Europe After the Fall of Rome:

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Gardners Art Through the Ages, 12e

• Chapter 16
• Europe After the Fall of Rome
• Early Medieval Art in the West

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Early Medieval Sites in Europe
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Goals

• Understand the distinctive artistic traditions of
  the European peoples beyond the Roman Empire.
• Know the different types of art, media, and their
  respective cultures.
• Trace influences of medieval art styles.
• Examine the secular and religious architectural
  forms in the early middle ages.

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Topics Chapter 16

• Start with chronology ca 500-1000
• An era of fusion of Roman and barbarian
  cultures.
• Art of the Warrior Lords fibula/purse/Oseberg
  ship/ stave church. Intertwined animal figures.
• Hiberno-Saxon illuminated manuscripts/ Celtic
  crosses.
• Mozarabic Art manuscripts
• Carolingian Art Charlemagne/manuscripts/
  architecture
• Ottonian Art architecture/manuscripts

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Art of the Warrior Lords

• What has survived are small status symbols, such
  as the Merovignian looped fibula from
  Jouy-Le-Comte mid 6th cen. a decorative pin
  that goes back to the Romans Etruscans. Used
  to fasten the outer garment.
• Patterns adjusted to shape of the fibula
  zoomorphic elements are interwoven.
• Beowolf They bequeathed the gleaming gold,
  of men, to the earth.

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Art of the Warrior Lords

• Sutton Hoo Cloisonné purse clasp ca. 625.
• Cloisonné is French for partitions --
  compartments filled with various elements, then
  fired to melt blend.
• Between mosaics and stained glass.
• Figures on purse clasp are of a man standing
  between two beasts.
• Central interlace turn into writhing animals.

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Art of the Warrior Lords

• A Viking ship The Oseberg ship ca 825.
• The Vikings terrorized Northern Europenot just
  raiders, but colonized. In 11th cen all on
  England was part of Denmark!
• Note the ferocious animal head, itself consisting
  of writhing animal forms.

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Art of the Warrior Lords

• The stave church wedge shaped timbers stacked
  vertically.
• Urnes, ca. 1050-1070 example of Viking designs
  in a Christian church.
• Elongated animal forms and flexible plant stalks.

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Hiberno-Saxon Art Books

• In 432 St Patrick established a church in
  Ireland.
• From there the Irish monks developed their own
  traditions, spreading them into England and
  Scotland.
• The most important artistic activity was in
  illuminated manuscripts, including
• Bibles Old New Testaments, Pentateuchs
  1st 5 books, Lectionaries readings from the
  gospels arranged in the order read during the
  church year.
• Insular style centers were at Lindisfarne
  Iona during this period.

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Insular Style

• Book of Durrow, ca 660-680, possibly Iona.
• Carpet pages inserted no precedent in classical
  style for this.
• Also included large illuminated initials
• A marriage between Christian and the
  animal-interlace style.

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Lindisfarne Gospelsca. 698-721

• .

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Lindisfarne Gospels ca. 698-721

• How are these different from the carpet pages?
• Mediterranean influence indoors, hint of
  perspective name is in mixture of Greek
  Latin.
• Iconography?

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The Book of KellsChi-Ro-Iota pageca. Iona,
late 8th or early 9th cen.

• .

• Illuminating the word
• Opening of account of the nativity in the gospel
  of Matthew.
• Chi-Ro-Iota XPI initial letters of Christ
  in Greek.
• autem generatio Now this is how the birth
  of Jesus Christ came about
• Includes animals an male head as well angels
  abstract patterns.

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The Book of Kells

• Above portrait of John

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Irelands High Crosses

• High cross of Muirdach, Ireland -- 923.

• Circle intersecting the cross identifies it as
  Celtic

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Kildalton Cross, Islay, Scotland

• The Kildalton Cross is a monolithic Celtic cross
  in the churchyard of the former parish church of
  Kildalton (Scottish Gaelic 'Church of the Foster
  Son' ie. St John the Evangelist) on the island
  of Islay in the Inner Hebrides, Scotland.
• It was carved probably in the second half of the
  8th century AD, and is closely related to crosses
  of similar date on Iona.
• It is often considered the finest surviving
  'Celtic' cross in Scotland.

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Kildalton Cross, Islay, Scotland
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Kildalton Cross, Islay, Scotland
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Mozarabic Art

• Example from Tabara, Spain 970
• Picture of a medieval scriptorium
• Mozarabic refers to Christians living in Arab
  territories.

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On Christmas Day 800, Pope Leo III crowned
Charles the Great as Emperor of Rome. King of
Franks from 768. First Holy Christian
Emperor Model for equestrian statue was
Marcus Aurelius Emperor larger scale than
the horse Quiet dignity replaces earlier
torsion.
Carolingian Art Rome rises again
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Charlemagnes Books

• He was admirer of learning, the arts classical
  culture.
• Portrait of St Matthew Charlemagnes Gospel vs.
  Lindisfarne
• A different style Ebbo Gospel

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Charlemagnes Books

• Ebbo Gospel

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Psalters Jewels

• Utrecht Psalter 820-835
• Lindau Gospels, St Gall ca. 870

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Architecture Palatine Chapel in Aachen

• Charlemagne returned to Roman building techniques
• Palatine Chapel resembles St. Vitale in Ravenna
  precursor of Romanesque style.

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Architecture Palatine Chapel in Aachen
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Gateway to Lorsch 9th cen.

• Torhalle throwback to Roman arches city
  gates.
• Composite capitals, imitates Roman facing
  techniques 2nd level is not Roman.

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The Ideal Monastery St Gall, Switzerlandca. 819

• Benedictine monasteries important during this
  period.
• Focus on rules and regulations to counter
  corruption in the church thus the rise of
  highly regulated communities, or abbeys.
• Included all that was needed for daily
  religious life.

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Westworks Towers at the end of churches

• Towers incorporated in western façade of church.

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Ottonian Art

• Divisions followed the death of Charlemagne
  invasions followed, breaking up the kingdom.
• The eastern part consolidated under King Otto in
  936.
• The basilica was transformed Saint Cyriakus,
  Gernode, Germany.
• An apse replaced the westwork, but the towers
  remained.

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Hildesheim 1001-1030
The basilica takes further form
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Hildesheim 1001-1030

• Alternate support system heavy square piers
  alternate with columns creating vertical units
  that softened the horizontal, tunnel feel of
  earlier churches.

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Bronze Doors at Hildeheim

• 16 ft high each panel cast in lost wax
  process.
• Left door Book of Genesis
• Right door Life of Christ

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Bronze Doors at Hildesheim -- 1015

• 16 ft high each panel cast in lost wax
  process.
• Left door Book of Genesis
• Right door Life of Christ
• Bishop Bernwardcomissioned

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Bronze Doors at Hildesheim -- 1015
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Crucifix Cologne Cathedral ca. 870

• Interest in monumental sculpture.
• Close to suffering Jesus of Byzantine era.

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Uta Codex ca. 1025 lectionary

• .

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Reichnau Bamberger Apocalypse

• From same scriptorium as the Lectionary of Henry
  II, pictured in Gardner.

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Compare

• Rossano Lindisfarne Bamberger

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Discussion Questions

• Why is the art of the peoples outside the Roman
  Empire significantly different from classical
  Roman art and architecture?
• Compare the three major manuscript styles that
  developed in the middle ages.
• What previous styles of art influenced medieval
  art?