The Architecture of Justinian

Justinian the Great was truly one of, if not the greatest, of monarchs in world history. Among the accomplishments of this Emperor which, in my brief readings on him, have now been shown to be too many for just one post to do justice to, are his architectural accomplishments. Especially with the ludicrous infrastructure proposals of our current ruling classes, it is important to reflect on the cultural superiority of the late classical period's architecture. We see buildings crumbling and falling down on a routine day-to-day basis. This seems to be what we are used to. But the classical period envisioned that buildings would be built to last. Buildings were to provide refuges for people in times of harsh environments. Justinian the Great came to power in the Roman Empire when it was falling apart, literally and figuratively. Out of nowhere, he rebuilt the entire system, the entire country, and revived what looked to be an almost dead beast.

According to John Malalas, Justinian rebuilt the city of the district of Sykai with its theatres and walls (Chronicle, Bk 18.12) and he also completed the rebuilding of the public baths which the Emperor Anastasios had started (18.17). He also built the central hall of the Basilican cistern. "He was responsible for the building of ninety churches throughout his realm. Most famous, of course, is the incomparable Cathedral of the Holy Wisdom...The great edifice has been called the most important building in Eastern Europe and, along with the Parthenon and St. Peter's in Rome, one of the three most important buildings in European history." (Thornton, Pious Kings and Right-Believing Queens, 252)

Paul the Deacon has the following to say about the Emperor Justinian:

"The same emperor also built within the city of Constantinople to Christ our Lord, who is the wisdom of God the Father, a church which he called by the Greek name 'Hagia Sophia,' that is, 'Divine Wisdom.' The workmanship of this so far excels that of all other buildings that in all the regions of the earth its like cannot be found." (History of the Langobards, Bk. 1.XXV)

Evagrius Scholasticus goes into further detail about the architectural projects of the Emperor Justinian the Great.

"He also raised at Constantinople many sacred buildings of elaborate beauty, in honour of God and the saints, and erected a vast and incomparable work, such as has never been before recorded, namely the largest edifice of the Church, a noble and surpassing structure, beyond the power of words to describe. Nevertheless I will endeavour to the best of my ability to detail the plan of the sacred precinct. The nave of the sanctuary is a dome, supported by four arches, and raised to so great a height that the sight of persons surveying it from below can scarcely reach the vertex of the hemisphere, and no one from above, however daring, ventures to bend over and look down to the floor. The arches are raised clear from the pavement to the roof : but within those on the right and left are ranged columns of Thessalian stone, which, together with other corresponding pillars, support galleries, so as to allow those who wish, to look |228 down upon the performance of the rites below." (Ecclesiastical History, Bk. 4.XXXI)

Justinian also built the Church of the Holy Apostles. Because of his architectural accomplishments, Justinian is often seen in iconography holding a church building.

Much of the architectural contributions of Justinian the Great still hold up to this day. He was well-regarded for his architectural accomplishments. The fact that these buildings are still stable while much of the modernist art is crumbling apart shows which direction our current infrastructure plans need to traverse in. Though Hagia Sophia has long since been turned into a mosque, the building has remained in tact and has never come close to falling apart. We build buildings nowadays that crumble to dust within minutes. But that doesn't seem to phase the current architects who don't generally live in these buildings but are satisfied only with the fact that they built something "within code". The infrastructure of our nation needs serious upheaval immediately. Justinian the Great came to Constantinople at a time when the Roman Empire was about to crumble to dust. It is time we start to consider his architectural vision for our cities before our empire crumbles to dust.