Simulating the Hippodrome: The Performance of Power in Kiev's St. Sophia

• Autores: Elena N. Boeck
• Localización: Art bulletin, ISSN 0004-3079, Vol. 91, Nº 3, 2009, págs. 283-301
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • The princely space in the turrets of St. Sophia in Kiev, the grandest Orthodox church of the eleventh century, is decorated with an image of the hippodrome, the primary public space for the display of imperial power in Constantinople. It formed a necessary link in a chain of Kievan grandeur, which aggrandized its prince and branded the city the preeminent political and cultural capital for a fledgling Rus’ principality. It served as a backdrop for courtly show, communicated messages of sophisticated connoisseurship to visiting dignitaries, and affirmed Rus’ membership among the exalted group of the established kings.