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EARLY MEDIEVAL ART IN THE WEST

500-1000 CE

animal style: generic term for the characteristic ornamentation of artifacts worn/carried by nomadic peoples

codex: manuscript books which were decorated, improvements of scrolls, made of vellum or sheep/goat hide

cloisonné: enamelwork in which colored areas are separated by thin bands of metal (gold, bronze, etc.)

horror vacui: a type of artwork in which the entire surface is filled with objects, people, designs, and ornaments in a crowded way (Latin: fear of empty spaces)

cloister: a rectangular open-air monastery courtyard with a covered arcade surrounding it

psalter: a book containing the Psalms, or sacred song poems, of the Bible

westwork: monumentalentrance to a Carolingian church in which two towers flank a lower central entrance.

scriptorium: place in a monastery where monks wrote manuscripts

Vocabulary

Age of Mass Migration portable works “Dark Ages”

Knowledge of the Romans lost to history or beyond capabilities of these migratory people.

What we do know of early Medieval society: The Church was the only major institution to survive in

the Roman Empire in the West Monasteries: schools of the time, self-sufficient, sources

of text Feudalism Life threatened by epidemic famine and disease Belief in the supernatural & magic

Four different civilizations reveal characteristics of this period.

Historical Background

Early Medieval Sites in Europe

animal style The Scythians (Persian-

speaking nomadic group) passed on to the Germanic tribe, even medieval art in general, the familiar animal ornamentation seen in this period.

The Animal Style: Scythian Antecedents

Pectoral with scenes from Scythian life (Greek craft done for the Scythians), c. fourth century BC, Gold, diameter 12”, weight 2.5 lbs. Historical Museum, Kiev.

Saxon ArtPurse Cover from Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 600-650, gold, garnet, enamels, British Museum, London

6th-8th centuries British Isles (Hibernia = Ireland) Main artistic expression is illuminated manuscripts Much of the art uses interlace patterns, borders are in animal

style Artists had good use of color and form

Hiberno-Saxon Art

Ornamental page from the Book of Lindisfarne, from Northumberland, England, late seventh century. Illumination, approx. 13” x 10”. British Museum, London.

High Cross of Muiredach, Monasterboice, County Louth, Ireland, 923. Approx. 16’ high.

Chi-rho-iota (XPI) page, folio 34 recto of the Book of Kells, probably from Iona, Scotland, late eighth or early ninth century. Tempera on vellum, 1’ 1” X 9 1/2”. Trinity College Library, Dublin.

8th-11th Centuries Scandinavia Inspired by prehistoric models that emphasized animals

and spirals in elaborate interlacing patterns Works are in animal style with horror vacui

Viking Art

Wood-carved ornament (porch of stave church), Urnes, Norway, eleventh century.

Animal-head post from the Oseberg ship burial, c. 825. Woood, approx. 5” high. Vikingskipshuset Museum, Oslo.

8th-9th Centuries France, Germany Art of Charlemagne and his times First revival of classical art Churches characterized by westworks, often had monasteries Continuation of manuscript painting

Carolingian Art

St. Matthew, from the Coronation Gospels (the Gospel Book of Charlemagne), c. 800-810. Approx. 9”x6.75”. Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna.

St. Matthew, from the Ebbo Gospels, Hautvilliers (near Reims), France, c. 816-835). Approx. 10”x8”. Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris.

Psalm 150, from the Utrecht psalter, from Hautvilliers, France, c. 830. 4.75”x9.5”. University Library, Utrecht, Netherlands.

Cover of the Psalter of Charles the Bald, c. 865. Ivory panel with scenes from Psalms 51 and 57 set in silver-gilt frame with filigree work and precious stones.

Torhalle (gatehouse) Lorsch, Germany, c. 800.

Interior of the Palatine Chapel of Charlemagne. Schematic plan for a monastery at St.

Gall, Switzerland, c. 819.

10th-early 11th Centuries Germany Influenced by Roman/Early Christian past, but continues Carolingian

imperial imagery Large stone churches prevalent, bronze doors Architectural theme: interior arches and windows are not aligned, interior

walls are unadorned and flat.

Ottonian Art Abbey Church of St. Michel (restored ), Hildesheim, Germany, c.1001-1031.

Doors of Bishop Bernward, made for the Abbey Church of Saint Michael, Hildesheim, Germany. 1015. Bronze, height 16’6 (5m).

Adam and Eve Reproached by the Lord, from the bronze doors commissioned by Biship Bernward for St. Michael’s, 1015. Approx. 23” x 43”.

The Anunication to the Shepherds, from the Lectionary of Henry II, 1002-1014. Approx. 17” x 13”. Bayerische, Staatsbibliothek, Munich.

Otto III Enthroned Receiving the Homage of Four Parts of the Empire (with nobility and clergy), from the Gospel Book of Otto III, 997-1000. Approx. 14” x 10”. Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich.