Christian Archaeology and History of Byzantine Art

In the discipline of Christian Archaeology and History of Byzantine Art, we deal with the material legacies of the late antiquity, early medieval, and Byzantine periods. This includes architecture, painting, sculpture, craftwork, iconography, and objects of daily use. The period begins with the advent of Christian art and ends with the first millennium (in the West) or the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 (in the Byzantine Empire).
In certain cases, we also go beyond these bounds (e.g., post-Byzantine architecture, icons, Russia). In terms of content and methodology, this field ties in with classical archaeology and art history. However, it also has a strong theological focus: Not only do we take on Christian art, but we also analyze the function of church spaces and their furnishings, e.g., the interaction between liturgy and Christian pictorial programs. The discipline has existed in Marburg since at least 1886.