Byzantine

One of the most important Byzantine pieces of Architecture is the Hagia Sophia, which can also be known as the Church of the Holy Wisdom. This was designed by Anthemius of Trails and Isidor of Miletus. To show how important and influential the building was there was an Enormous dome. This dome was s so massive that it collapsed multiple times in the construction alone! With domes, especially of this size, there is a very important way that the weight needs to be distributed. Here the pendentive method was used. A pendentive is used to support the dome on a square base so the weight is distributes (picture of pendentive below) .

 

The interiors of these buildings were also something to look at. The buildings that still exist and were found are mainly churches, so alot of what we know is from the churches and their styles. Flooring was typically marble tiles, which were usually in geometric patterns and designs.  Floor tiles are also much more heavy duty and durable than the wall tiles. Also a cool part about the interiors of the buildings is that on the surfaces whether it be walls or ceilings they were heavily ornamented. These ornamental aspects include, anything from marble, frescoes or clebaster.




(Hagia Sophia mentioned above)

Current Applications







Extra Credit Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwLEOe7gnRo