Romaneskskulpture

Romanesque Romanesque Sculpture,Sculpture,

Illustrations,Illustrations,and Paintingsand Paintings

Grotesques/Gargoyles• During the Romanesque period, artists began decorating cathedrals with grotesques and gargoyles (although they became the most popular during the Gothic period). • Grotesques are decorative sculptures on the outside of a building, usually of an animal or fantastical creature. • Gargoyles are similar to grotesques, except they are also a water spout (usually designed with a water channel up the back and out the mouth). They function to help rainwater flow away from the building, so that it does not weather the stone.

Grotesques (above), gargoyles (below)

Romanesque Portals• In the late 11th and early 12th centuries, rich ensembles of figural reliefs began to appear again, most often in the grand stone portal area around the door through which the faithful would pass. • Tympanum – the prominent semicircular lunette above the doorway proper, comparable in importance to the triangular pediment of a Grecian temple.• Voussoirs – the wedge-shaped blocks that together form the archivolts of the arch framing the tympanum.• Lintel – the horizontal beam above the doorway.• Trumeau – the center post supporting the lintel in the middle of the doorway.• Jambs – the side posts of the doorway.• Any or all of these parts could be decorated with relief sculpture.

Vezelay, France• Location from where the Second and Third Crusades began.• Tympanum above the central portal of the narthex• Depiction of Christ giving the power of the Holy Spirit to the apostles on the Pentecost (7th Sunday after Easter), so that they could go forth into the world and spread the Gospels.• Light rays emanating from Christ’s hands represent the Holy Spirit.• The heathens of the world appear on the lintel below, and in eight panels above the central scene.• The depictions of unconverted races of people include people with giant ears, pig snouts, dog heads, and flaming hair. • Also included are images of human suffering (people who are hunchbacked, mute, blind, and lame), awaiting the salvation to come.

Tympanum relief from the church of La Madeleine,

Vezelay, Francec. 1120

St. Pierre at Moissac, France• This tympanum depicts the second coming of Christ as king and judge of the world in its last days. • Christ is large and centered, flanked by the four symbols for the evangelists and attendant angels holding scrolls to record human deeds for judgment.• The smaller crowned musician figures are the 24 elders who accompany Christ as the kings of this world and make music in his praise.• Wavy horizontal lines (representing the clouds of heaven) separate the elders into tiers.• By making a large Christ figure the central focus of the tympanum relief, the message is sent that Christ is the door to salvation.• Figures are elongated (tall and thin)• The trumeau below this tympanum features a prophet (perhaps Jeremiah or Isaiah), who displays a scroll bearing his prophetic vision. This again pairs Old and New Testament themes.

Tympanum relief at St. PierreMoissac, France

The Morgan Madonna• Large scale sculpture in the round was still rare, but small figures of the holy family or saints were commonly placed on altars to be venerated as a symbol of the person they depicted.• This sculpture is called the Morgan Madonna because it was once owned by American financier J.P. Morgan.• This image is similar to the Byzantine Theotokos images of Mary as mother of Christ.• Here, Jesus holds the bible in his left hand, and makes a gesture of blessing with his right hand (now broken off). He is the embodiment of the divine wisdom contained in the holy scriptures.• This style of sculpture is known as the “throne of wisdom” (sedes sapientiae in Latin), in which Mary, seated on a wooden throne, is herself the throne of wisdom because her lap is the Christ Child’s throne.• Originally brightly painted.

The Morgan Madonnac. 1150

Auvergne, FrancePainted wood, 2’ 7”

Christ in Majesty• This apse fresco was once located in a church in northern Spain, but has been moved to a museum in Boston.• What is the name of the shape surrounding Christ?• What are the four symbols surrounding Christ?• The seven hanging lamps (one is partially lost) represent the seven Christian communities where St. John addressed his revelation (the Apocalypse) at the beginning of his book.• The apostles stand below, paired off in formal frontality.• The drapery falls in stiff folds, creating a sense of rhythm.• The formality, symmetry, and placement of the figures are influenced by Byzantine art.• The figures are again elongated and stylized.

Christ in Majesty,Apse, Santa Maria de Mur.

Fresco, c. 1150. 24’ high.

Reliquary of Ste. Foy• Sainte Foy (Faith) was a child in the 4th century who refused to pay homage to the Roman gods, and was subsequently martyred.• The skull of Ste. Foy was originally housed in the French abbey of Agen, but was stolen by a monk and taken to Conques (c. 880).• The monks justified the act as furta sacra (holy theft), claiming Saint Faith herself wanted to move.• The skull is kept in this lavishly decorated reliquary, made of a wooden core covered in gold and silver, and encrusted with inset gemstones and cameos (gemstones carved with tiny reliefs). • The gemstones were donated by worshippers and attached to the reliquary over many years.• The headpiece worn by the figure is a ceremonial parade helmet (worn by soldiers on special ceremonial occasions) and a martyr’s crown.• The backside of the throne depicts an image of the crucifixion, engraved in rock crystal, creating a parallel between Christ’s martyrdom and Ste. Foy’s.

Reliquary of Sainte Foyc. 1100. Sainte-Foy,

Conques, FranceGold, silver gilt, jewels, and

cameos over a wooden core. 2’ 9.5” tall.

cameo

Bayeux Tapestry• Embroidered on linen, not woven.• Only about 1.5’ high, but almost 230’ long, it is a continuous narrative of a crucial moment in England’s history: the defeat of the Anglo-Saxons by the Normans (lead by William the Conqueror) at Hastings in 1066, uniting all of England and much of France under one rule.• Commissioned by Bishop Odo, the half-brother of William.• The story: When the Anglo-Saxon king Edward the Confessor died, it was believed he intended for William the Conqueror to be the next king of England. The Anglo-Saxon nobleman Harold (Edward’s brother-in-law) initially swore his feudal allegiance to William, but later betrayed his feudal vows, accepting the crown of England for himself. • Harold is a heroic figure at the beginning of the story, but then events overtake him. After his coronation, cheering crowds celebrate, until Halley’s Comet crosses the sky, portending disaster. Upon hearing the news, Harold slumps in his throne. He foresees the ghostly fleet of Norman ships already riding the waves. William assembled the last great Viking flotilla on the Normandy coast, and crushes Harold’s forces.

Bayeux Tapestryc. 1080. Bayeux Cathedral, Bayeux, France.

Embroidered wool on linen. 1’ 8” tall x 229’ 8” long

Winchester Psalter• Depiction shows the gaping jaws of Hell, a traditional Anglo-Saxon subject. • Inscription at the top reads: “Here is Hell and the angels who are locking the doors.”• The ornamental frame that fills the page represents the door to hell. • The last Judgment has ended, and the damned are crammed into the mouth of hell, the wide-open jaw of a grotesque double-headed monster. • Sharp-beaked birds and fire-breathing dragons sprout from the monster’s mane, while hairy, horned demons torment the lost souls who tumble around in the darkness.• Among the souls are kings and queens with golden crowns and monks with shaved heads, a daring reminder to the clergy and the wealthy of the vulnerability of their own souls.

Page with Hellmouth, Winchester PsalterWinchester, England, c. 1150.Ink & tempera on vellum, 12” x 9”

Eadwine the Scribe• The Eadwine Psalter was made by an English monk known as Eadwine the Scribe, and consisted of 166 illustrations.• The last page presents a rare picture of a Romanesque artist at work. • The patterning of the drapery, while still firm, falls more softly and follows the movements of the body beneath.• However, although the artist has yielded to the need for a more naturalistic representation, the instinct for decorating the surface remained, as is apparent in the gown’s lightly-painted whorls and spirals.• Although this is a portrait of Eadwine, it is probably a generic type and not a true likeness.• Although the true author of the Psalter (the Psalms) is King David, Eadwine exaggerated his importance by likening himself to an evangelist writing his Gospel, and by including an inscription calling himself “a prince among scribes.”• Eadwine declares the excellence of his work will cause his fame to endure forever, and consequently he can offer his book as an acceptable gift to God. Although he is concerned with fame, it is less to do with himself as a great artist, and more to do with ensuring his place in God’s favor.

Eadwine the Scribe at Work,Eadwine Psalter, By Eadwine the Scribec. 1150. Ink & tempera on vellum.15.5” x 11.5”

Hildegard’s Vision• Hildegard of Bingen was born into an aristocratic German family. Like many women of her class, she entered into a convent at a young age, where she proved a capable administrator and scholar, and eventually became leader of the convent.• Since childhood, she had been subject to what she interpreted as divine visions, and in here forties, with the assistance of the monk scribe Volmar, she began to record them.• Her book, Liber Scivias (from the Latin scite vias lucis, “know the ways of the light”), records her visions.• In this copy of the original (the original was lost), Hildegard is depicted receiving a flash of divine insight, represented by the flames encircling her head. She records her visions on a tablet while Volmar waits in the wings.• Many leaders (both political and religious) sought Hildegard’s divine insight.• In addition to her book of visions, Hildegard also wrote a treatise on the natural world as well as a medical book.

Copy of Hildegard’s VisionLiber Scivias, by Hildegard of Bingen

Bingen, Germany, c. 1150