Around the 4th century, artists painted icons which were “small portable paintings depicting Christ, the Virgin, or saints.” However, there was a strong opposition to the icons, known as the iconoclasts. One of the iconoclasts’ tactics was to destroy many icons as possible. The iconoclasts used the Old Testament to support their argument about how it was stated in the bible that icons were prohibited. On the other hand, iconophiles supported the making of the icons because they believed that it “evokes the presence of the holy figures.” During the 8th century, the iconoclasts were majority, which resulted in the oppression of the iconophiles. Due to this oppression, it has been difficult for historians to find and study the Byzantine art.
