Architectural Innovations:
– Cross-in-square was the dominant architectural form of middle Byzantine churches, with the earliest extant example being the Theotokos church in Constantinople (907/908).
– Pendentive dome allowed circular domes to be built atop rectangular floor plans, with the first fully developed pendentive dome dating to the reconstruction of the Hagia Sophia in 563.
– The Hagia Sophia became the paradigmatic Orthodox church form.
Military Advancements:
– Counterweight trebuchet and hand-trebuchet were powerful siege weapons used in warfare.
– Greek fire played a crucial role in defending the empire against Muslim sieges, with incendiary grenades and flamethrowers being used in both land and naval warfare.
Cultural and Daily Life Contributions:
– The fork was used by Byzantine nobles in the 7th century, and feta cheese was first recorded in the Byzantine Empire.
– Byzantine lyra was a bowed string musical instrument, and Icons played a pivotal role in Eastern Orthodox Church veneration.
– Corpus Juris Civilis by Justinian the Great influenced Western jurisprudence.
Innovations and Inventions:
– Ship mills, Greek fire, hand-siphons, incendiary grenades, and counterweight trebuchets were significant inventions and weapons developed by the Byzantines.
– Belisarius adapted riverboats into floating gristmills, introducing innovative watermill technology that quickly spread among medieval watermillers.
Scientific and Medical Contributions:
– John Philoponus introduced the theory of impetus, a precursor to inertia, momentum, and acceleration.
– The Byzantine Empire was one of the first to establish hospitals as places for medical care and recovery, influenced by Christian charity.
– The first recorded case of separating conjoined twins occurred in the Byzantine Empire in the 10th century, representing a significant medical advancement at the time.
This is a list of Byzantine inventions. The Byzantine or Eastern Roman Empire represented the continuation of the Roman Empire after a part of it collapsed. Its main characteristics were Roman state traditions, Greek culture and Christian faith.
