The Gardens

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In Byzantium

Very little is known about the gardens in Byzantium, as no archaeological remains of gardens have yet been excavated. Any knowledge we do have comes from historical sources, descriptions (ekphraseis) of gardens in the novels and rhetorical texts, and representations of them in monuments and objects of art. Although Byzantine garden culture was influenced by Antiquity, it had its own distinct characteristics and developed up until the end of the Empire.

Sources mention several types of garden. Ornamental gardens existed alongside fruit and vegetable gardens, the parks that ornamented the large towns, and the gardens that surrounded the imperial palaces, the residences of the aristocracy, and the monasteries. It is, nevertheless, difficult to reconstruct or visualize these landscapes. In Byzantine art, the garden remained a descriptive device for enhancing narrative and a secondary element of the composition that artists didn't attempt to develop as a genre. While the ekphraseis provide more clues, they are poeticized and idealized descriptions of the Byzantine garden: gardens were used to put forward a concept and conformed to a rhetorical pattern that was often based on antique literary models. Nicolas Mesarites (1163–1224) based his description of the gardens around the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople[1] on an ekphraseis by Libanius (fourth century). Literary sources are not always a reliable means to understand how these gardens were laid out.

After the reconquest of Constantinople in 1261, the Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos also restored the parks. Theodore II Doukas Laskaris described the many cypress trees that rose above the walls of the enclosure in the city of Nicaea[2]. These references attest to the existence of public gardens in the large towns, but it is very difficult to visualize them. In Palm Sunday iconography, the rows of cypress trees between the houses in Jerusalem—as depicted in the scene in the Church of the Virgin Mary in Pantanassa, in Mystra (c. 1430)—may be echoes of these parks. The architectural background in the portrait of Gregory of Nazianzus—in a manuscript from Saint Catherine's Monastery at the foot of Mount Sinai, (Ms. gr. 339, in the middle of the twelfth century)—comprises a representation of a church. There are two fountains in the atrium, flanked by two walled gardens with conifers and flowers, which are clearly visible behind the marble balustrade. A fountain, trees, and plum trees have been painted behind the garden railings and between the wings of a palace in a manuscript illumination from Mount Athos (Ivirion cod. 463, twelfth century).

These representations give us an idea of what the gardens of the Great Palace in Constantinople were like, and enable us to identify the characteristics of palatine gardens: lawns and flowers, trees planted at various levels, and fountains richly ornamented with sculptures. Flowers and fruitful trees surrounding elaborate architectural structures can be seen, for example, in the mosaics in the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus (beginning of the eighth century), where mention is made of work by Byzantine mosaicists. The landscape features are similar, but are rendered differently. Historical sources reveal that the imperial gardens in Byzantium, which symbolized the Empire's power, were arranged in a particularly luxurious and elaborate fashion. The representations are, however, less descriptive. Their repertoire is more limited and the depiction is naturalistic, especially when compared with Islamic art. This shows that the splendour of the imperial gardens was depicted with moderation in Byzantine art, which favoured very stylized and simple representations.

The gardens that ornamented the residences of the aristocracy were a definite sign of prestige and wealth. The palace of Theodore Metochites, a statesman under Andronikos II Palaiologos, had magnificent gardens with porticoes and even a path for walking on and horse-riding[3]. In the mosaics in the church in Chora (Constantinople, 1321), of which he was the patron, there are several representations of gardens that may have been the gardens around his palace. The iconography of the Annunciation of Anna comprises some of the most beautiful representations of gardens.

The mosaic in the Daphni Monastery (Attica, Greece) dating from the end of the eleventh century, depicts Anna in her garden, as described in the Protoevangelion of James. Theodore Hyrtakenos’ ekphrasis on the garden of St. Anna enables us to identify some of the actual features in the representation of the garden in this mosaic[4]. The small wall behind the protagonist forms a wall around the garden and is a typical feature of the Byzantine garden. This feature is also visible in the illuminations mentioned above. Anna's garden is planted with trees and bushes; there's a row of small cypress trees, and two trees with high branches with thick foliage. The ideal garden included conifers, fruit trees, plants, and flowers. Cypress trees were highly prized because they provided additional protection in a walled garden. It is therefore not surprising to see them in the Daphni mosaic. There's a magnificent fountain in the foreground of the mosaic—a very important element in gardens. The elaborate fountain in the Daphni mosaic comprises three basins: the first basin, which is square and in green stone, is surmounted by a quadrilobate basin in multi-coloured marble, crowned by a small vessel with a pinecone on top. According to historical sources, there were similar fountains with sculptures or automata, in the imperial and aristocratic gardens. And, finally, there are several birds perched on the branches of the trees in the Daphni mosaic. Nightingales, parrots, and peacocks did actually inhabit the gardens and parks. Their presence and song were an indispensable feature. The Daphni mosaic conveys very concisely the essentials of the luxurious arrangement of the gardens. The garden adds to the veracity of the representation and enhances the symbolic content of the scene. The trees, the pinecone, and birds represent fertility and procreation, and underscore the news that the angel is going to announce to Anna. Walled gardens with trees and flowers were also commonly used metaphors in the Song of Songs, which Byzantine authors interpreted as the paradigm of Anna and the Virgin.

The Greco-Roman gardens were very much an integral part of their environment. The Byzantine garden, like the western garden, was a confined place, which was separated from its environment and protected by a wall. In literature and art, a walled garden represented the virtues of the heroine and symbolized the Virgin. The Byzantine garden seems to have been designed to be viewed from within—a feature that is Eastern in origin. Finally, the garden's vegetation was chosen and arranged with care, without being too intrusive, luxurious, or wild. The heavily stylized representation of the garden reflects the human control of the landscape and nature: man works the land in the garden, which is a little piece of paradise on earth. The walled Byzantine garden, which was a confined, idealized, and protected area, was a medieval garden, enhanced by elements from antique tradition and the Muslim world. It was modelled on the Garden of Eden—a nostalgic symbol of the instinctive harmony between man and nature.

I. J.

In Islam

In the Islamic world, the concept of the garden appears to be related to the evocation of Paradise. Indeed, when the Qur’an refers to gardens, it provides very precise descriptions of the ‘eternal garden’, with its small valleys irrigated by streams, its many species of trees, its waterways containing milk, honey, and wine, and its spicy springs, cool shade, and pavilions. In the religious context, the garden is therefore intimately associated with the idea of rest, relaxation, and pleasure. However, the religious influence only partly explains the passion for gardens in Islamic territories.

The remarkable expansion of Islam in the seventh century led the victorious Arabs—who came from arid regions in which oases were the only sources of water—to discover the tradition of antique and Sassanid gardens in the Near and Middle East.

Ever since Antiquity, vast gardens had been constructed in these regions: the hanging gardens of Babylon (sixth century BC), the park of Cyrus II in Pasargadae (546 BC), which was said to have been designed by the patron himself. The Pasargadae garden was located between official buildings and private residences. Its rectangular plan, divisions into square beds bordered by canals or alleys, and pavilions would all feature in Islamic gardens for many centuries.

In Sassanid Iran, palaces were specifically designed to incorporate green spaces, which took the form of vast stretches of plants and waterways. Carved bas-reliefs also depict images of large, enclosed areas filled with plants, in which wild animals roamed; these places were probably intended to be royal hunting grounds, an activity greatly enjoyed by the Sassanid princes.

In the pre-Islamic period—in regions that eventually came under Muslim rule in the seventh century—two types of garden existed: an enclosed garden that was an integral part of the surrounding architecture and was very structured; and a vaster type of garden, which was also enclosed but less formal in its layout. Gardens in Antique Rome—a tradition that was integrated into the Western Islamic world—also seem to have been distantly related to antique oriental gardens.

Islamic gardens share characteristics that are closely related to this heritage, although they were integrated in different ways depending on epochs and regions.

The first and maybe most important feature was the crucial role played by water, which was a precious and rare commodity for the Arabs and closely related to the description of paradise, as explained above. Water was omnipresent, both for aesthetic reasons and to irrigate the gardens, which in the Islamic regions was a constant preoccupation due to the climate of these regions. In the early years of Islam, most of the major works undertaken by the ruling authorities were consecrated to water conveyance. Cisterns stocked the water supplied by the aqueducts; this was then conveyed through the gardens by canals, which were both above ground or subterranean (qanawat). Basins and fountains introduced a variety of sounds produced by the water, and added an aesthetic dimension with reflections of architectural forms. The water also cooled the ambient air and supplied water for the many species of plant that grew in the gardens. Specific research was carried out into hydraulics in the Islamic world, as attested in the Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices, written by al-Jazari (d. 1206) at the Artuqid court in Anatolia. The book contains plans for hydraulic pumps that supplied the water for the basins.

The spatial organisation of Islamic gardens was, as we have already stated above, closely related to the Iranian tradition. Gardens were enclosed and protected from the outside world because they were primarily intended as places for rest and contemplation. It was rectangular in plan, and this space was divided into orthogonal sections that constituted beds separated by canals or alleys. The same scheme was used to create the Iranian ‘garden carpets’[5]. This prototype was widespread throughout the vast Islamic world that extended from Spain to India[6]. It could take two different forms: enclosed gardens integrated into architectural structures (riyad) and vast planted areas (agbal).

In the ninth century, the Jawsaq al Khaqani in Samarra (Iraq) had a vast enclosed esplanade behind the buildings that contained many canals, basins, fountains, and numerous species of plant.

The same principles applied in Aghlabid Ifriqiya, in the princely residence of Raqqada, whose enclosing wall protected vast gardens that were irrigated by cisterns. Private gardens are also attested during that period. Although they were smaller, their layout was the same[7]. The Maghreb, which inherited the oriental garden designs, developed fine examples of vast gardens during the subsequent periods. In Hafsid Tunisia, in the thirteenth century, a vast planted domain was created during the reign of al-Mustansir, which was described in detail by Ibn Khaldun in his History of the Berbers. In Morocco, the Amina al-Mariniyya gardens, which were attached to the Merinid Palace, comprised vast planted terraces embellished with basins, streams, and follies.

During the Caliphal epoch, Muslim Spain transposed the oriental garden designs in Western lands. After the creation of the caliphate of Córdoba, Caliph Abd al-Rahman III (reigned 889–961) constructed the palatial residence of Madinat al-Zahra, with its vast green terrains. Nature and gardens were the main theme of inspiration for the poets of Al-Andalus, including Ibn Khafadja, whose work was widely diffused throughout the Arab world.  

During the Almoravid and Almohad periods—which were periods of political and cultural unity between North Africa and Spain—the oriental model of the riyad was created, for example in Andalusia, in the Castillejo of Murcia by Ibn Mardanish (reigned 1147–1171). The Granada Alhambra, which was built during the Nasrid epoch, is famous for its gardens, which transposed the principles of the oriental riyad into the palatial context. After the Reconquista, the ‘Moorish’ gardens found great favour with Spain’s new Christian masters. This probably explains why the Alhambra gardens have survived in such good condition

Ottoman Turkey also made an extraordinary contribution to developing the art of the garden, as can be seen in the TopkapiPalace in Istanbul, which was the residence of the Ottoman sultans in the sixteenth century. The Palace courtyards contained many plants, in various forms. The three first courtyards were planted with trees and embellished with fountains. The private gardens were laid out with beds of plants bordered by paved alleys, and with basins, fountains, and kiosks. Gardens outside the palace compound were vaster and contained vegetable gardens, orchards, fountains, and basins. The Topkapi Palace gardens provided the setting for grandiose, occasionally nocturnal receptions, during which all the luxury of the Ottoman courts was displayed.

[6] The geographical, cultural, and chronological limits of this project exclude the gardens of Mughal India.

[7] In ninth-century Tulinid Egypt, the courtyards of private houses, according to travellers, comprised gardens arranged with square beds that contained water or earth.