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Ancient Statues, Christian City
Abstract
This chapter examines some of the public statues of Constantinople between the 4th and sixth centuries ce, and their significance to a Christian audience as illuminated in literary records pertaining to the city. The Parastaseis Syntomoi Chronikai account dated to the eighth century ce, which not only describes the statues in their historical urban settings, but also details various encounters of viewers with them. Roman Empire perception was perpetuated into the future and encapsulated by the statues. The statues proved themselves to be superior to Christian images, which, up until the ninth century ce, were repeatedly debated concerning their very validity. The statues, however, never suffered the official interrogation and violence their Christian counterparts did—adding to their charisma and appeal over generations. Constantinopolitan public statuary offers critical insights into the ways a controversial ancient heritage imbricated itself into the very fabric of Christian material infrastructure and endured.
Overview
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TL;DR
This chapter reads the eighth-century *Parastaseis Syntomoi Chronikai* to argue that Constantinople’s pagan statues remained central, charismatic, and prophetic actors in the Christian city, not marginal ornaments. It shows emperors, officials, and philosophers closely scrutinizing statues to decode imperial past and future, even as the statues retained enigmatic and sometimes dangerous power.
Key findings
- The *Parastaseis* presents pre-Christian statues as integral to Constantinople’s topography and historical continuity, often tied to imperial intervention, prophecy, or destruction. Its opening chapter says S. Mocius was built by Constantine the Great (324–37) on the site of a temple of Zeus and with its stones, while later chapters describe rebuilding under Justinian (527–65) and others.
- Specific episodes show statues’ agency: a statue of the pagan Fidalia caused the ground to shake after removal, prompting the emperor to send a procession; at the Kynegion, a statue killed the official Himerius, and Emperor Philippicus (711–13) ordered it buried because it was impossible to destroy.
- In chapter 64, Emperor Theodosius II (408–50) and seven philosophers—Kranos, Karos, Pelops, Apelles, Nerva, Silvanus, and Kyrvos—inspect statues in the Hippodrome and produce cryptic prophecies about horses becoming riders of men, barren times, and whether Constantinople will still stand.
- The chapter argues that pagan statues never suffered the official interrogation and violence directed at Christian images up to the ninth century, and that texts written at moments of crisis—the *Parastaseis* during Iconoclasm, Nicetas Choniates after 1204, and Manuel Chrysoloras in 1411—link imperial continuity to ancient materials rather than Christian visual culture.
Methods
- Close reading of the *Parastaseis Syntomoi Chronikai*, focusing especially on two episodes: the murder of Himerius at the Kynegion and the philosophers’ investigation in the Hippodrome.
- Uses the Cameron and Herrin 1984 translation and commentary on the text preserved in an eleventh-century manuscript (MS. Par., gr. 1336), while engaging scholarship by Kazhdan, Odorico, James, Anderson, Magdalino, and others.
- Historical and literary analysis of how the text describes statues, viewers, imperial involvement, and prophecies, rather than a systematic archaeological or art-historical survey.
Limitations
- The paper states that the *Parastaseis* is difficult in date and contents, with proposed composition in the eighth century, possibly over several decades, or even compilation in the ninth or tenth century; its purpose and audience are also debated.
- It notes that the text’s language is sometimes difficult and grammatically erroneous, its histories are often inaccurate or confused, and chapter 64 is “extremely difficult and textually very corrupt.”
- Evident from the chapter: the argument relies heavily on one enigmatic textual source, so conclusions about Byzantine attitudes and viewing practices are mediated by a cryptic and historically uncertain document rather than by direct archaeological or visual evidence.
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In the paper
“The level of imperial involvement with, and interest in, the statues is also remarkable, and evident in several episodes.”
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In the paper
“The statues presented in the Parastaseis are often intimately associated with imperial intervention, either in terms of their manufacture, appropriation, embellishment, or destruction.”
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In the paper
“-a point the text bears out in episodes that describe bureaucrats, philosophers, and certainly emperors attempting to understand and decipher the identities of the statues because of what they might reveal about imperial continuity and succession.”
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In the paper
“Moreover, the memory of that past is retained, even as the identity and character of the building changes.”
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In the paper
“But texts such as the Parastaseis strongly suggest that ambiguity endured in the realm of public statuary.”
Load-bearingStrength:boosted· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passes- Rests on an assumption: The Parastaseis provides reliable enough evidence to infer attitudes toward public statuary in Constantinople.
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In the paper
“One of the most notorious events in the Parastaseis that amply bears out the theme of imperial involvement and the cryptic but tremendous powers of statues, involves an act of murder perpetrated by one such object.”
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In the paper
“What starts it off is the narrator's and Himerios's visit to the Kynegion 'to investigate the statues there.'”
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In the paper
“The philosophers are summoned to the very site of the Hippodrome to unravel their secrets.”
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In the paper
“That pagan statues appear as an integral component of each of these texts penned at critical moments”
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In the paper
“The implication that the statue is profoundly tied to its position, so much so that the very ground on which it stands loses stability once it is detached from it, reveals how intimately these objects were perceived to be associated with the topography of the city.”
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In the paper
“This investigation required close looking, or at least observation for a certain duration of time and a physical proximity that ultimately proved fatal.”
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In the paper
“The rhythm of erection, destruction, and reerection is presented as a vital aspect of the physical and historical continuity of the city.”
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In the paper
“The statues were not always furnished with inscriptions and attributes that expounded on their identities and histories.”
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In the paper
“which not only describes the statues in their historical urban settings, but also details various encounters of viewers with them.”
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In the paper
“To be sure, this is usually the case when the statue in question performs a miracle or acts aggressively.”
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In the paper
“Although the text is probably dated to the eighth century, other narratives attest to the existence of statues in Constantinople's squares and streets well after Iconoclasm, up to the thirteenth century and beyond.”
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In the paper
“Even after the dangers that follow, it is signig7Fcant that the narrator doesn't dissuade the reader from looking at statues ever again; quite the contrary. He advises the exercise of caution when 'contemplating' them, but he never suggests avoiding them altogether.”
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In the paper
“Even when the statue was gone, it continued to exert an in uence on the site at which it formerly stood, causing it to shake.”
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In the paper
“No hurried viewer, the narrator '[wondered] at' the statue, despite 'not getting on with his inquiry.'”
- Also stated in: § Pagan Statues and Their Doings · p. 6 · boosted
“It is telling that the narrator of our episode 'wondered at' the statue, and still 'did not get anywhere with his wondering.'”
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- Also stated in: § Pagan Statues and Their Doings · p. 6 · boosted
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In the paper
“However, the emperor concerns himself with the events nonetheless, going so far as to dispatch his men to the site of the murder.”
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In the paper
“Nevertheless, and possibly even because of this, viewing them carefully was deemed essential to deciphering their mysteries.”
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“These are entirely valid observations, but a little-noted fact is that this particular episode does not concern apocalyptic prophecies to do with the empire. Rather, the prophecy in question concerns the fate of an individual, albeit a member of the bureaucracy.”
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“Evidently in a city like Constantinople where ancient statues were legion, there was plenty of scope-and, according to our episode, desire-for close looking.”
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“Early in the Parastaseis , in chapter 5, a rather complex statue is described, consisting, among other things, of a chariot with four horses and a female g7Fgure holding another, smaller g7Fgure in her right hand.”
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In the paper
“Importantly, at least two of these texts-the Parastaseis and Choniates's coda-privilege pagan monuments over their Christian counterparts in terms of mentioning them more frequently and bestowing on them a magnetic charisma”
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In the paper
“The philosophers attest to this when two of them inquire as to the statues' original creators while attempting to uncover what they portend.”
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In the paper
“It has been argued that this tale speaks to the hidden, sometimes destructive, might of the statues, and that they required interpreters; people like 'John, the philosopher,' to decipher their powers.”
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In the paper
“Icons of Christ, the Virgin, and the saints were arranged in a manner so as to communicate clearly the hierarchies occupied by each holy g7Fgure. The center of the visual g7Feld was devoted to the most important being; by the same token, the right-hand side of Christ was reserved for those closest to him.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Henry Maguire
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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- Not matched
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In the paper
“One of the oddest, and yet most revealing, anecdotes regarding statues occurs in chapter 64 of the Parastaseis in which the stakes of looking carefully at statues are considerable.”
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“The great public monuments such as the theaters, baths and not least, the statues, fell in into a state of ruin.”
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In the paper
“Ambiguity in terms of iconography and identity was almost completely pared away in the religious sphere, and steps were taken to ensure that holy g7Fgures were recognized for who they were.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Henry Maguire
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“As Henry Maguire has argued, in post-Iconoclastic art, holy g7Fgures were presented so as to be immediately identig7Fable, and they were almost always accompanied by inscriptions that proclaimed their identities.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Henry Maguire
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“the government was forced to reduce the population, and that no major building or restoration project is attested to between 610 and 760 CE .”
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In the paper
“I will show that pagan statues were signig7Fcant actors in the topography of the capital and recognized as such by the Byzantines, especially at crucial moments in their history.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: The role of pagan values, ideals, and culture in the long middle ages still requires a more comprehensive analysis than it has been granted.
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In the paper
“but recent scholars have agreed on a date in the eighth century, with some arguing for its composition in the early decades while others posit a more uid and continual compilation by a group of authors throughout the century.”
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In the paper
“Apparently even the churches were sadly dilapidated, to judge from the reports of the Franks, who claimed that some of them lacked adequate lighting and roog7Fng.”
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In the paper
“And because some of these statues remained enigmatic and at times, troublesome, throughout their lives, they provided a counterpoint to the ways in which religious art was meant to be viewed.”
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In the paper
“but it offers invaluable insights into the ambitions of an emperor to decipher statues, and the processes via which his philosophers attempt to help him in the task.”
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In the paper
“The statues were the physical markers of historical continuity, and as such, were regarded as being integral to the very existence of the city.”
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In the paper
“a cultural revival ensued after the middle of the eighth century, partly as a result of Constantine V resettling large parts of the population of Greece in the capital.”
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In the paper
“It is the act of looking that takes precedence in this context, whereas holy images were primarily destined for veneration.”
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In the paper
“This manoeuver in the text resonates with the actual conditions of Constantinople in the eighth century.”
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In the paper
“The chapter, according to Cameron and Herrin, is 'extremely difg7Fcult and textually very corrupt';”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Cameron and Herrin
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In the paper
“But simultaneously, by dint of the prophecies they depict or contain, the statues also gesture to the future; continuity here refers to moments stretching well beyond the past and/or the present moment.”
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In the paper
“several of the statues were older than the capital itself, having been brought to it as booty from other regions of the Roman empire by Constantine I.”
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In the paper
“even if the city declined 'as a great urban unit, it continued to ourish as a network of semi-urban nuclei.'”
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In the paper
“As Paul Magdalino astutely points out, 'the Parastaseis describes the talismanic properties of statues as the serious concern of learned men, 'les philosophes dans la rue,' '”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Paul Magdalino
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In the paper
“The statues, on the other hand, by dint of their enigmatic auras, lend a weighty resonance to viewing, which in turn leads to serious rumination that might-or might not-lead anywhere at all.”
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A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The statues proved themselves to be superior to Christian images, which, up until the ninth century CE , were repeatedly debated concerning their very validity.”
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A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The statues, however, never suffered the ofg7Fcial interrogation and violence their Christian counterparts did-adding to their charisma and appeal over generations.”
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In the paper
“Following on the heels of several military confrontations and loss of territory in the seventh century CE , the Byzantine empire's g7Fnances were drained by its struggles with various enemies.”
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In the paper
“The preceding remarks are particularly pertinent in light of recent scholarship that argues for a strong sense of historicism in Byzantine literature, 'historicism' being deg7Fned as 'the awareness of long-term and deep historical change' … and 'the avoidance of anachronism in examining the past … a sense of the fundamental difference of the past.'”
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In the paper
“(The letter ends with a rousing call for 'well-wishing subjects' to dedicate themselves to revitalizing the empire.)”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [48]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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In the paper
“The statue of the man in the helmet, in this case, parallels what Kranos sees as the future of Constantinople.”
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In the paper
“Choniates's piece functions as the coda to his chronicle of the empire, and as a lament for the loss of those magnig7Fcent statues.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [46]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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- Not matched
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The various parts of the statue elicit a historicist hermeneutic from Kranos in his attempt to p. 214 45 - uncover the prophecy it holds.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Even when they deign to reveal something, they preserve their larger secrets”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Karos's question also gestures toward an implicit acknowledgement of the potentially deceptive nature of images.”
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“There is a strong implication that had the donkey been revealed to have been added at some other time, then Kranos's prediction too would have been modulated accordingly.”
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedCausal:conditional· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✗ Checkable: fails✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Who exactly 'they' constitutes is unclear (as in other sections of the text), but the chapter effectively tells us that some citizens were aware of the piecemeal nature of putting together statues, with some parts having been added in later periods than others.”
Strength:boosted· not yet calibratedSingle caseTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“It is striking that the emperor, philosophers, and ofg7Fcials are primarily presented as viewers over and above their professional and imperial identities.”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The fact that these men perform their task in situ makes them akin to art historians and archaeologists who must, ideally, gain physical proximity to their objects of study.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“These images are believed to harbor a signig7Fcance that is greater than their appearance.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“This instance of the attempted dating of a sculptural ensemble, and the acknowledgement that it may have been embellished over time, is also evident in other episodes that do not as explicitly pertain to the unraveling of the future but are equally tied to a historical consciousness regarding the city.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:correlational· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“They need not always conform to the truth; all the more reason for examining them scrupulously to tease out their complexities, especially when the future of the empire (and possibly the world) is involved.”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✗ Checkable: fails✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“What does this episode reveal? For one, it highlights the zeal of an emperor in deciphering the meanings of the statues that adorn his city.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The wise men, by their very presence in the Hippodrome, proclaim the importance of looking as the g7Frst and most vital step in the hermeneutical process.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The statue was not universally regarded as having been wholly confected in the era of the city's founder; yet it was an important part of the birthday celebrations nonetheless because at least a part of it was believed to date from the time of Constantine the Great.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes? Load-bearing: unclear✓ Based: passesIt may state two separate claims as one.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“In posing such a question, Kranos does not merely display a sensitivity pertaining to the contingency of a work of art, which may be added to or taken away from over time; he also hints at the inexorable march of historical time, which adds to or detracts from the glories of an empire, and which may manifest itself in the form of works of art.”
Strength:hedged· not yet calibratedCausal:conditional· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“But for the most part, the statues remain enigmatic and do not yield their prophecies easily.”
Load-bearingStrength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“In doing so, they posit the writing of the history of the empire as being contingent on the ability to appraise and interpret visual evidence.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“They inhabit multiple moments at once: their origins from an era long ago, their present time (in which their past meanings are lost, hence the attempts of the characters to decipher them), and premonitions of the future that they gesture toward, which bestow on them a powerful prophetic aura.”
Tests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✓ Load-bearing: passes✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. It may state two separate claims as one.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The episode mentioned previously, however, adds yet another dimension to this multifaceted arena; it becomes a site of historical inquiry based on prophecy and divination, a gathering place for philosophers to ponder and debate over the meanings of the statues that studded it.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedCausal:direct· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.
- Rests on an assumption: The Hippodrome was the primary public space for the display of imperial power in early Byzantine Constantinople, where the emperor was crowned and ritually acclaimed by the throngs.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“In chapter 64, in particular, the philosophical and historical endeavor is invested with a tangible material and visual dimension.”
Strength:plain· not yet calibratedTests✓ Asserted: passes✓ Checkable: passes✗ Load-bearing: fails✓ Based: passesProbably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
The paper relies on this without support.
The role of pagan values, ideals, and culture in the long middle ages still requires a more comprehensive analysis than it has been granted.
“the role of pagan values, ideals, and culture in the long middle ages still requires a more comprehensive analysis than it has been granted.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The Parastaseis provides reliable enough evidence to infer attitudes toward public statuary in Constantinople.
“But texts such as the Parastaseis strongly suggest that ambiguity endured in the realm of public statuary.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The Hippodrome was the primary public space for the display of imperial power in early Byzantine Constantinople, where the emperor was crowned and ritually acclaimed by the throngs.
“But it was also the primary public space for the display of imperial power where the emperor was crowned in the early Byzantine period and ritually acclaimed by the throngs.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Prophecies were predicated on knowledge of the past of the individual(s) or empire(s) that formed their subject.
“because prophecies were predicated on the knowledge of the past of the individual(s) or empire(s) that formed their subject.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The Parastaseis was composed in the eighth and/or ninth centuries, even if it were compiled later.
“the Parastaseis in the eighth and/or the ninth centuries (even if it were compiled later)”
The paper relies on this without support.
The Iconoclastic controversy raged in the empire during the eighth and/or ninth centuries and sparked a debate over the value of religious images.
“when the Iconoclastic controversy raged in the empire and sparked off a debate over the value of religious images”
The paper relies on this without support.
Several of the depictions on the Golden Gate had been ravaged in the Fourth Crusade.
“well after several of them had been ravaged in the Fourth Crusade.”
Citations
Metadata
- Authors
- Chatterjee, P.
- Corresponding author
- Chatterjee, Paroma
- Venue
- Oxford Scholarship Online
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Published
- 2017-06-22
- OpenAlex
- W4252920498
- Cited by
- 0
- References
- 0
- FWCI
- 0.00
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Oxford University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Classics › Byzantine Studies and History
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History › Historical and Religious Studies of Rome
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Classics › Classical Antiquity Studies
- Keywords
- public statues, Constantinople, late antiquity, Christian iconography, classical reception, 6th century
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