A City of Statues and Forgotten Histories

In the mid-8th century Constantinople, an anonymous group of imperial officials produced a peculiar manuscript known as the Parastaseis Syntomoi Chronikai. This text reveals a world where public statues served as the primary connection to a fading imperial past. The authors obsessively documented the city’s surviving monuments – particularly statues of emperors, gods, and mythological figures – attempting to reconstruct histories from their weathered inscriptions and ambiguous iconography.

The work demonstrates both scholarly diligence and creative fabrication. Some officials like Herodian carefully examined statues in the Hippodrome, debating whether a bronze seated woman represented Empress Verina (d. 484) or the goddess Athena. Others like Himerios the chartoularios met tragic ends when pagan statues mysteriously toppled, crushing the unfortunate bureaucrat during his antiquarian investigations. Emperor Philippikos (711-713) would later order such “dangerous” pagan statues buried, reflecting growing Christian anxieties about these relics of the past.

The Great Disruption: Byzantium’s Existential Crisis

Between 609-642 AD, the Eastern Roman Empire suffered catastrophic territorial losses that fundamentally transformed its character. The Persian conquests under Khosrow II (614-619) stripped away Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. Though Emperor Heraclius miraculously reversed these losses by 628, his triumph proved fleeting. The Arab conquests (636-642) permanently removed these wealthy provinces, along with two-thirds of imperial territory and three-quarters of its wealth.

This seismic contraction forced dramatic reorganization. The thematic system emerged, with regional armies (themes) becoming self-sufficient defensive units. The economy shifted from monetary to subsistence-based, with soldiers paid through land grants rather than salaries. Constantinople’s population plummeted from 500,000 to 40,000-70,000. The empire became more Greek, more militarized, and more focused on survival than Mediterranean dominance.

Statues as Historical Theater

The Parastaseis reveals how 8th-century Byzantines interacted with their physical past. Statues served as:

– Historical archives when texts were scarce
– Prophetic devices (some allegedly predicted Justinian II’s tyranny)
– Dangerous pagan remnants requiring Christian reinterpretation
– Political symbols (a surviving statue of Valentinian III suggested his murder was unjust)

Notably, most statues commemorated the 4th-5th centuries, with few references to Justinian or recent emperors. This reflects both preservation patterns and Byzantine nostalgia for an imagined golden age of Christian Rome.

The Iconoclast Controversy: More Than Religious Debate

The 8th-century iconoclasm movement (726-843) represented a profound cultural shift:

1. Theological Dimension: Emperor Constantine V (741-775) argued religious images emphasized Christ’s humanity over divinity, making them idolatrous. The 754 Hiereia Council banned image veneration.

2. Political Control: Iconoclasm became a tool for imperial centralization. By controlling religious expression, emperors strengthened their authority during crisis.

3. Cultural Identity: The debate reflected Byzantine engagement with Islamic aniconism and the need to define Christian visual culture.

4. Legacy: The 787 Second Council of Nicaea and 843 “Triumph of Orthodoxy” established image veneration as central to Byzantine identity, a tradition continuing in Eastern Orthodoxy today.

The Survival of a Fragmented Empire

Despite catastrophic losses, Byzantium adapted through:

– Military Reorganization: The thematic system created sustainable regional defense
– Economic Flexibility: Transition to localized, non-monetary economy
– Cultural Resilience: Reinterpretation of Roman traditions for Christian context
– Diplomatic Pragmatism: Alliances with powers like the Göktürks against common foes

Remarkably, this shrunken empire maintained Roman administrative continuity while developing distinctly medieval characteristics. The 8th-century statues studied in the Parastaseis symbolized both this connection to the past and the growing distance from classical traditions.

Conclusion: Byzantium’s Reinvention

The period 550-850 witnessed Byzantium’s transformation from Mediterranean superpower to regional survivor. Through military disasters, religious controversies, and administrative reinvention, the empire preserved its Roman identity while adapting to new realities. The officials documenting Constantinople’s statues were engaging in more than antiquarianism – they were helping reconstruct a usable past for an empire navigating uncharted waters. Their work, like Byzantium itself, balanced preservation and reinvention, creating a medieval civilization from Roman foundations.