The Emergence of Sibling Cultures (600-750) - Iconoclasm

12 important questions on The Emergence of Sibling Cultures (600-750) - Iconoclasm

What ways took Christian material form?

  • Pious tomb inscriptions
  • Saintly relics

Why was a cult of images as important as a cult of saints?

The argument was straightforward: the sacred could best be grasped by human beings when made visible and palpable.

What were many reliquaries decorated with?

Many reliquaries were decorated with precious stones and metals and often, too, with images of saints, Christ, and his mother, Mary.
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What importance did images have?

Images became more than representations of divine beings; they were - like relics, like reliquaries - containers of the holy.

What was Byzantium confronted with in the late seventh century?

In the late seventh century, Byzantium was confronted by plagues, earthquakes, and (above all) wars.

What explanation is there for the things that happened in Byzantium?

God was angry with them for their sins.

What happened at the Synod of 754?

  • At the Synod of 754, over 300 bishops and the emperor himself banned sacred images outright.
  • Their decrees made clear how material representations threatened, according to iconoclasts, to befoul the purity of the divine.

How did Christ himself declare how he should be represented?

Christ himself had declared he should be represented through the bread and wine of the Eucharist - and in no other way.

What did iconoclastic churchmen worry about?

Iconoclastic churchmen worried about losing control over the sacred. Unlike relics, images could be reproduced infinitely and without clerical authorization. Their cultivation at monasteries to encroach on clerical authority. It was in their interest to ban icons.

What example of iconoclastic obliteration remains from Hagia Sophia?

A room used by the patriarch was originally covered with mosaics, including medallions with images of saints. During the iconoclastic period, the images were cut out and replaced by crosses.

Artists of the iconoclastic period were commissioned to depict (depending on the use of the building) ornaments, trees, birds, hunting, horse races, and other non-sacred motifs. Why did iconoclasts do this?

The iconoclasts thought that they thereby ensured God's favor - that, once again, the Byzantines were God's "Chosen People."

Was iconoclasm a success or a failure?

  • Iconoclasm was an utter failure, though the ban on icons lasted until 787 and was revived, in modified form, between 815 and 843.
  • Not only did the iconoclastic movement come to an end, but during the eighth century the position of those who supported icons, already argued at the Quinisext Council, was elaborated at great length in learned treatises. Henceforth, the veneration of holy images in the Byzantine (Eastern Orthodox) Church was a normal part of its religious practices.

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