EARLY MEDIEVAL ART

When you think of medieval art, you probably think of cathedrals and castles. We'll get to those, but first we'll look at three societies that were a precursor to the era of the great Romanesque and Gothic structures of the Middle Ages.

In this lesson, we’ll first take a brief look at Medieval Western Europe. Then, we’ll examine three different parts of the world and their legacies – the Vikings, the Irish, and Charlemagne’s empire.

OBJECTIVES

• Discuss life in medieval Europe.

• Explain the significance of Viking ship building.

• Describe some aspects of Viking runes, jewelry, and cloissone.

• Describe early Irish art.

• Identify the characteristics and legacy of the Carolingian era.

VOCABULARY

OVERVIEW OF MEDIEVAL WESTERN EUROPE

You may have heard of the "Dark Ages" — a thousand-year period between the declining Roman Empire's adoption of Christianity in AD 400 and the Renaissance, a period of renewed interest in classical Greek and Roman culture around 1400. But since the word "dark" can have negative connotations, historians usually refer to this period as the Medieval period or the Middle Ages.

The Early Medieval period in Western Europe spans approximately five hundred years, from AD 500 to 1000. Nations — such as we know them — did not exist in Europe at this time. Instead the economic and political system of the day was called "feudalism." In this system, the nobles owned huge tracts of land that were farmed by serfs or peasants, who owned nothing. War was a constant fact of life during this time period, so castles were built for security for both the nobles and the serfs, and beautiful Christian churches were built to attain God's help in such troubled times.

The art of this time period is a blend of Celtic-Germanic culture, Christianity, and the culture left over from the Greeks and Romans. Characteristics of the art include:

• abstract decorative designs

• animal figures

• metal craft ornaments and coins

• manuscript decorations

• wood carvings

• stone sculptures

We don't often think of the Vikings as great artists or architects, but you'll soon see that their ships were architectural marvels.

To learn more about the Vikings and their ships, play the interactive game, Viking Quests, located at the BBC Web site.

How many points did you earn? What did the Vikings carve on the figurehead of their ships? What role do you think art historians play in understanding the Vikings?

Now let's see how the Vikings affected the art and history of the Middle Ages. 

VIKINGS

Viking Art and Architecture

In AD 793, the Vikings raided the Lindisfarne Monastery in the British Isles. For the next three hundred years, the Vikings raided and sometimes traded in Europe, Iceland, Greenland, Russia, and even as far away as Canada in one direction and the Byzantine Empire in another.

Viking art revolves around their seafaring warrior culture: their carved ships, their weapons, their metalwork.

The purpose of Viking ship art is obvious. The fierce figurehead and the rows of shields mounted along the sides were sure to strike terror into the hearts of anyone who saw them coming. Sometimes the Vikings raided in a single ship, but often they attacked in fleets of one hundred or more. Multiply the effect of one ship by a hundred and you can imagine what a sight that was.

The Vikings left many artifacts in burial chambers and gravesites. The most important Vikings, the chieftains, were sometimes buried in their ships along with swords, axes, and other objects. The prow posts and sternposts of Viking ships, sleds, and other objects were decorated with figures of animals such as dragons, swans, snakes and horses. Weapons were decorated with gold and silver in a spidery filigree style.

Examine some examples of swords.

To explore how Vikings prepared for the afterlife, read the article Amazing Viking cemetery found, and note the objects found in the burial site.

VIKING RUNES, JEWELRY, AND CLOISONNÉ

Viking Jewelry

Vikings also created silver and gold jewelry and coins. Jewelry included a wide variety of items. A few examples include pendants, braided necklaces, and pins.

Runes

The early Vikings had a system of writing called runes. Sometimes they carved limestone blocks with elegant runes and designs. Most surviving runes can be found on these large memorials. The runes often formed the names of the carver or they were a memorial to a great person or a great event.

Cloisonné in the Middle Ages 

In 1939, an archaeologist was invited to excavate a series of Anglo-Saxon burial mounds at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, England. In the largest mound he found a buried Viking ship, complete with treasure. Among the treasures now housed in the British Museum are cloisonné shoulder clasps, which may have fastened leather straps together at the shoulder, according to the museum Web site. Here's a beautiful example of cloisonné.

EARLY IRISH ART AND THE BOOK OF KELLS

In the early fourth century, a sixteen-year-old Scottish boy named Patrick was kidnapped by Irish marauders (invading looters) and sold as a slave. Held in captivity for six years, Patrick prayed to the Christian God while his master was a Druid, or pagan, priest.

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia :

"Admonished by an angel he after six years fled from his cruel master and bent his steps towards the west. He relates in his Confessio that he had to travel about 200 miles; and his journey was . . . onwards thence to Westport. He found a ship ready to set sail and after some rebuffs was allowed on board. In a few days he was among his friends once more in Britain, but now his heart was set on devoting himself to the service of God in the sacred ministry."

In 433, Patrick returned to Ireland and set about converting the Druids to Christianity. His success led to his being made a saint, which has given many Americans the excuse to drink green beer (in honor of Saint Patrick and the Emerald Isle) one day a year. The conversion of Ireland to Christianity also ignited several centuries of unique religious artistic creations. Today we refer to this art as Christian Celtic art, named after the original peoples of Ireland, the Celts.

Their production consisted of freestanding stone crosses, also called "high crosses" because they sometimes reached up to seventeen feet high. Remnants are still standing near many of the early medieval monasteries of Ireland.

Additionally, the Christian artists created chalices, shrines, and reliquaries formed from metal. Much of this artwork blended traditional Celtic styles with styles from foreign lands. These influences were brought back to Ireland with missionaries.

Examine the image at the top of the collage. This is a picture of the Ardagh Chalice, which is currently housed at the National Museum of Ireland. It is a collection of 354 pieces of gold, gilt bronze, brass, lead, pewter, and enamel. It also contains intricate details of different birds and animals as well as the names of the Jesus’ apostles.

Arguably, the Book of Kells is their most important contribution. The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript that contains sophisticated and complex geometric shapes as well as abstract human faces and forms.

• Book of Kells(-1)

• Book of Kells(-2)

• Book of Kells(-3)

CHARLEMAGNE AND THE OTTONIANS

The cover of the Lindau Gospels from Saint Gall, Switzerland, circa 870, features a youthful figure of Christ, reminiscent of Early Christian art. While the Christ figure is still, the other figures seem to be in motion. The ornate decoration looks fairly Byzantine. The gold, pearls, and gems evoked the heavenly Jerusalem.

Charlemagne adopted Roman examples as models for his churches. Because of this, the basilica shape came back into popularity. A number of monasteries were also built under his rule. These monasteries set the standard for later monasteries across Western Europe. Architecturally, the monasteries featured a church in the center with a cloister, reserved for the monks, situated to the side of the church. The medieval church cloister reflected the separation of the spiritual life of the monks.

Thirty years after Charlemagne's death, his empire was divided between the sons of Louis. These divisions eventually became France and Germany. But in the mid-tenth century, a new line of German emperors known as the Ottonians, after the three "Otto's" in the family line, united the eastern part of the former empire. The art of the Ottonian period was more realistic than the art that preceded it.

The Gero Crucifix, circa 975 to 1000. This Ottonian crucifix marks a major change from the gentle, other-worldliness of Byzantine art to a realistic portrayal of the suffering Christ. This realism remained a mark of German art into the following centuries.

The Ottonians are also noted for the contributions of Bishop Bernward, who studied the ancient Roman monuments in 1001 before turning his hand to building the abbey church of Saint Michael in Germany. Among the inspirations he may have received in Rome are the colossal bronze doors the bishop had cast for his new church: Saint Michaels Church outside.

LET'S REVIEW!

In this lesson, you have covered the following subjects:

• the influence of seafaring culture on Viking art, especially in regards to their ornate ships

• Viking rune stone monuments and metal work

• Christian Celtic stone crosses and manuscript illumination

• the influence of Roman art on Charlemagne's churches

• the prevalence of realism in Ottonian art

Complete the Quiz before moving on.