Domus aurea3/9/2023 ![]() "A propos de la ταυριαν πλη : remarques sur la localisation présumée de la Grande Eglise d'Antioche de Syrie". Athanasius and Constantius: theology and politics in the Constantinian empire. Golden Mouth: The Story of John Chrysostom – Ascetic, Preacher, Bishop. This is in keeping with indications that the area in which it stood had become mainly uninhabited by that time, because Antioch was no longer an imperial residence of the Eastern Roman/Byzantine Empire and the island was no longer enclosed by the city walls. After this earthquake it appears that no attempt was made to reconstruct the great church. It is said that although the rest of the church was destroyed, that the dome settled on the ruins in an upright position. The final destruction of the great church occurred on 31 October 588 (or possibly 587), when Antioch was again struck by a major earthquake. It was rebuilt for the last time by Justinian I, but was damaged by earthquakes in 551, 557 and 577, giving a northward tilt to the dome. when Antioch was burned by the invading Persians under Chosroes I. It was again rebuilt by Ephraim, being rededicated in 537/538, only for it to be destroyed by fire once more in 540 A.D. On 29 November 528 another earthquake struck the city and the great church was again destroyed. The great church was rebuilt by Ephraim, the comes Orientis, and partly for that reason he was persuaded to become the new Patriarch of Antioch in 528. However, seven days later the fires that had been burning since the earthquake struck finally destroyed the church. The earthquake of late May 526 badly damaged the great church, but still left it standing. This act effectively brought his attempts to restore Hellenism in Antioch to an end. When the temple burned down, shortly thereafter, Julian was furious, suspecting the Christians and in response closed the Great Church, removing its liturgical vessels. ![]() He had the body of Saint Babylas removed from the martyrium near the temple of Apollo at Daphne, because he thought that it had silenced the oracle of Apollo. He was the last non-Christian ruler of the Roman Empire, and chose Antioch as his headquarters, partly to lay plans for his proposed campaign against the Persians and partly to further his attempt to restore the eastern empire to Hellenism. Julian moved to Antioch in 362, soon after becoming the sole ruler of the eastern empire, following the death of Constantius II. ![]() It has been proposed that it was similar in structure to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna, which was built in 540. The floor consisted of polished marble and every part of the building was highly decorated with brass, gold and precious stones. ![]() The domed roof, which was made of wood, reached a great height and was gilded inside. Eusebius in his Life of Constantine, describes the Domus Aurea as being octagonal in plan, sited in a large enclosure, with many chambers clustered around it. In the absence of definitive pictorial evidence, it is necessary to rely on written descriptions of the building. Although there is an octagonal building on part of the border it remains uncertain if this represents the great church or whether the relationship to other buildings can be used to identify its location on the island. Part of the border of this hunt scene shows buildings from Antioch, including those interpreted to be the Imperial Palace and the Domus Aurea. The only known possible depiction of the Domus Aurea is the Megalopsychia Hunt Mosaic, or "Yakto mosaic", from the second half of the fifth century, found in the ancient suburb of Antioch, Daphne (Yakto). It has not proved possible to establish the site of the church with any greater certainty. It was built on the island between the two main branches of the Orontes River, where the Imperial Palace was located. ![]() The new church was dedicated in a ceremony on 6 January 341, in the presence of both Constans and Constantius II and a gathering of ninety-seven bishops, which formed the dedication council. Ground plan of the Basilica of San Vitale, Ravenna, completed in 548, may indicate the form of the Domus AureaĬonstruction of the church was started in 327, during the reign of Constantine the Great, and was completed under Constantius II. ![]()
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