Ze, vicenen 82 NATIONAL ae Ronen [rae ee Peer ashen Pci Pict THE PASTTHE BYZANTINE EMPIRE Rome of the East EASTERN STAR OVER EUROP! the Byzantine civilization, centered on Constantinople, burned bright, preserving the heritage of Greece and Rome and spreading Christianity acrossa vast realm. After 11 centuries, it finally splintered, and its manifold accomplishments fell inthe shadow of the Italian Renaissance andlatereras. Butthe 20th century has takenacloser look atthe Byzantine legacy. Now, as author Merle Severy brilliantly detailsin hisinterpretive xy, wesee Byzantium’simportance asa buffe shielding medieval Europe from the empire-building / Persians, Arabs, and Turks; asa bridge bet and modern times; asthe creator and codifier of la religious, political, and social practices vibrantto this day Torchbearers of Christianity, withstanding the barbarian turbulence that engulfed Rome inthe fifth century, the Byzantinesin their New Rome onthe ri x a thousand miles east ofthe old, lived with inftess the exuberance ofa religion inits youth, seeking to bring heaven to earth in their imperial order andits outpouring sacred art. Masters of mosaics, they enthroned Christ the Pantocrator as Lord of the Universe in the domes of many oftheir shrines—a powerful example ennobling the Church of the Virgin at Daphni in Greece (left) By MERLE SEVERY jgraphs by JAMES L, STANFIELD