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Aliza Steinberg
Hod Hasharon, Israel;
aliza.steinberg@gmail.com
Gender, Representation, Status, Dress Code, Adornment and Bodily
Modification as Reflected on the Mosaics Pavement within the Historical-
Geographic Area of Eretz Israel towards the End of Late Antiquity
During Late Antiquity, clothing constitutes an element pertaining to the material culture,
enveloping the individual’s body and serving as a sort of “second skin”.
It reflected gender, social norms, aesthetic aspects and function of men’s, women’s (and
children’s) modifying movements, that enables examination the role and status of these figures in
society among a multi-cultural population comprising pagans, Jews and Christians, who decorated
their houses and places of worship with mosaics, in various cities throughout the Empire. The
encounter between the traditional Roman apparel and that of the non-Romans blurred the borders,
leading to a mutual influence and the integration of military and civilian elements of adornment
and dress.
The correlation between the archaeological finding of woven fabrics and dress
together with
the contribution of the ancient writings led to the conclusion that in many cases the items of clothing
and their accessories appearing in the mosaic floors imitated reality, reflecting the accepted forms
and appearance of the periods during which the mosaics were created. This talk focuses on the
terminology, typology, iconography, the adoption of both Western and Eastern influences, and the
attitudes of ancient and modern writers to clothing and appearance.
Lihi Habas
Hebrew University, Institute of Archaeology, Jerusalem, Israel;
habas@gmail.com
Artistic Changes and Developments in the Churches
of Israel and Transjordan under Islamic Rule
The discovery of churches and mosaic pavements dated to the Umayyad and the beginning of
the `Abbasid periods in Israel and Transjordan attests to the continued existence of a prosperous,
active and creative Christian community. The majority of the local population remained Christian,
and the churches continued to function as religious buildings. The dated inscriptions, such as
those in Israel: the church at Khirbet el-Shubeika, the church at Tamra, a chapel in Ramot, the
Funerary Chapel at Beit Safafa, and the church of the monastery south of Horvath Yattir, and those
in Transjordan: the Church of Saint Stephen at Umm al-Rasas, the Theotokos Chapel at Wadi `Ayn
al-Kanisah, the Church of the Virgin Mary at Madaba, the churches at Rihab and others, attest to
an organized community with a bishop, an archpresbyter, priests, archdeacons and deacons, and
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a congregation of donors and believers. Moreover, there is evidence in the region for the activity
of builders and mosaic craftsmen who constructed and decorated Christian and Muslim religious
buildings as well as the Caliphs’ palaces.
This period witnessed the renovation of churches that had stood since the sixth century, such
as the chapel at `Ayn al-Kanisah in the Mount Nebo area, the Church of the Virgin Mary at Madaba,
and the third phase in the Kathisma Church at Jerusalem. New buildings were constructed, such as
the church at Khilda in the Philadelphia/Amman area, the Church of St. Lot at Deir `Ain `Abata,
the church at al-Quwaysmah, the church at Ma`in, and others. All of these attest to a conciliatory
and tolerant attitude toward the Christian community on the part of the Muslim authorities.
From the artistic-iconographic point of view, the motifs that were common in mosaic
pavements in the Byzantine period continued in use in the Islamic period, but with a new preference
for interlacing, sometimes aniconic and sometimes with figures. There is no evidence for a trend of
abstract mosaics without figures after the 7
th
century; in fact, figurative mosaics appear side by side
with mosaics containing geometric interlacing.
Despite this, detailed architectural and artistic analysis of the churches and mosaic pavements
of the Umayyad and the beginning of the `Abbasid periods reveals changes and developments with
regard to the decoration of new or renovated churches with geometric carpets and development can
be discerned in the design of geometric interlacing. During this period, the geometric repertoire
reaches a developmental peak in the creation of rich and intricate patterns that become extremely
complex. This article analyzes the changes taking place in the interlacing and net motifs. Since
the trends occur in both churches and Umayyad mosaic pavements, it is interesting to follow the
relationship between Christian and Islamic art of this period and to examine the influence on
Christian society of the new aesthetic trends that arose within Muslim society.
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