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"The Arts of Byzantium": The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 58, no. 4 (Spring, 2001)
THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART BULLETIN | VOLUME 58 | NUMBER 4

"The Arts of Byzantium"

Evans, Helen C., Robert Hallman, and Melanie Holcomb
2001
68 pages
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Headshot of Helen C. Evans

Helen C. Evans

Helen C. Evans oversaw the installation of the Mary and Michael Galleries of Byzantine Art, the first galleries of Byzantine art in a major encyclopedic museum. Her groundbreaking exhibitions include (1997), (2004), (2012), and (2018). She is a former head of The Met’s Forum of Curators, Conservators and Research Scientists and a Fellow of the Medieval Academy of America. She is a past President of both the International Center of Medieval Art (ICMA) and the Association of Art Museum Curators (AAMC). In 2020, the Armenian General Benevolent Union established the Helen C. Evans Scholarship for students studying Armenian art, art history, and the early church.

Selected publications

Met Articles by Helen C. Evans

Met Publications by Helen C. Evans

Robert Hallman

Headshot of Melanie Holcomb

Melanie Holcomb

Melanie Holcomb oversees the collection of western medieval art at The Met 5th Avenue, in addition to guiding the Department’s strategic vision across its two locations. She has organized or co-organized numerous exhibitions including (2009), (2016–2017), (2018–2019), and (2023–2024). Her projects have been fueled by a career-long fascination with how art works—the functions it serves and methods it uses to communicate. She holds a PhD from the University of Michigan, a BA from Smith College, a Certificate in Horticulture from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and has lectured, taught, and published widely.

Selected publications

Holcomb, Melanie. “.” The Metropolitan Museum of Art Journal 59 (2024): 26–42.

———. “The Hungry Monk: Bernard of Clairvaux in a Trans-Corporeal Landscape.” Postmedieval 11, no. 1 (2020): 80–90.

——— and Elizabeth A. Eisenberg. “Traveling off the Page: Bringing the Voyage to Life in Hebrew Poetry and Paintings.” In Toward a Global Middle Ages: Encountering the World Through Illuminated Manuscripts, edited by Bryan C. Keene. The J. Paul Getty Museum, 2019.

Medallion with a Portrait of Gennadios, Glass, gold leaf, polychromy, Roman
Roman
250–300
Box with Sleeping Eros, Silver, Roman or Byzantine
Roman or Byzantine
300–400
Sarcophagus with a Greek Physician, Marble, Roman
Roman
early 300s
Bowl Fragments with Menorah, Shofar, and Torah Ark, Glass, gold leaf, Roman
Roman
300–350
Bowl with Saints Peter and Paul, Earthenware, glazed, Roman or Byzantine
Roman or Byzantine
ca. 350
Sarcophagus with Scenes from the Lives of Saint Peter and Christ, Marble, Roman
Roman
early 300s, with modern restoration
Head of Emperor Constans (r. 337–50), Marble, Byzantine
Byzantine
ca. 337–40
Steelyard Weight with a Bust of a Byzantine Empress and a Hook, Copper alloy, filled with lead, brass hook, Byzantine
Byzantine
400–450
Fragment of a Floor Mosaic with a Personification of Ktisis, Marble and glass, Byzantine
Byzantine
500–550, with modern restoration
Marble Portrait Bust of a Woman with a Scroll, Pentelic Marble, Byzantine
Byzantine
late 4th–early 5th century
Pectoral with Coins and Pseudo-Medallion, Gold, niello, Byzantine
Byzantine
ca. 539–50
Jeweled Bracelet (one of pair), Gold, silver, pearl, amethyst, sapphire, opal, glass, quartz, emerald plasma, Byzantine
Byzantine
500–700
Jeweled Bracelet (one of pair), Gold, silver, pearls, amethyst, sapphire, glass, quartz, Byzantine
Byzantine
500–700
Fragment of a Lintel, Limestone, Byzantine
Byzantine
400–550
The Antioch "Chalice", Silver, silver-gilt, Byzantine
Byzantine
500–550
Plaque with Saint Peter, Silver, niello, originally partially gilt, Byzantine
Byzantine
550–600
Plaque with Saint Paul, Silver, originally partially gilt, Byzantine
Byzantine
550–600
Circular Box (Pyxis) with the Women at Jesus' Tomb, Elephant ivory with metalwork and paint, Byzantine
Byzantine
500s
Flask with the Adoration of the Magi, Silver, silver-gilt, Byzantine
Byzantine
500s
Arch with Running Vines, Leaves, and Fruit
, Limestone; carved in relief
6th century
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