Survey 1 ch15

Copyright © 2018, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Art History
Sixth Edition
Chapter 15
Early Medieval Art in Europe

Learning Objectives (1 of 2)
15.a Identify the visual hallmarks of Early Medieval art for formal,
technical, and expressive qualities.
15.b Interpret the meaning of works of Early Medieval art based on their
themes, subjects, and symbols.
15.c Relate Early Medieval art and artists to their cultural, economic, and
political contexts.

Learning Objectives (2 of 2)
15.d Apply the vocabulary and concepts relevant to Early Medieval art,
artists, and art history.
15.e Interpret a work of Early Medieval art using the art historical
methods of observation, comparison, and inductive reasoning.
15.f Select visual and textual evidence in various media to support an
argument or an interpretation of a work of Early Medieval art.

CHI RHO IOTA PAGE FROM THE BOOK OF KELLS
Probably made at Iona, Scotland. Late 8th or early 9th century.
Oxgall inks and pigments on vellum, 12-3/4" × 9-1/2" (32.5 × 24 cm).
Trinity College, Dublin. MS. 58, fol. 34r. © The Board of Trinity College, Dublin,
Ireland/Bridgeman Images. [Fig. 15-01]

The Early Middle Ages (1 of 2)
• The Roman Empire crumbled to the power of Germanic people whom
Romans called "barbarians."
• The Celts controlled most of western Europe.
• At this time, the Huns invaded Asia; Ostrogoths, Visigoths,
Burgundians, and Vandals also migrated.

EUROPE OF THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES
This map shows the routes taken by the groups of people who migrated into and through
the Western Roman world at the dawn of the Middle Ages. Modern country names have
been used here for convenience, but at this time, these countries as we know them did
not yet exist. [Map 15-01]

The Early Middle Ages (2 of 2)
• Gradual conversion of "barbarian" groups to Christianity served to
unify Europe's heterogeneous population.
• The Church provided wealth and influence to kings and nobles who
defended the Christina way of life, and this led directly to the
commissioning of buildings and liturgical patronage.

Art and Its Contexts:
Defining the Middle Ages
• Terming these years as the Middle Ages reflects the view of
Renaissance Humanists who regarded this time as a period of
barbarism and decline.
– However, it was a period of innovation.
• Art historians generally divide the Middle Ages into three periods: early
medieval, Romanesque, and Gothic.

"Barbarians" in Europe
• Many "barbarian" groups were metalworkers and created colorful
jewelry that included precious metals and inlaid gems.
• Artistic motifs were geometric or abstract natural forms.

The Merovingians (1 of 2)
• Franks led by the "Merovingian" dynasty migrated during the fifth
century to settle in the northern part of modern France.
• Early illuminated books have been attributed to this time, but most
exemplary artworks are jewelry from the graves of nobles.

The Merovingians (2 of 2)
• The tomb of Queen Arnegunde exhibits impressive brooches, buckles,
and jewelry.
– Two-piece molds provided the structure for these pieces, which
were then chased and inlaid with carefully cut garnets.

JEWELRY OF QUEEN ARNEGUNDE
Discovered in her tomb, excavated at the Abbey of Saint-Denis, Paris. Burial c. 580–590.
Gold, silver, garnets, and glass beads; length of pin 10-3/8" (26.4 cm).
Musée des Antiquités Nationales, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France. Photo © RMN/Jean-
Gilles Berizzi. [Fig. 15-02]

The Norse
• Trade, warfare, and migration brought a variety of jewelry, coins,
textiles, and other objects into northern Europe.
• In the fifth century CE, Scaninavian animal style was untouched by the
Classical Mediterranean world.
– The Gummersmark brooch displays mostly symmetric designs
with animal forms.

GUMMERSMARK BROOCH
Denmark. 6th century. Silver gilt, height 5-3/4" (14.6 cm).
Nationalmuseet, Copenhagen. Photo: Kit Weiss. [Fig. 15-03]

Celts and Anglo-Saxons in Britain
(1 of 2)
• A clash of Roman and Celtic cultures occurred as early as 43 CE.
– A new Anglo-Saxon and Hiberno-Saxon culture formed from
Celtic, Germanic, and Roman traditions.
• Metalworking was a glorious example of Anglo-Saxon art.
– A burial site at Sutton Hoo preserved a hoard of seventh-century
treasures.

Celts and Anglo-Saxons in Britain
(2 of 2)
• The hinged clasp found at Sutton Hoo displays garnet and blue-
checkered glass called millefiori cut into precise shapes.
– Boars represented strength and bravery.

HINGED CLASP, FROM THE SUTTON HOO BURIAL SHIP
Suffolk, England. First half of 7th century. Gold plaques with granulation and inlays of
garnet and checkered millefiori glass, length 5" (12.7 cm).
British Museum, London. © The Trustees of the British Museum. All rights reserved.
[Fig. 15-04]

Recovering the Past: Sutton Hoo
• Excavation of Sutton Hoo began in 1938 under Edith May Pretty,
pausing for World War II.
– Treasures of the burial chamber were donated to the British
Museum.
• Rupert Bruce-Mitford asserted that the site was a burial despite no
evidence of human remains, as the soil was acidic enough to erode
any trace.

The Early Christian Art of the British
Isles
• Celtic Christians developed their own liturgical practices, calendar, and
distinctive artistic traditions.
• Missionaries were dispatched to Rome and Augustine became the first
archbishop of Canterbury in 601.
• Although the Roman Church eventually triumphed in ruling over British
Christians, traditions influenced art.

Illustrated Books (1 of 3)
• Lavish gospel books were produced in workshops called scriptoria
and were essential for spiritual and monastic life.
• The Book of Durrow
– Each Gospel is introduced by a three-part decorative sequence.
– The Gospel of Matthew is preceded by a figure of an armless man
with symmetrical features.

SYMBOL OF THE EVANGELIST MATTHEW, GOSPEL BOOK OF DURROW
Page from the Gospel of Matthew. Probably made at Iona, Scotland, or in northern
England. Second half of 7th century. Ink and tempera on parchment, 9-5/8" × 6-1/8" (24.4
× 15.5 cm). Trinity College, Dublin. MS. 57, fol. 21v. © The Board of Trinity College,
Dublin, Ireland/Bridgeman Images. [Fig. 15-05]

• The Lindisfarne Gospel Book
– Full pages of ornament in this manuscript are complex, visual
puzzles.
– The monastic library near Lindisfarne had a collection of Roman
books.
 Ezra Restoring the Sacred Scriptures mimicked illusionistic
traditions of the Greco-Roman world.
 The Matthew portrait works from a Roman prototype as well.

CARPET PAGE, LINDISFARNE GOSPEL BOOK
Lindisfarne, England. c. 715–720. Ink and tempera on vellum,
13-3⁄8 × 9-7⁄16″ (34 × 24 cm).
The British Library, London. Cotton MS. Nero D.IV, fol. 26v. © The British Library Board
(Cotton Nero D. IV, f.26v). [Fig. 15-06]

PAGE WITH THE BEGINNING OF THE TEXT OF MATTHEW'S GOSPEL,
LINDISFARNE GOSPEL BOOK
Lindisfarne, England. c. 715–720. Ink and tempera on vellum, 13-3/8" × 9-7/16" (34 × 24
cm). The British Library, London. Cotton MS. Nero D.IV, fol. 27r. © The British Library
Board (Cotton Nero D. IV, f.27). [Fig. 15-07]

MATTHEW WRITING HIS GOSPEL, LINDISFARNE GOSPEL BOOK
Lindisfarne, England. c. 715–720. Ink and tempera on vellum, 13-3/8" × 9-7/16" (34 × 24
cm). The British Library, London. Cotton MS. Nero D.IV, fol. 25v © The British Library
Board (Cotton Nero D. IV, f.25v). [Fig. 15-08]

EZRA RESTORING THE SACRED SCRIPTURES, IN THE BIBLE KNOWN AS
THE CODEX AMIATINUS
Wearmouth-Jarrow, England. c. 700–715.
Ink and tempera on vellum, 20" × 13-1/2" (50.5 × 34.3 cm).
Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence. Cod. Amiat. I, fol. 5r. © 2016. Photo Scala,
Florence - courtesy of the Ministero Beni e Att. Culturali. [Fig. 15-09]

Art and Its Contexts:
The Medieval Scriptorium
• It was a place where monks and nuns carefully wrote books on
prepared animal skins (either vellum or parchment).
• Work on a book was often divided between scribes, who copied text,
and artists, who illuminated pages with large initials and decorations.

• The Book of Kells
– This manuscript introduces Matthew's account of Jesus's birth with
a Chi Rho monogram of Christ.
 Spiral and knot motifs intersperse with animals.
 Symbolic references to Christ include a fish, moths, and mice
nibbling the Eucharistic wafer.

Irish High Crosses
• The South Cross of Ahenny is a well-preserved example of the
monumental stone decoration seen in Ireland.
• This cross is outlined with ropelike moldings covered with spirals and
interlace.
• Large bosses resemble jewels that were placed on metal crosses.

SOUTH CROSS, AHENNY
County Tipperary, Ireland.
8th century. Sandstone.
Courtesy of Marilyn Stokstad. [Fig. 15-10]

The Viking Era
• Earliest recorded Viking attacks occurred as early as 793.
• Norwegian and Danish Vikings raided territory from Iceland to
Greenland in ships that could sail 200 miles a day.
• Other Vikings traveled toward Russia.
– The Rus settled around Novgorod and Kiev and became Orthodox
Christians by 988.

Carving in Wood and Stone (1 of 3)
• The Oseberg Ship
– Burial ships honored both men and women and they were
designed to sail calm waters of fjords.
– The prow of the ship forms a serpent's head with carvings of
animals in low relief along the edges.

• The Oseberg Ship
– Wood was originally painted brightly.
– Women of this period would have woven sails for these vessels.

GRIPPING BEASTS, DETAIL OF OSEBERG SHIP
c. 815–820. Wood.
Vikingskiphuset, Universitets Oldsaksamling, Oslo, Norway. © IAM/akg-images.
[Fig. 15-11]

• Picture Stones at Jelling
– Rune stones were large memorial stones covered with
inscriptions.
– Danish King Harald Bluetooth ordered a picture stone to be placed
aside family burial mounds at Jelling.
 A style combining interlacing foliage and recognizable animals
developed and is seen on this stone, entangling with the image
of Christ.

ROYAL RUNE STONES, RIGHT-HAND STONE ORDERED BY KING HARALD
BLUETOOTH
Jelling, Denmark. 983–985.
Granite, 3-sided, height about 8' (2.44 m).
© Carmen Redondo/Corbis. [Fig. 15-12]

Timber Architecture
• The Borgund Stave Church
– Twelfth-century stave churches survive in rural Norway.
 They are named for the four huge timbers that form their
structural core.
– This church features steeply pitched roofs to protect the walls from
precipitation.
– Crosses and dragon heads sit atop gables.

EXTERIOR OF STAVE CHURCH, BORGUND, NORWAY
c. 1125–1150.
PHB.cz/Fotolia. [Fig. 15-13a]

CUTAWAY DRAWING OF STAVE CHURCH, BORGUND, NORWAY
c. 1125–1150.
Kathy Mrozek. [Fig. 15-13b]

Mozarabic Art in Spain
• While Christians and Jews under the authority of Islamic rulers paid
higher taxes, they were left free to follow their religion.
• This led to the exchange of artistic styles.
– The combination of Christian and Islamic techniques and symbols
was called Mozarabic.

Beatus Manuscripts (1 of 2)
• Beatus created the Commentary on the Apocalypse.
• The Morgan Beatus was a copy of the Commentary, produced c. 940–
945.
– Woman Clothed with the Sun, painted by Maius, was a portrayal
of the allegory of the triumph of the Church over its enemies.

Maius WOMAN CLOTHED WITH THE SUN, THE MORGAN BEATUS
Monastery of San Salvador at Tábara, León, Spain. 940–945.
Tempera on vellum, 15-1/8" × 22-1/6" (38.5 × 56 cm).
The Morgan Library and Museum, New York. MS. M644, fols. 152v-153r.
© 2016. Photo Pierpont Morgan Library/Art Resource/Scala, Florence. [Fig. 15-14]

Beatus Manuscripts (2 of 2)
• Another copy was produced for the Abbot Dominicus of San Salvador
at Tábara.
– Illustrations were signed by Emeritus and Ende.
– Battle of the Bird and the Serpent was another allegory of the
triumph of the Church (a peacock) over Satan (represented by a
snake).

Emeterius and Ende, with the scribe Senior BATTLE OF THE BIRD AND THE SERPENT,
COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE BY BEATUS AND COMMENTARY ON DANIEL
BY JEROME
Made for Abbot Dominicus, probably at the monastery of San Salvador at Tábara, León,
Spain. Completed July 6, 975. Tempera on parchment, 15-3/4" × 10-1/4" (40 × 26 cm).
Cathedral Library, Gerona, Spain. MS. 7[11], fol. 18v. Archivo Fotográphico, Oronoz,
Madrid. [Fig. 15-15]

The Carolingian Empire
• Frank barbarians settled in northern Gaul and established a dynasty
beginning with Charles the Great, called Charlemagne, in 768.
– Charlemagne imposed Christianity throughout his empire and
declared himself the rightful successor to Constantine.

Architecture (1 of 5)
• A bronze equestrian statue identified as Charles the Bald recalls the
statue of Marcus Aurelius.
– It provided the Carolingian prototype of an ideal ruler.
– Unlike Roman example, the king has a mustache, which was a
Frankish sign of nobility popular among the Celts.

EQUESTRIAN PORTRAIT OF CHARLES THE BALD (?)
9th century. Bronze, height 9-1/2" (24.4 cm).
Musée du Louvre, Paris. © akg-images /Erich Lessing. [Fig. 15-16]

• The basilican plan re-emerged in architecture.
• Charlemagne's Palace at Aachen
– The palace chapel was inspired by the Western imperial capitals
of Rome and Ravenna.
– The octagonal plan resembles San Vitale but features westwork
in the front of the building.

• Charlemagne's Palace at Aachen
– The core of the building is surrounded by an ambulatory on the
ground floor and a gallery on the second floor.
– A veneer of patterned, multicolored stones on the walls and
mosaics covered the vaults, recalling Byzantine architecture.

INTERIOR VIEW, PALACE CHAPEL OF CHARLEMAGNE
Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle), Germany. 792–805.
© Achim Bednorz, Cologne. [Fig. 15-17a]

SECTION DRAWING, PALACE CHAPEL OF CHARLEMAGNE
Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle), Germany. 792–805.
Kathy Mrozek. [Fig. 15-17b]

• The Westwork at Corvey
– The Abbey Church of Corvey exhibits the broad, imposing
masonry of late ninth-century architecture.
– The exterior displays symmetrical towers flanking a central core.
– The interior may have provided space for choirs as well as space
for meeting dignitaries.

WESTWORK, ABBEY CHURCH OF CORVEY
Westphalia, Germany.
Late 9th century (upper stories mid 12th century).
© Achim Bednorz, Cologne. [Fig. 15-18]

• The Saint Gall Plan
– Architects contemplated how to combine work and prayer within a
community.
– Abbot Haito of Reichenau developed a conceptual plan known as
the St. Gall plan.
 It centers around the cloister and features a prominent
basilican church.
 The plan accounted for challenges associated with group
living.

SAINT GALL PLAN (ORIGINAL)
c. 817. Original in red ink on parchment, 28" × 44-1/8" (71.1 × 112.1 cm).
Stiftsbibliothek, Saint Gall, Switzerland. Cod. Sang. 1092. Stiftsbibliothek, St. Gallen
[Fig. 15-19a]

SAINT GALL PLAN (REDRAWN WITH CAPTIONS)
c. 817. Original in red ink on parchment, 28" × 44-1/8" (71.1 × 112.1 cm).
Stiftsbibliothek, Saint Gall, Switzerland. Cod. Sang. 1092. Kathy Mrozek. [Fig. 15-19b]

• Charlemagne sponsored the scrupulous editing and copying of key
ancient and religious texts.
• A type of script called Carolingian minuscule increased legibility and
streamlined production.
• Scribes and illuminators revived, reformed, and revitalized established
traditions of book production.

• The Coronation Gospels
– The portrait of Matthew in the Coronation Gospels reflects a
lifelike representation consistent with Greco-Roman tradition.
– Conventions for creating the illusion of solid figures in space may
have been preserved from Byzantine manuscripts.

PAGE WITH ST. MATTHEW THE EVANGELIST, CORONATION GOSPELS
Gospel of Matthew. Early 9th century. 12-3/4" × 9-13/16" (32.4 × 24.9 cm).
Kunsthistorische Museum, Vienna. Inv.-Nr WS XIII 18, folio 15 r. © KHM-
Museumsverband. [Fig. 15-20]

• The Ebbo Gospels
– An innovative Gospel book made for Archbishop Ebbo of Reims
was illustrated with energetic abandon.
– St. Matthew's page shows a rapidly sketched landscape, wiry hair,
and rippling drapery, meant to symbolize the fervor with which
Matthew transcribed the Word of God.

PAGE WITH ST. MATTHEW THE EVANGELIST, EBBO GOSPELS
Gospel of Matthew. Second quarter of 9th century.
Ink, gold, and colors on vellum, each page 10-1/4" × 8-3/4" (26 × 22.2 cm).
Médiathèque d'Épernay, France. MS. 1, fol. 18v. [Fig. 15-21]

• The Utrecht Psalter
– Ink drawings resemble linear vitality found in the Ebbo Gospel.
– The artists interpreted the words and images of individual psalms
literally, at times with words acted out as in a game of charades.

A CLOSER LOOK: Psalm 23, The Utrecht Psalter
c. 816–835. Ink on parchment, 13" × 9-7/8" (33 × 25 cm).
Utrecht University Library. MS. 32, fol. 13r. [Fig. 15-22]

Metalwork
• Costly manuscripts were protected with heavy wooden covers.
– An example cover of the Lindau Gospels combines jewels and
pearls with sculpture in gold.
 Its crucifix was created using a repoussé technique, or
hammering up from the back.
 Jesus, calm and wide-eyed, seems to foreshadow his triumph
over death.

CRUCIFIXION WITH ANGELS AND MOURNING FIGURES, LINDAU GOSPELS
Outer cover. c. 870–880.
Gold, pearls, sapphires, garnets, and emeralds, 13-3/4" × 10-7/8" (36.9 × 27.5 cm).
The Morgan Library and Museum, New York. MS. 1. © 2016. Photo Pierpont Morgan
Library/Art Resource/Scala, Florence. [Fig. 15-23]

Ottonian Europe
• The Ottonian dynasty re-established Charlemagne's Christian Roman
Empire in 962.
– Appointments of successors to high positions in the Church led to
the later creation of the Holy Roman Empire.
• Ideology is rooted in the unity of Church and state, evidenced by the
altar created for Magdeburg Cathedral.

OTTO I PRESENTING MAGDEBURG CATHEDRAL TO CHRIST
One of a series of 17 ivory plaques known as the Magdeburg Ivories, possibly carved in
Milan. c. 962–968. Ivory, 5" × 4-1/2" (12.7 × 11.4 cm).
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Gift of George Blumenthal, 1941 (41.100.157). ©
2016. Image copyright The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Art Resource/Scala, Florence.
[Fig. 15-24]

• Ottonian rulers wished to replicate the grandeur of Christian
architecture.
– German officials were familiar with Roman basilicas as well as
buildings in Byzantium.
• However, large timber-roofed basilicas were vulnerable to fire.

• The Convent Church of St. Cyriakus in Gernrode
– Founded by military governor Gero in 961, this church was
designed as a basilica with westwork flanked by circular towers.
– A deceptively simple design, the alternation of heavy and light
supports, and round and rectangular forms prefigured the
Romanesque style.

PLAN, CHURCH OF ST. CYRIAKUS, GERNRODE
Harz, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.
Begun 961; consecrated 973. [Fig. 15-25a]

INTERIOR, CHURCH OF ST. CYRIAKUS, GERNRODE
Harz, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.
Begun 961; consecrated 973.
© Achim Bednorz, Koln. [Fig. 15-25b]

Sculpture (1 of 2)
• Ottonian artists began a tradition of large sculpture in wood and
bronze.
• The Gero Crucifix
– The Gero Crucifix shows a tortured, life-sized Christ whose body
sags in death.
 It was meant to inspire pity and awe.

GERO CRUCIFIX
Cologne Cathedral, Germany. c. 970.
Painted and gilded wood, height of figure 6'2" (1.88 m).
Rheinisches Bildarchiv, Museen der Stadt Köln. [Fig. 15-26]

Sculpture (2 of 2)
• The Hildesheim Doors
– Bronze doors made under the direction of Bishop Bernward in
Germany represent a complex bronze-casting project.
– The doors portray scenes from the Hebrew bible and New
Testament on the left and right side respectively.
 Scenes are complementary pairs meant to enhance each
other's meaning.

DOORS OF BISHOP BERNWARD
Made for the abbey church of St. Michael, Hildesheim, Germany.
1015. Bronze, height 16'6" (5 m).
Dommuseum Hildesheim. Photo: Florian Monheim. [Fig. 15-27]

• Ottonian monks and nuns illuminated manuscripts that were often
funded by secular rulers.
• The Hitda Gospels
– The Presentation Page of a Gospel book for Abbess Hitda
represents the abbess offering the book to St. Walpurga atop a
rocky, undulating strip of landscape in the foreground.

PRESENTATION PAGE WITH ABBESS HITDA AND ST. WALPURGA, HITDA GOSPELS
Early 11th century. Ink and colors on vellum, 11-3/8" × 5-5/8" (29 × 14.2 cm).
Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek, Darmstadt. [Fig. 15-28]

• The Gospels of Otto III
– The Gospels of Otto III showed influence of Byzantine art.
 The architecture was more controlled and balanced.
 Figures are tall and slender in a scene portraying Jesus's
hospitality.

PAGE WITH CHRIST WASHING THE FEET OF HIS DISCIPLES, GOSPELS OF OTTO
III
c. 1000. Ink, gold, and colors on vellum, approx. 13-1/8" × 9-1/2" 33.45 × 24.2 cm).
Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich. Clm 4453, fol. 237r. [Fig. 15-29]

Think About It (1 of 2)
• Characterize the styles of painting that developed in Spain for the
illustration of commentaries on the Apocalypse and in the Ottonian
world for visualizing sacred narratives. Focus your answer on specific
examples discussed in this chapter.
• Discuss the themes and subjects used for paintings in early medieval
Gospel books by comparing two specific examples from different parts
of Europe.

Think About It (2 of 2)
• Explain the references to early Christian Roman traditions in
Carolingian architecture. How did Carolingian builders transform their
models?
• Compare the renderings of the crucified Christ on the cover of the
Lindau Gospels (Fig. 15–23) and on the Gero Crucifix (Fig. 15–26).
Consider the differences in media and expressive effect, as well as in
style and scale.

Survey 1 ch15

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