Similarities and differences between the architectural elements of Byzantine churches in the Cyrenaica region

Abstract

This study deals with the church buildings that were built in the Cyrenaica region during the Byzantine Empire in the 5th and 6th centuries AD. These buildings are considered early examples of churches. This study relied on excavation reports and archaeological surveys conducted on churches that had not been excavated. The research methodology was to compare the architectural elements in these buildings and the building materials techniques. The results of this research are that the building materials were local, except for the marble and wood used in the ceilings, which were imported from the Mediterranean basin. The mosaic floors inside the churches were most likely laid by technicians who came from outside the region and trained the local church technicians. Also, the number of churches built east of Wadi al-Kuf were more than those built west of it. It can be concluded from the size of the rural churches and the amount of decoration in them that the economic situation in the region was prosperous during the fifth and sixth centuries AD.