, served as vehicles for instructing the congregation with biblical stories and Christian dogma.
• The Mausoleum of Galla Placidia housed a rich mosaic ensemble, including a notable depiction of Christ as the good shepherd.
• The Church of Santa Sabina exemplifies the essential characteristics of early Christian basilicas, with a dominant central axis and side aisles.
• The Vienna Genesis manuscript, likely made for a wealthy patron in the Byzantine world, gives insight into the use of illustrated codex in early Christianity.