Icons have loomed large in the religious and cultural histories of numerous societies throughout the centuries, broadly defined as a representation or image intended to depict a concept or quality of particular importance. Icons have been created in a variety of media, including stone, fabric, tile mosaic, and metal, and in two- and three-dimensional formats. The Byzantine icon tradition is significant because the typically two-dimensional, painted likenesses played a critical role in Eastern Christianity’s worship practices from 330 A.D. onwards, and they are still prized for their meaningful, artistic depictions of biblical themes.
A flat, painted representation of Christian religious entities such as Christ, Mary, saints, and angels is the most common type of Byzantine icon. Many other icons serve as descriptive narratives of events, such as Christ’s crucifixion. Traditional depictions emphasized the holy aura of their subjects rather than their physical appearance. Because these images range from tiny, portable representations to massive panels created to adorn the inside spaces of sacred buildings, no single size of Byzantine icon can be said to dominate the category. Triptychs with three panels were common, as were larger panels designed to be hoisted on poles and displayed during battle.
In Eastern Christianity, each Byzantine icon served a specific purpose for worshipers. It was possible to communicate with the entity depicted on the icon’s surface simply by gazing at it, according to Byzantine tradition. It was thought that if prayers were directed specifically to the figure depicted, divine help would be forthcoming. During the Byzantine period, acheiropoieta icons sparked particular interest, as they were believed to have been created by a sacred miracle rather than by the hands of mortals.
The use of images and sacred depictions has been a source of contention since the beginning of Christianity. The appropriateness of icons and the significant role they played in Byzantium were called into question by biblical warnings against the worship of graven images. In the eighth century, a bitter feud between religious authorities and the state erupted, resulting in a blanket ban on the use and creation of icons. Icons were widely destroyed as a result, and no examples of these images from before the 11th century have survived. Following the end of the Iconoclastic Period, the Byzantine icon resurfaced as a focal point of religious belief and expression across the Eastern Christian world.