000 INICIALES english Maquetación 1 - Inicio - Ministerio de · PDF filewhen western civilisation began to broaden its mental and ... the conquest of Muslim Gra-nada and the discovery

004 MEDIEVAL_english_Maquetación 1 21/02/14 11:44 Página 88

The Modern Era

004 MEDIEVAL_english_Maquetación 1 21/02/14 11:44 Página 89

Modern Times

The tour of the Early Modern Era galleries begins around the year 1500,when western civilisation began to broaden its mental and geographical ho-rizons. A selection of coins reflects the political union of the Crowns of Ara-gon and Castile under the rule of the Catholic Monarchs, whose reign wasmarked by two tremendously important events: the conquest of Muslim Gra-nada and the discovery of America. The Things from the Indies display case re-minds us that, during the conquest of the Americas, local craftsmanship wasadapted to suit European customs and purposes.

In Europe this period coincided with the spread of humanism and the Re-naissance, cultural forms born in Italy during the 15th century. One sectionof Gallery 28 is dedicated to certain aspects of Renaissance art linked to thestudy of classical Antiquity. In this cultural context portraits served to glo-rify the individual, as the medals clearly show. The figure of Christ at theColumn, made in Rome, is an example of the quest for ideal beauty in the de-piction of nudes. The upper classes developed a penchant for collectingsmall bronze sculptures, represented here by one of the museum’s most sin-gular pieces: the Equestrian Figure of Hector, signed by Il Filarete and pro-bably an allegorical portrait of the Duke of Milan.

The Symbolism of Prestige Objects is also apparent in the pottery and perso-nal objects decorated with scenes from Roman history, Greek mythology andthe Bible that exemplified the values of humanist education. The concept ofcivic virtue symbolised in those scenes is present on the railings of the tombof Cardinal Cisneros, with a Latin inscription granting him the immortal des-tiny of heroes: fame.

The display case dedicated to Scientific Knowledge contains a group of planis-pheric astrolabes of the Leuven school. These astronomy instruments werehighly prized in Europe for their exquisite craftsmanship and the fact that theycould be used anywhere in the vast empire of Charles V, who ruled in Spain asCharles I. His son, Philip II, was a great patron of the sciences: a selection of

90

Equestrian figure of Hector !

005 MODERNA_ENGLISH_Maquetación 1 21/02/14 11:53 Página 90


pharmaceutical jars from theapothecary at the Monastery ofEl Escorial testifies to his inte-rest in therapeutic medicine.

The final section of this gallery isdedicated to the spiritual life ofSpanish society, which reactedto the Protestant cults by closingranks and displaying a deep de-votion to the Virgin Mary, thesaints and holy relics. Churchesand convents were filled with al-tarpieces and images donated bylaymen and clergymen, whocontinued to be buried in Chris-tian temples and covered theirtombs with sculptures of prayingfigures and stone slabs or memo-rial plaques. The array of Eccle-siastical Silver includes itemsused to celebrate the Eucharist,a sacrament that the CatholicChurch strove particularly hardto reaffirm during the Counter-Reformation.

The next room focuses on the so-cial and economic aspects of thetrade in handcrafted goods. Theabundance of earthenware unco-vered in archaeological excava-tions has provided usefulinformation about pottery work-shops and the places where thesedomestic wares were traded. Theban on tableware made of pre-cious metals—represented in thedisplay case dedicated to SecularSilver –led to a boom in the pro-duction of tin-glazed earthen-

< Christ at the column

92


93

ware. Period documents indicate that Earthenware from Talavera de la Reinawas the most prized variety in Spain and its American viceroyalties.

The Trade Networks section displays various examples of the European mar-ket for prestige objects: Flemish triptychs, a money chest, a pair of globesand a Brussels tapestry. From east to west, international commerce was con-ducted using the silver pieces of eight struck at American mints. Hispano-Philippine ivory and Chinese porcelain crossed the Pacific on the Manila

Astrolabe of King Phillip II<


94

galleons and arrived in Seville on board the Spanish Treasure Fleet, alongwith silver and colonial products.

The display case on The Conquest of the World shows several harquebuses, fi-rearms that appeared in the 16th century and changed military strategy.Maintaining Spain’s hegemony in Europe depleted the Habsburg coffers. Thepolitical decline of this dynasty coincided with the Spanish Golden Age, cha-racterised by the ostentatious display of luxury as a social status symbol. Thistrend is documented by the exhibits in the Riches and Vanities display case.

Chinese Guan<

Arch of Septimus Severus >


95

The Age of Reason

The contents of this exhibition area reflect the influence of the Enlighten-ment on European culture. In the early 18th century, the Spanish throne wasoccupied by a new dynasty, The Bourbons. In the centralised state created byPhilip V, Madrid became the hub of reforms instituted by the monarchs andthe academies founded under their patronage. A plan from 1769 shows howthe city’s layout was reorganised by the Count of Aranda and Charles III.

Several display cases in this gallery document the introduction of the latesttechnological novelties in the sciences and the arts. The technical trainingprovided by state institutions allowed Spain to contribute to a broader know-ledge of the world by mounting expeditions that sailed and measured theglobe using instruments like the ones shown here. Glass Manufactories andPorcelain Pastes illustrate how investments in technology improved the pro-duction of luxury items for the court and an urban society increasingly in-fluenced by the fads of fashion.


96

The social importance of good taste led to a rejection of the Rococo style anda renewed appreciation for classical art following the discovery and excava-tion of Herculaneum and Pompeii, sponsored by Charles III during his reignin Naples. The birth of archaeology as a science coincided with the rise ofNeoclassicism, which was the prevailing cultural trend during the reign ofCharles IV, owner of the hard stone dessert centrepiece shown in the displaycase entitled Antiquity Recovered.

Plaque, La Granja Royal Glass Factory

<


97

On the Threshold of the Late Modern Era

This section of the exhibition opens with the events that transformed Spa-nish society in the early 19th century. The Peninsular War (1808-1814) andthe first constitution enacted in Cádiz (1812) fuelled new demands for civilliberties and rights as opposed to absolute monarchy. Romanticism cultiva-ted the ideals of the bourgeoisie, the social class which rose to political andeconomic power during this period. Their wealth was based on trade, ban-king and the mass production of goods like the transfer-printed ware popu-larised by the Industrial Revolution. The definitive triumph of liberalismcame during the reign of Isabella II, who founded this museum in 1867.

Writting desk, Celestino Espinosa

<


000 INICIALES english Maquetación 1 - Inicio - Ministerio de · PDF filewhen western civilisation began to broaden its mental and ... the conquest of Muslim Gra-nada and the discovery

Documents