Late Antiquity 192-526 CE As tastes shifted from pagan polytheistic religion to Judeo- Christian, works from this transitional period build the foundation of art at architecture of the Middle Ages.

Duro Europas and Jewish Art Dura was a city in the what is now Syria and was part of the Roman Empire. In 256, a siege caused the entire town to evacuate, leaving the building largely intact. Narrative scenes of the Torah, or Pentateuch, adorn the walls of the synagogue. This surprised early discoverers, as the Second Commandment forbids the making of graven images. Scenes are devoid or action and tell story through stylized gestures. Poses are frontal with little shading.

Very little is known of early Christian art Very little is known of early Christian art. What is know has largely been gained through studying catacombs, vast networks of galleries and chambers designed for burying the dead. The Roman catacombs compromised galleries that ran for 60-90 miles and contain an estimated 4 million bodies. Under Constantine, Christianity received official approval and churches were built over catacombs.

The wealthy were buried in elaborate carved sarcophagi. Christians rejected cremation because they believed in resurrection of the body. The wealthy were buried in elaborate carved sarcophagi. Common themes were Jonah and the whale and Christ as the good shepherd.

Early Christian Architecture Differing from Greco-Roman houses of worship, Christian churches were meant to house ceremonies inside rather than outside. These early churches were plain looking on the outside, but were richly decorated inside. Old St. Peter’s Basilica is constructed on a longitudinal axis with a long nave flanked by aisled and ending in a rounded apse.

Mosaics were a durable way to decorate walls and floors Mosaics were a durable way to decorate walls and floors. They also provided a way to instruct the congregation about Biblical stories. This mosaic, found in the Santa Maria Maggiore (first major Church dedicated to the Virgin Mary), depicts the parting of Abraham and Lot. It makes use of a common shorthand device for perspective, the head cluster.

Constantine was baptized in 337 on his deathbed, establishing the Roman Empire as Christian, and Constantinople as the new Christian capital. In 380 emperor Theodosius issued an edict establishing Christianity as the state religion. In 394 he abolished the Olympic Games, the enduring symbol of the classical world and its values.

Luxury Arts In Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, jewelry, metalwork, cameos, ivory carvings, illuminated manuscripts, and other crafts enjoyed very high status. The Vienna Genesis is the oldest well-preserved painted manuscript containing Biblical scenes. The depictions of the story of Rebecca and Eliezer make use of continuous narration, or the depiction of the same figure more than once in the same space at different stages of a story.