Hagia Sophia and the Multisensory Aesthetics of Bissera Pentcheva: a multisensory religious experience Hagia Sophia, namely the gold accents and marble to match the books, reflect and represent the language and literature of the time. The mention of traditional chanting and incense burning is also an important aspect when considering the total sensory aesthetic experience that the worshipers were part of. Emphasis is placed on the combination of these active sensory details because together they create an environment based on auditory architecture that enriches worship practice and reinforces Byzantine ideals and innovations in religious practice. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get an original essayBefore we get into the articles on the in-depth analysis of the marble and gold interior of Hagia Sophia, I would like talk about the historical setting and context of the structure. The construction of the Hagia Sophia was one of Justinian's enormous building projects, and probably his most well-known and beloved, representing a revival of the church after its destruction during the Nika Riots of 532 AD. Justinian's emphasis on rebuilding the church also represented his effort to make it the church that would revive all the other churches in Constantinople. Not only do we see very obvious connections to this in the architectural and design choices of the Hagia Sophia, but we also see it very clearly in the literature of the period. Pentcheva frequently refers to the ekphratic poem "Descriptio Sanctae Sophiae" by Paul the Silentiary which describes the experience of Hagia Sophia in a new and flowery literary style, reflecting not only the direct experiences of being in Hagia Sophia, but also giving clues to historians about how the cultural style of all Byzantine art forms is connected. Pentcheva shows her readers the common cultural style of Byzantine literature and art by focusing primarily on the use of the root marmar- in the Greek language. Uses of the root are scattered throughout Paul's poem, forming words like marmaron, marmarygma, and marmairo to describe Hagia Sophia with vivid imagery. Marmaron, meaning marble, is most often used because of its importance in the structure and lustrous quality of Hagia Sophia. The Hagia Sophia's marble is matched to have a wave-like appearance that influences the eye to create a lively surface when light shines from the base of the dome which houses 40 windows, although the marble has a cloudy gray coloring. . This gray marble comes from the island of Proconnese in the Sea of Marmara, near Constantinople, which goes a long way to explaining why it was chosen as the marble that would be used in the decoration and construction of the Hagia Sophia. Although much of the structure is made of gray marble, there are four bands of green marble in the floor which are said to represent the four rivers of paradise (Pentcheva: 96). With this deduction we can draw parallels between the use of marmaron, marmarygma and marmairo. First of all, we will focus on the use of marmairo, that is, coruscating water. Marmairo returns directly to the inference of the four strips of green marble representing the river of paradise due to their book-matched wave appearance. Paul the Silent uses images like the Bosphorus, the strait that connects the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, which supports the ideathat marble has the quality of water. Marmairo is mainly used as a descriptor that tells how the sun reflects off the marble and animates it, making it move like water in the wind under the sun. Animation is essential when marmarygma, meaning to sparkle, is used in Paul's poem as it reflects, again, the quality of marble when exposed to sunlight. The movement of the marble lit by the sun is also reinforced by the gold that shines brightly in the monumental dome and mosaics of Hagia Sophia. “'The ceiling encompasses tesserae inlaid with gold, the spilling of which in rays of glittering gold bounces irresistibly on the faces of the faithful.' » (Paul, Pencheva: 98). This example that Pencheva refers to in Paul's ekphratic is important because it shows that gold and marble are a united sensory experience. At dawn, when the sun's rays shine through the windows of the domes and make the faces of the golden mosaics seem truly alive and among the faithful. The flakes “mark the amination of the material”. (Pentcheva: 100) Animation is not only important when considering marmar- in the sense of creating images of Hagia Sophia, but it is important when talking about charis, meaning beauty and grace in Greek , which relates directly to the Holy Spirit and worship in Hagia Sophia. Paul the Silent uses the image of the ambo, a raised stand formally used for reading the Gospel, as a connector between marmar- and charis because the sea, probably the Sea of Marmara, grows on an island as the congregation grows on the ambo (Pentcheva: 99). This use of literature to describe art is very important when considering the combination of ritual and worship memory to create a form of imagery that is strongest for readers as it helps interweave the inanimate with the anime. Imagery was key to Paul's poem as he was able to use excessive metaphors to evoke the excessive use of marble and gold inside the Hagia Sophia. Alongside the uses of gold and its associated metaphors, Paul creates images of darkness to juxtapose the shimmering quality of gold with the darkness of onyx, perhaps reflecting the Devil and the influences of hell which are absent from the interior of Hagia Sophia. Because the darkness is chased away by the light that floods the interior of the Hagia Sophia, we can infer the purpose of the Hagia Sophia as an experience of purification of the soul. Purification of the soul plays a major role in religious experience because of the nature of sin and the nature of sin. negative connotations that have been placed around undesirable aspects of character, human nature, and death. There are many examples of cleansing deeply rooted in the structure of the Hagia Sophia. Notably, the halo of the windows at the base of the dome and the burning of incense. Architecturally, the dome of the Hagia Sophia appears suspended in the sky due to the halo-shaped ring of windows that embellishes the base of the dome. The dome creates a “particular mystical quality of the light which floods the interior” (Gardner, Paul: 262) which dominates the interior of the Hagia Sophia and causes all the animation of the setting. With the surplus of purifying light, the interior of the church was flooded with the scent of burning incense, particularly spikenard oil, the scent referenced in Gregory of Nyssa's "Song of Songs" which directly links the Holy Spirit (Caseau: 84). . Not only was spikenard oil burned throughout the church, but other perfumes like resin, myrrh, and kyphi were burned at specific times of the day. Kyphi, in particular, meant cleansing as it was said to bring relief and.

Essay / Hagia Sophia and the Multisensory Aesthetics of Bissera Pentcheva: a multisensory religious experience Hagia Sophia, namely the gold accents and marble to match the books, reflect and represent the language and literature of the time. The mention of traditional chanting and incense burning is also an important aspect when considering the total sensory aesthetic experience that the worshipers were part of. Emphasis is placed on the combination of these active sensory details because together they create an environment based on auditory architecture that enriches worship practice and reinforces Byzantine ideals and innovations in religious practice. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get an original essayBefore we get into the articles on the in-depth analysis of the marble and gold interior of Hagia Sophia, I would like talk about the historical setting and context of the structure. The construction of the Hagia Sophia was one of Justinian's enormous building projects, and probably his most well-known and beloved, representing a revival of the church after its destruction during the Nika Riots of 532 AD. Justinian's emphasis on rebuilding the church also represented his effort to make it the church that would revive all the other churches in Constantinople. Not only do we see very obvious connections to this in the architectural and design choices of the Hagia Sophia, but we also see it very clearly in the literature of the period. Pentcheva frequently refers to the ekphratic poem "Descriptio Sanctae Sophiae" by Paul the Silentiary which describes the experience of Hagia Sophia in a new and flowery literary style, reflecting not only the direct experiences of being in Hagia Sophia, but also giving clues to historians about how the cultural style of all Byzantine art forms is connected. Pentcheva shows her readers the common cultural style of Byzantine literature and art by focusing primarily on the use of the root marmar- in the Greek language. Uses of the root are scattered throughout Paul's poem, forming words like marmaron, marmarygma, and marmairo to describe Hagia Sophia with vivid imagery. Marmaron, meaning marble, is most often used because of its importance in the structure and lustrous quality of Hagia Sophia. The Hagia Sophia's marble is matched to have a wave-like appearance that influences the eye to create a lively surface when light shines from the base of the dome which houses 40 windows, although the marble has a cloudy gray coloring. . This gray marble comes from the island of Proconnese in the Sea of Marmara, near Constantinople, which goes a long way to explaining why it was chosen as the marble that would be used in the decoration and construction of the Hagia Sophia. Although much of the structure is made of gray marble, there are four bands of green marble in the floor which are said to represent the four rivers of paradise (Pentcheva: 96). With this deduction we can draw parallels between the use of marmaron, marmarygma and marmairo. First of all, we will focus on the use of marmairo, that is, coruscating water. Marmairo returns directly to the inference of the four strips of green marble representing the river of paradise due to their book-matched wave appearance. Paul the Silent uses images like the Bosphorus, the strait that connects the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, which supports the ideathat marble has the quality of water. Marmairo is mainly used as a descriptor that tells how the sun reflects off the marble and animates it, making it move like water in the wind under the sun. Animation is essential when marmarygma, meaning to sparkle, is used in Paul's poem as it reflects, again, the quality of marble when exposed to sunlight. The movement of the marble lit by the sun is also reinforced by the gold that shines brightly in the monumental dome and mosaics of Hagia Sophia. “'The ceiling encompasses tesserae inlaid with gold, the spilling of which in rays of glittering gold bounces irresistibly on the faces of the faithful.' » (Paul, Pencheva: 98). This example that Pencheva refers to in Paul's ekphratic is important because it shows that gold and marble are a united sensory experience. At dawn, when the sun's rays shine through the windows of the domes and make the faces of the golden mosaics seem truly alive and among the faithful. The flakes “mark the amination of the material”. (Pentcheva: 100) Animation is not only important when considering marmar- in the sense of creating images of Hagia Sophia, but it is important when talking about charis, meaning beauty and grace in Greek , which relates directly to the Holy Spirit and worship in Hagia Sophia. Paul the Silent uses the image of the ambo, a raised stand formally used for reading the Gospel, as a connector between marmar- and charis because the sea, probably the Sea of Marmara, grows on an island as the congregation grows on the ambo (Pentcheva: 99). This use of literature to describe art is very important when considering the combination of ritual and worship memory to create a form of imagery that is strongest for readers as it helps interweave the inanimate with the anime. Imagery was key to Paul's poem as he was able to use excessive metaphors to evoke the excessive use of marble and gold inside the Hagia Sophia. Alongside the uses of gold and its associated metaphors, Paul creates images of darkness to juxtapose the shimmering quality of gold with the darkness of onyx, perhaps reflecting the Devil and the influences of hell which are absent from the interior of Hagia Sophia. Because the darkness is chased away by the light that floods the interior of the Hagia Sophia, we can infer the purpose of the Hagia Sophia as an experience of purification of the soul. Purification of the soul plays a major role in religious experience because of the nature of sin and the nature of sin. negative connotations that have been placed around undesirable aspects of character, human nature, and death. There are many examples of cleansing deeply rooted in the structure of the Hagia Sophia. Notably, the halo of the windows at the base of the dome and the burning of incense. Architecturally, the dome of the Hagia Sophia appears suspended in the sky due to the halo-shaped ring of windows that embellishes the base of the dome. The dome creates a “particular mystical quality of the light which floods the interior” (Gardner, Paul: 262) which dominates the interior of the Hagia Sophia and causes all the animation of the setting. With the surplus of purifying light, the interior of the church was flooded with the scent of burning incense, particularly spikenard oil, the scent referenced in Gregory of Nyssa's "Song of Songs" which directly links the Holy Spirit (Caseau: 84). . Not only was spikenard oil burned throughout the church, but other perfumes like resin, myrrh, and kyphi were burned at specific times of the day. Kyphi, in particular, meant cleansing as it was said to bring relief and.

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