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Copyright 2015 Ayşe Henry Copyright 2015 Ayşe Henry ! THE PILGRIMAGE CENTER OF ST. SYMEON THE YOUNGER: DESIGNED BY ANGELS, SUPERVISED BY A SAINT, CONSTRUCTED BY PILGRIMS BY AYŞE HENRY DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Architecture in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2015 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Associate Professor John R. Senseney, Chair Professor Robert G. Ousterhout, Director of Research, University of Pennsylvania Professor D. Fairchild Ruggles Associate Professor Heather Hyde Minor ii Abstract The present study, The Pilgrimage Center of St. Symeon the Younger: Designed by angels, supervised by a saint, constructed by pilgrims, evaluates the architectural characteristics of the building complex built around the column of St. Symeon the Younger at Wondrous Mountain/Antioch (Turkey) from different perspectives. The main focus remains on the architectural development of the site throughout the sixth century, although available archaeological and textual data concerning the preceding and successive periods is briefly presented. A full account of the state of the site at present is given in Chapter 2. This chapter is a detailed documentation of the remains and is strictly descriptive in nature. The historical sources are introduced and discussed in Chapter 3. The goal of this section is to elucidate the historical context under which the site was constructed and flourished. The focus is essentially the sixth century, while the later periods are presented cursorily. In Chapter 4, I discuss and reconstruct the development of the building complex. The section aims at establishing a clearer picture of each building phase. This process also involves contextualizing the architectural features and design decisions within each period whenever possible, while reconsidering the historical discussions presented in the previous chapter. Chapter 5 discusses how the site should be reconsidered in light of other examples of the Early Byzantine period. To do this, I compare the site of St. Symeon the Younger with other stylite sites, especially the Syrian ones, as well as with other pilgrimage centers of the period. Finally, I propose that the complex at Wondrous Mountain was originally an unconventional pilgrimage site in the sixth century, because of the need to establish a site appropriate for a living and immobile saint who is active in liturgical practices. Towards the end of the saint’s life, the site was prepared for the aftermath of his death and it was transformed into a site including a new veneration route to its south. iii Acknowledgements: My first interest in the complex at Wondrous Mountain was during the Robert Ousterhout’s graduate seminar at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. My peculiar passion about Early Christian pilgrimage flourished into a research interest under his guidance and mentorship. I am indeed grateful to him, my patient advisor, for accepting me as a student despite the fact that I was not already educated as a Byzantinist, for his trust and encouragement throughout my PhD journey, and for everything he has thaught me, including –but not limited to- the frustrating job of explaining to me over and over how to organize my thinking and writing. My subject, on the other hand, came from someone else; Hatice Pamir gave me the chance and permission to work on the site and shared the facilities of her survey. She also turned every working season into a pleasure through her kindness and support. She and her incredible team transformed hardships of each working season into good memories of laughter and joy. I was also very excited to meet Jean-Pierre Sodini at the early stages of my work, who shared kindly and generously his extensive knowledge on the field and region, and responded to my every email, question and concern patiently, quite often attaching an article or two into the conversations. The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign offered me a new experience surrounded by an extraordinary faculty, who expanded my vision to every direction. I cannot thank each of them by name, but I hope they can recognize the traces of our seminars in the following pages. The grants and fellowships from the university enabled me to conduct the necessary research and research trips. The able librarians of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, especially of the Classics; I will forever remember the times when I could reach any publication that I wished, many times through your assistance. The facilities of the Research Center for Anatolian iv Civilisations, Koç University, its staff and my “fellow fellows” offered me the opportunity to start the writing process on the right track. The Suna- İnan Kıraç Research Institute on Mediterranean Civilisations funded one season of important fieldwork. My trips to the University of Pennsylvania provided me with the facilities of another excellent university. In fact, the backbone of this study and several of its chapters emerged in Philadelphia. I especially thank Renata Holod and her family, for housing me under their roof and for their occasional invitations for delicious, merry and home-cooked dinners. The Institut Français d’Etudes Anatoliennes opened its facilities to me for two years, provided me with a desk, with books, lots of coffee, and occasionally a room to sleep, which offered me the chance to finish my dissertation. I should thank many colleagues for their kind assistance and intellectual exchange. I referred all of their names in the relevant footnotes, but I need to extend my thanks from here as well. My friends and family were always around and supportive. Jordan Pickett has read some sections of this work and enchanced it with very interesting discussions and provided me personalized library services whenever I needed. Arzu Özsavaşçı is always in my team with her smile and incredible skills. Bilgen and Fikret was my support during the vicissitudes of this period. Olivier is in everything with his love, trust and hard work on the site and at home; he drew for me, learned with me, talked with me. Esin brought joy to the last stages of this work. Yet, this work is dedicated to my son, who lived side by side this work all through his life. He mocked me occasionally, imitating my old age: I say, leaning on my cane, with my trembling voice, “Bring me my glasses, my dear, I will finish writing!” Well dear, I still do not use a cane and I say: v “Sinan’a, canım oğluma” vi TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 1 1.1 General Description .............................................................................................................. 4 1.2 Research History and Problems............................................................................................ 5 1.3 Methodology....................................................................................................................... 12 1.3.1 Fieldwork ..................................................................................................................... 12 1.3.2 The Reconsideration of the Texts ................................................................................ 14 1.4 Organization........................................................................................................................ 18 CHAPTER 2. GENERAL DESCRIPTION (Present Condition) ................................................. 20 2.1 The Rectangular Core ......................................................................................................... 22 2.1.1 The Octagon, the Column and the Monolithic Staircase ............................................. 22 2.1.2 Tetraconch.................................................................................................................... 30 2.1.3 The Eastern Section ..................................................................................................... 31 2.1.4 The Northern and the Southern Passages..................................................................... 42 2.1.5 The Western Section.................................................................................................... 45 2.1.6 The Atrium................................................................................................................... 48 2.2 Walls and the External Arrangements ................................................................................ 48 2.3 General Remarks................................................................................................................. 54 CHAPTER 3. HISTORICAL CONSIDERATIONS.................................................................... 56 3.1 The Lives............................................................................................................................. 57 3.1.1 Brief Summaries of the Lives....................................................................................... 58 3.1.2 Authorship and Context ............................................................................................... 61 3.2 Saint Symeon the Younger and Antioch............................................................................. 68 vii 3.2.1 Significant Primary Sources Other Than Lives............................................................ 68 3.2.2 Why to Build a Site for St. Symeon the Younger?.....................................................
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