Art of Medieval Europe

Before the invention of print, books were written by hand and made at the request of a reader. Because each book was unique, they can tell us about how people consumed knowledge and interacted with it.

Persecutions of Christians ended in Rome with Emperor Constantine. 4th century churches, tombs and catacombs decorated with Christian imagery can still be visited.

Constantinople (now Istanbul) was the capital of the late Roman empire, but its ethereal mosaics, ivories, and metalwork often depart from classical naturalism.