Medieval Illumination

The Wise Pilgrim

2011-04-01T07:10:00.000-06:00

One of my dear friends from graduate school is spending a school term in the Netherlands, and is keeping a fantastic blog with a lot of emphasis on the medieval! The Wise Pilgrim.

Lions in Fifteenth Century French Tapestries

2010-07-13T21:38:00.001-06:00

I recently had this question e-mailed to me, and I thought I would post both the question and my answer.

Q: "Can anyone tell me why the lion looks so odd in the Sight tapestry. It looks like a monkey...In looking at the series the lion's face is really quite unlike other depictions of lions anywhere else. Is this discussed anywhere? The lion looks most normal in Taste."

A: "The lion in Sight does look peculiar, but not as much when compared with other tapestries of the same era. Artists in the fifteenth century had likely never seen a living lion, but copied other artists' etchings, drawings and other media. This becomes particularly clear when you compare renderings of more common creatures, like stags or dogs, which were more naturalistic because artists were familiar with them. Tapestries were woven with cartoons underneath the loom to guide the weaver, and often the artists who created these cartoons were also etchers, engravers, painters, etc. and would have followed the established visual canon in drawing lions, especially when they are heraldic devices.
Lions in tapestries in the late fifteenth century share some common characteristics with the ones in The Lady and the Unicorn. They typically have shaggy manes, open mouths, prominent eyes and are sitting in profile. The tapestry The Winged Stags, by Paul Martin for Charles VII, late fifteenth century, is another example of heraldic lions done in this same style. The body of the seven-headed lion in scene 42 of the famous Apocalypse of Angers tapestry, 1377-79, is an early example of this depiction of lions, minus the mane.
So while the lion in Sight looks a little mangy and unlike any actual lion, it is right at home in the world of fifteenth century tapestries!"

books

2009-10-19T20:45:00.000-06:00

JRR Tolkien was a medieval enthusiast. He studied and taught on a lot on medieval texts, mythologies and languages. His fiction is saturated with it, using heroic types and tales, riddles, mythological creatures, and even semantics. In his most epic passages in his stories he only uses words that have been in use in the English language before 1500. He was interested in the early Anglo-Saxon culture and language, and believed that the Norman invasion put an end to a golden heroic age. Not only am I an admirer of his fiction, I especially enjoy his translations of old texts. He has done Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Beowulf and just published this year posthumously, The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun. Since I no longer work at bookstores, I am woefully behind in the most recent publications, so I missed this one coming out last May. Its based on the Norse and Icelandic Poetic Edda, edited by Christopher Tolkien. This book is third on my reading list, but thought I'd highlight it on the blog nonetheless. I'll do a book review when I finish it.

On the subject of books, about a month ago I finished Hush by Donna Jo Napoli. It also took inspiration from an Icelandic saga, and is set in 10th century Europe. I didn't enjoy her writing style, and I thought some of her facts were not exactly correct for the 10th c., but I enjoyed the story.

some illumination

2009-09-27T15:16:00.003-06:00

Roman de la Rose, Princeton Garrett 126, miniature, column, fol. 146r, detail, mid 14th century, parchment, Île-de-France, Paris

Scene, Venus attacking Castle -- Venus, wearing garment, with bow shoots torch at castle with closed gate decorated with ironwork. Scene against diapered background within frame of miniature decorated with tendrils in right column.

In bottom of left column, rubric caption of scene, CI COMME VENUS TRAIT OU CHASTEL I BRANDON DE FEU POR EMBRASER CEULZ QUI SONT DEDENZ.
Below miniature in right column, initial L decorated with foliate ornament and tendrils, at beginning of text, LORS FU VENUS HAUT SECOURCIEE / BIEN SAMBLA ESTRE COUROUCIEE ...

Le Roman de la Rose attributed to Jean de Meun is one of the most important medieval texts. Unlike so many texts there are dozens of manuscripts extant of Roman de la Rose. Several scholars have tried to attribute the allegories in this tale to La Dame a la Licorne, but in my mind, they aren't convincing arguments.

In this illumination I love Venus' languid, elegant form, the representational architecture and especially the initial L.

Psalter, initial D. fol.55v, whole page, c. 1300, parchment, English. Love the decorations filling in the blank spaces, classic medieval horror vacui.

Psalter, initial D, fol. 109v, whole page, c. 1300, parchment, English

Psalter of Poitiers, Sainte-Croix, initial E, fol. 69r, 1250 - 1260, Île-de-France, Paris

Language: Latin

Script: Gothic, textura semiquadrata
Psalm 081 (Vulg., 080).
David and Musicians -- David, crowned, sits on bench, with hammer in each hand playing four bells suspended above, beside musician, wearing fillet, with bow playing viol.
Scene against gold background, within initial E decorated with patterned spandrels.
Initial E, Incipit; OT, Psalm 081:01 (Vulg., 080:02); EXULTATE DEO ADIUTORI NOSTRO IUBILATE ...., Latin

So interesting to explore images of music and music makers in medieval manuscripts, and of course, here related to David.

Missal, intial P, fol. 52v, whole page, Venetian, 1350-1374, parchment. As I understand it, velum is made of unborn calfskin, and parchment is from lambs, goats or calves. Similar creation processes, however. This detail smacks very Italian to me.

Missal, initial M, fol. 213v, whole page, c. 1300, French Dominican Convent

Script: Gothic, textura quadrataApostle, Andrew: Crucifixion -- Two executioners, one wearing cap, bind arms and legs of Andrew to horizontal cross.
Scene against gold background, within initial M decorated with foliate ornament, and with marginal foliate extensions.
Beginning of Introit for Mass of Apostle Andrew.
Initial M, Rubric; IN DIE OFFICIUM, Latin
Initial M, Incipit; MICHI AUTEM NIMIS HONORATI SUNT AMICI TUI DEUS ...., Latin
Written and illuminated in Paris in the early 14th century for a Dominican nunnery, as so indicated on f. 349v: Rubric at end of 2nd responsory of the burial service, Ibi debemus flectere genua sed tantum pro sorore nostra, followed by Domine miserere super peccatrice.

The information about these pieces and the images are from ArtStor.

Celtic Myth Podshow

2009-09-22T16:13:00.000-06:00

I've been enjoying The Celtic Myth Podshow. Gary and Ruth re-enact Celtic Irish, Welsh and Scottish heroic tales. I find them compelling because these tales would have been told aurally originally, and they're fun. I'm working on a post of illuminated pages, but it's taking a while.

Viking Art

2009-09-12T17:12:00.000-06:00

Religious Art

Runic Stones of kings Gorm (right) and Harald (left), 10th C, Denmark, East Jutland, Jelling.

Viking crucifixion scenes are unique in the pervasive realm of Christian art, where so much is ruled by convention and tradition. Runes! Interlace! Stone! Love the non-Italian-ness of it, and limited Byzantine influence. Anatomy is unimportant compared to the decorative interlace. But by including a figure, this shows a shift away from zoomorphic interlace that is the most common in Viking art.

Runic Stone: Crucified Christ in Interlace, c.940, Denmark, East Jutland, Jelling. Made for Harald Bluetooth.

Polychroming, oh-so cool. The Greek halo is present behind Christ's head. I'm interested in the kilt-like appearance of his clothing. I also love how the artist did not endeavor to alter the shape of the original stone, he simply worked around it (literally!), which is difficult to so with knots. This is the impervious Christ, meaning this adheres to more Early Christian types rather than later depictions of Christ, which show a Christ in pain. This reminds me in style and tone of Irish reliquaries and bells, particularly in the mask-like appearance of Christ's face.

Runic Stone, 10th C, In Sandby Church, Sweden, Oland.

Again, using the existing stone shape, surrounded by runes. I imagine carving serpentine curvaceous shapes into stone is a difficult task!

Wood carving from a Stave Church Portal, 12th C, Hyllestad, Norway.

I like how two of the images depict metal workers on a wooden scultpure.

Viking Decorative Art

Ivory Casket, c.1000, currently owned by Bayerisches Nationalmuseum.

What a marvelous chest. Whatever it originally held must have been even more prestigious. That's a lot of ivory, and a lot of decorative metalwork.

Strickland Brooch, 9th c., silver with gilt niello and blue glass.

Such a mobile people needed equally mobile art, like brooches and pins. Marvelous symmetry and polychromatic metalwork.

Seafaring

Oseberg Ship found in mound near Oseberg, Norway: Oslo, Viking Ship Museum oak & beechwood, c. 825

Honestly, I still can't imagine beefy guys floating in one of these ships. Even though this was a ship for a chieftain's burial, it is essentially the same as a sea-going cargo ship. How would they keep from being washed overboard at the first large wave? Amazing craftsmanship!

Animal head post, from the Oseberg ship burial, Norway, ca. 825, Vikingskiphuset, Oslo, Norway.

Fierce. Probably scarier now than it was originally - all toothless and eyeless.

Treatise on astronomy, Folio #: 032r, 12th century, middle, Stern end of Viking ship, with two steering oars and figurehead. Copies a prototype of 11th century, probably London, B.L., Cotton MS. Tiberius B. V.

Kinda clear the artist had never actually been aboard one of these vessels. Where's the base of the mast? Hmm. I like how at the bottom right a star is shining through from the verso side of the folio, speaking to its true purpose as a treatise on astronomy.

Warfare

Three Sword Hilts fr. Gotland, Uppland & Dybeck/Schonen, 10th-11th C, inlaid copper, silver, bronze

Helmet from Grave I at Vendel, Sweden, 7th C.

I like how the eyebrows are emphasized, and how the bridge of the nose looks like the animal figurehead of a Viking ship. Not too comfy though, eh?