Cover Slide
The Earth and
Its Peoples
3rd edition
Chapter 15
The Latin West,
1200-1500
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Battle of Crecy, 1346
Battle of Crecy, 1346
Pitched battles were unusual in the Hundred Years' War. At the Battle of Crecy, the English (on
the right with lions on their royal standard) scored a spectacular victory. The longbow proved a
more effective weapon over the French crossbow, but characteristically the artist concentrated
on the aristocratic knights. (Bibliotheque nationale de France)
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Brunelleschi's Dome
Brunelleschi's Dome
Filipo Brunelleschi, the foremost
architect of the Early Renaissance,
lost the competition for the
commission for the north door of the
Baptistery to Ghiberti. In 1417 he
bested Ghiberti for the commission to
build a dome for the Florentine
Cathedral. Between 1420 and 1436 he
built a drum--a vertical supporting
wall--on the existing 138-footdiameter octagonal cross of the
cathedral. He then assembled the
dome on the drum, essentially creating
an eight-sided Gothic vault.
(Scala/Art Resource, NY)
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da Vinci, Mona Lisa
da Vinci, Mona Lisa
In 1503 Leonardo da Vinci began his
most famous work-- the Mona Lisa. The
subject of the painting is Lisa Gherardini
del Giocondo, the wife of a prominent
Florentine businessman. She is posed
half-length in the seated position, her
posture is relaxed, and her gaze is direct.
The softening of the edges of the
background, effecting a fine haze called
sfumato, creates a sense of intimacy and
psychological drama. (Erich Lessing/Art
Resource, NY)
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El Greco, Burial of Count of Orgaz
El Greco, Burial of Count of Orgaz
Born in Crete, Domenikos
Theotokopoulos (1541-1614), known as
El Greco ("The Greek"), moved to
Venice in the 1560s and learned the
techniques of the Venetian masters. El
Greco brought to his art a deeply
religious intensity and often imbued
religious themes with an ecstatic,
emotional, and mystical quality. His
painting The Burial of Count Orgaz
conveys the traditional message that
good works will merit the intercession of
the saints in the matter of salvation and
attaining heaven. The action operates on
three levels: death, the funeral, and the
arrival of the Count's soul in heaven.
(Museo del Prado/Institut Amatller d'Art
Hispanic)
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Expulsion of Albigensians from Carcassone
Expulsion of Albigensians from Carcassone
This illustration from a fourteenth-century manuscript depicts the grim realities of the
Albigensian Crusade launched in 1208. Here the Albigensians are being expelled from
Carcassonne in 1209. But the Cathars of Carcassonne fared less badly than those of Beziers,
who were massacred. (British Library)
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Flemish weavers, 14th c
Flemish weavers, 14th c
The spread of textile weaving gave employment to many people in the Netherlands. The city of
Ypres in Flanders (now northern Belgium) was an important textile center in the thirteenth
century. This drawing, from a fourteenth-century manuscript, shows a man and a woman
weaving cloth on a horizontal loom, while a child makes thread on a spinning wheel.
(Stedelijke Openbare Bibliotheek, Ypres)
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Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise
Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise
Lorenzo Ghiberti (1378-1455) was
given a commission to cast a pair of
doors, with scenes drawn from the Old
Testament, for the east side of the
Baptistery of San Giovanni, Florence-thereafter known as The Gates of
Paradise, so named by Michelangelo.
In creating the ten 31-inch-square
panels, Ghiberti's use of perspective is
one of the hallmarks of his
accomplishment. (Scala/Art Resource,
NY)
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Gothic cathedral: Notre Dame Paris
Gothic cathedral: Notre Dame Paris
This view from the south of Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris, offers a fine example of the twin
towers (left), the spire, the great rose window over the south portal, and the flying buttresses
that support the walls and the vaults. Like hundreds of other churches in medieval Europe, it
was dedicated to the Virgin. With a nave rising 226 feet, this Gothic cathedral was the tallest
building in Europe. (David R. Frazier/Photo Researchers)
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Gothic interior, Notre-Dame de Chartres
Gothic interior, Notre-Dame de Chartres
The advent of the High Gothic architectural
style is marked by the rebuilding of the
Romanesque styled Notre-Dame de Chartres.
The 446-foot-long interior consists of a nave
culminating in an apse that houses the crypt
bearing the relic of Mary, "The Veil of the
Virgin," a piece of the garment supposedly
worn by Mary when she gave birth to Jesus.
The wide side aisles of the nave, which also
run around the transept, were designed to hold
many pilgrims without disturbing the
worshipers. At the center of the nave is the
prayer labyrinth--a meandering stone path
designed to symbolize Jesus carrying his
cross to the crucifixion--which penitents
circled on their knees as they recited their
prayers. (Editions Gaud)
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Hanseatic league merchants
Hanseatic league merchants
In the thirteenth century the merchants
of Hamburg and other cities in
northern Germany formed an
association for the suppression of
piracy and the acquisition of
commercial privileges in foreign
countries. Members of the Hansa
traded in furs, fish, wax, and oriental
luxury goods. This miniature depicts
members of the Hansa at the port of
Hamburg. (Staatsarchiv Hamburg)
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Jews demonized
Jews demonized
The fourth Lateran Council of 1215 required that Jews wear distinctive clothing--special caps
and the Star of David--so that they could be distinguished from Christians. In this caricature
from an English treasury record for 1233, Isaac of Norwich (top center), reputedly the richest
Jew in England, wears a crown implying his enormous influence and power. The figure at left
(holding scales) suggests the Jewish occupation of moneylender. At right Satan leads Jews to
hell. (The National Archives, Public Record Office)
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Journey of the Magi
Journey of the Magi
Few Renaissance paintings better illustrate art in the service of the princely court than this painting by
Benozzo Gozzoli (1420-1497), The Magi on Their Way to Bethlehem with Lorenzo the Magnificent, which
was commissioned by Piero de' Medici to adorn his palace chapel. Everything in this fresco--the large crowd,
the feathers and diamonds adorning many of the personages, the black servant in front--serves to flaunt the
power and wealth of the House of Medici. The artist has discreetly placed himself in the crowd; the name
Benozzo is embroidered on his cap. (Scala/Art Resource, NY)
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Michelangelo, David
Michelangelo, David
The concept of genius as divine inspiration is
nowhere exemplified more fully than in the
life and work of Michelangelo Buonarrotti
(1475-1564). And Michelangelo was a
sculptor--more specifically, a carver of
marble statues--to the core. His David is the
earliest monumental statue of the High
Renaissance, and the city fathers eventually
chose to put it in front of the Palazzo Vecchio,
as the civic-patriotic symbol of the Florentine
republic. Michelangelo fashioned the marble
in a new, more natural manner. David's bare
skin contrasts with the rough leather strap of
the slingshot, and his right leg leans against a
realistic tree trunk. He blends the classical
model of a victorious athlete crowned with a
laurel wreath with the biblical hero as a
defender of the faith. David is a mature young
man of consummate beauty. (Scala/Art
Resource, NY)
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Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel ceiling
Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel ceiling
Michelangelo Buonarroti's commission to adorn the vaults of the 130-foot-long ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
was the most challenging enterprise of the Renaissance. Although Michelangelo had to adapt his monumental
figures to fit the contours of the ceiling, they are highly expressive and communicate his belief that physical
beauty manifests the spiritual beauty of the soul. The nine central panels portray the world described in
Genesis from Creation to the Drunkenness of Noah. In the sections above the windows and in the lunettes
around the windows, Michelangelo portrayed the generations of ancestors prior to Christ, and in the large
corners of the chapel he depicts important scenes drawn from the Old Testament. (Vatican Museum)
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Notre-Dame de la Belle Verriere
Notre-Dame de la Belle Verriere
The most numerous, and best preserved,
stained-glass windows during this period
are those that were created for the
cathedral at Chartres. The four central
panels for the famous Notre-Dame de la
Belle Verriere (Our Lady of the
Beautiful Window) were fashioned for
the south ambulatory in the twelfth
century. Because of the beauty of its blue
glass, this window is often referred to as
"The Blue Virgin Window." It depicts the
Virgin Mary with a crown on her head,
seated on a throne supported by angels,
holding Jesus in her lap. ((c) Clive
Hicks)
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Print shop
Print shop
This colored engraving, after a miniature
of the sixteenth century, depicts a French
printshop of the time. A workman
operates the "press," quite literally a
screw device that presses the paper to the
inked type. Other employees examine
the printed sheets, each of which holds
four pages. When folded, the sheets
make a book. (Giraudon/Art Resource,
NY)
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Siege of Constantinople
Siege of Constantinople
The siege of Constantinople by the Turks
in 1453--which lasted only fifty-three
days--required the attackers to isolate the
city both by sea and by land. This
miniature from the fifteenth century
shows the Turkish camps, as well as the
movements of Turkish boats, completing
the isolation of the city. (Bibliotheque
nationale de France)
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Spanish apothecary
Spanish apothecary
This miniature from the Cantigas of Alfonso X, a parchment codex with illuminated miniatures,
depicts a Spanish pharmacist seated outside his shop within the town walls, describing the
merits of his goods to a crowd of Christians and Muslims. (El Escorial)
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St. Sebastian and the plague-stricken
St. Sebastian and the plague-stricken
In his painting of St. Sebastian
Interceding for the Plague-Stricken, the
Flemish artist Josse Lieferinxe portrays
an outbreak of the plague. One dying
man seems to be falling terrified to the
ground while a female bystander in the
background screams in alarm. In the
foreground the body of a dead person,
carefully shrouded, is attended by a
priest and other clerics bearing a cross.
In the background is a cart transporting
the dead to common graves. At the top
of the painting, Christ listens to the
prayers of Saint Sebastian (pierced by
arrows). (The Walters Art Gallery,
Baltimore)
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Statue of Ferdinand
Statue of Ferdinand
All governments try to cultivate a
popular image. For Ferdinand and
Isabella, it was the appearance of piety.
Contemporaries, such as the Burgundian
sculptor Felipe Bigarny, portrayed them
as paragons of Christian piety, as shown
in this carved and painted wooden effigy
of Ferdinand kneeling in the royal
chapter of Granada Cathedral, where he
was buried in 1516. (Laurie Platt
Winfrey, Inc.)
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Statue of Isabella
Statue of Isabella
Backed by a relief of Santiago, scourge
of the Muslims, this polychrome statue
of Isabella overlooked the royal tomb
in the royal chapel of Granada
Cathedral. (Laurie Platt Winfrey, Inc.)
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Students at lecture
Students at lecture
This beautifully carved marble sculpture, with the fluid drapery characteristic of the late Gothic style,
conveys the students' curiosity and intellectual intensity. However, the profusion of books and (especially)
the presence of the woman (bottom, center) makes us wonder if the artist actually witnessed such a scene.
Universities generally did not admit women until the late nineteenth century. (Museo Civico,
Bologna/Scala/Art Resource, NY)
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Tres Riches Heures: February
Tres Riches Heures: February
The late Gothic style of manuscript
illumination was defined by the Limbourg
brothers--Jean, Paul, and Herman--who
flourished as artists during the late fourteenth
century and the early fifteenth century. They
were commissioned by the Duke of Berry to
complete two books of hours. The last
commission they undertook for the duke was
Les Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry,
begun in 1413. It is, perhaps, the finest
example of manuscript illumination. The
brothers were able to complete illustrations
for eleven of the months; another artist
completed November. At the top of each
calendar page is a two-tiered arch. The outer
arch consists of the zodiac sign, the inner arch
shows the blue dome of heaven and Apollo,
and below the arch is the labor associated
with each, as is evident in this snowy
February scene. (Victoria & Albert
Museum/The Bridgeman Art Library
International)
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van Eyck, Arnolfini Wedding
van Eyck, Arnolfini Wedding
The founders of the northern school of Flemish
painting were the two van Eyck brothers, Hubert
and Jan (ca. 1390-1441), whose work marks a
definitive break from the Middle Ages. They paid
attention to minute details, and their technical
artistry is particularly evident in their depiction of
textures. Jan van Eyck's most famous painting,
Giovanni Arnolfini and His Wife, is also filled
with symbolism. The room of the bride's house in
which the marriage takes place is filled with
objects alluding to Netherlandish marriage
customs; the little dog, symbolizing fidelity,
completes the allegorical scene. Perhaps the most
fascinating portion of the painting is the convex
mirror--which not only reflects the bridal couple
but the artist himself--and the inscription on the
back wall, which reads "Johannes de Eyck fuit hic
1434" (Jan van Eyck was here). (Reproduced by
Courtesy of the Trustees, The National Gallery,
London)
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Map: The Course of the Black Death in 14th-Century Europe
The Course of the Black Death in 14th-Century Europe
Note the routes that the bubonic plague took across Europe. How do you account for the fact that several regions were spared
the "dreadful death"? (Copyright (c) Houghton Mifflin Company. All Rights Reserved.)
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Map: English Holdings in France During the Hundred Years' War
English Holdings in France During the Hundred Years' War
The year 1429 marked the greatest extent of English holdings in France. Why is it unlikely that England could have held
these territories permanently? (Copyright (c) Houghton Mifflin Company. All Rights Reserved.)
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Map: Europe in 1453
Europe in 1453
This year marked the end of the Hundred Years War between France and England and the fall of the Byzantine capital city of
Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks. Muslim advances into southeastern Europe were offset by the Latin Christian
reconquests of Islamic holdings in southern Italy and the Iberian Peninsula and by the conversion of Lithuania. (Copyright
(c) Houghton Mifflin Company. All Rights Reserved.)
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Map: The Reconquista
The Reconquista
The Christian conquest of Muslim Spain was followed by ecclesiastical reorganization, with the establishment of dioceses,
monasteries, and the Latin liturgy, which gradually tied the peninsula to the heartland of Christian Europe and to the Roman
papacy. (Copyright (c) Houghton Mifflin Company. All Rights Reserved.)
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Map: Trade and Manufacturing in Medieval Europe
Trade and Manufacturing in Medieval Europe
Note the number of cities and the sources of silver, iron, copper, lead, paper, wool, carpets and rugs, and slaves. (Copyright
(c) Houghton Mifflin Company. All Rights Reserved.)
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