Appendix 1

The Byzantine Empire had four main periods or eras:

Early Byzantine (330–847)

• From: the establishment of Constantinople as the capital of the Empire.
• Until: the end of Iconoclasm.

Middle Byzantine (847–1204)

• From: the end of Iconoclasm.
• Until: the first fall of Constantinople to the troops of the Fourth Crusade.
• The dominant imperial dynasty was the Komnenians, who also provided the name for the characteristic style in Byzantine art in this period.

Latin occupation (1204–1261)

• From: the first fall of Constantinople to the troops of the Fourth Crusade.
• Until: the recapture of the capital by Michael VIII Palaiologos (r. 1259–1282).

Late Byzantine (1261–1453)

• From: the recapture of Constantinople by Michael VIII Palaiologos.
• Until: the fall of the capital to the Ottoman Turks.
• The dominant imperial dynasty was the Palaiologans, who also provided the name for the characteristic style in Byzantine art in this period.

For a concise summary of the history of the Byzantine Empire, see Stathakopoulos (2014). For a list of Byzantine Emperors and key dates of the Byzantine Empire, see Lowden (1997, p. 428 and p. 429-435 respectively).