Ravenna

This week's field trip was to Ravenna, which is located on the east coast north of Tuscany. Ravenna became an important Italian sea port when the Roman Empire moved the capitol from Rome to Constantinople, during the Byzantine era. As a result, many beautiful cathedrals were built here during that era which incorporate Byzantine style. The western style cathedral was still evolving at this time. This first church is strongly Byzantine, as it is octagonal in shape and completely adorned with mosaics.


Mosaic wall and ceiling. Note that the ceilings have no sharp edges in the corners, as it's too difficult to attach the mosaic tiles.




The floor was incredible.



Here is the outside of the church. All of these old buildings are actually sinking, as the soil is a sandy alluvium.



This church on the other side of town displays a more contemporary western Christian style. We're still several decades away from the Renaissance, so although there is a strong central axis, there isn't any symmetry in the building yet. The arches are not perfectly lined up, either. note in the mosaics that perspective hasn't really been discovered yet.




Mosaics on the wall, and hand carved wooden cieling. As usual, the lighting inside was lovely.