Dreaming Byzantium in Nineteenth-Century France: Neo-Byzantine Architecture, Orientalism, and the Racial and National Myths of Art History (1848–1900)

Adrien Palladino

Perched atop Montmartre, the highest point in Paris, stands the Sacré-Cœur (1875–1891), its majestic dome and cupolas reigning over the cityscape. Where one might expect a Neo-Gothic cathedral emblematic of French Catholicism and nationalism, we instead find an edifice evocative of San Marco in Venice or ‘Oriental’ architecture. Indeed, its inspiration lies in the visual legacy of the Eastern Roman Empire – Byzantium – a realm often deemed decadent and long extinct by the late 19th century. This is not an anomaly; between 1848 and 1900, dozens of French churches arose or were restored in the Neo-Byzantine style. What drove this architectural choice for some of France’s most emblematic buildings?
This project seeks to answer that question by examining several Neo-Byzantine architectural endeavors across 19th-century France. It will explore the style’s role in the reinvention of medieval art and its entanglement with the creation of colonial, racial, and nationalist narratives within art history. With a focus on decompartmentalizing the study of Neo-Byzantine architecture, this research will bridge Byzantinist studies, architectural theory, and inquiries into the ideological appropriation of styles, particularly concerning colonialism and orientalism. Through a series of microhistories, the project will re-evaluate the theoretical, social, religious, and economic contexts that shaped the Neo-Byzantine style in France from ca. 1848 to the early years of the Third Republic (1870–1900).