ROMANESQUE – CHAPTER 12
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
The revival of structures made in stone is one
reason for the period’s name “Romanesque”
(reminiscent of Roman art “Roman
Roman-like
like”))
´ Cities began to expand – because of trade
´ People began to crisscross Europe on religious
pilgrimages , most popular was Saint James in
Santiago de Compostela, Spain. It was the burial
place
l
off St.
St James,
J
one off the
th apostles.
tl
´ This journey took a year or longer. Shrines were
established at key points along the road so that
pilgrims could enjoy additional holy places - all for
the sake of salvation
´
KEY IDEAS
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Romanesque art shows a revitalization of large-scale
architecture and sculpture
Architects develop the apses of churches for the large
crowds of pilgrims
Church portal sculptures stress themes of the Last
Judgment and the need for salvation
Manuscript painting and weaving flourish as art forms.
Art aimed to spread religion and bring people closer to
God
ROMANESQUE
y
p
The use of symbols
were veryy important.
Everything had a message, from the shape of the
buildings to the materials and motifs used.
´ The artists were mostly anonymous craftsmen .
Once they had finished work in one place they
usually moved to another place.
place
´ In architecture, the most representative buildings
were churches,
churches cathedrals,
cathedrals and monasteries
´ Sculpture and painting were used to convey
spirituality .
´
KEY VOCABULARY
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Ambulatory: a passageway around the apse of a
church
Apse: the end point of a church where the alter is
Arcade: A series of arches supported
pp
byy columns.
Baptistery: a separate chapel or building in front of a
church used for baptisms
Portal: a doorway
Rib vault: a vault in which diagonal
g
arches form riblike
patterns. These arches partially support a roof, in
some cases forming a weblike design.
Tribune: a gallery over the inner aisle flanking the
nave.
ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
Because stone was heavy, the walls had to be
extra thick,
thick windows were small so that there were
as few holes in the walls as possible – they were
often dark inside – exterior of the windows were
narrow and
d the
h interior
i
i wider
id – this
hi allowed
ll
d lilight
h
to bounce off the walls making it appear lighter
´ To help support the roofs
roofs, builders designed the
rib vault – they don’t carry the weight but channel
the stresses of its load down on the walls
´ To accommodate large crowds, builders added to
the east end of the building, called an ambulatory.
´
CHURCH PLAN
Churches were usually cruciform (cross
shaped), to recall the cross on which Jesus died
´ The long arm of the cross was made up of one
or more naves finishing in an apse . The shorter
arm is called the transept.
´
Apse
Crossing
Aisle
CHURCH PORTAL
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Achivolt: a series of concentric
moldings around an arch
Jamb: the side posts
Spandrel: a triangular space
enclosed by the curves of arches
Trumeau (plural: trumeaux): the
central pillar of a portal that
stabilizes the structure. It is often
elaboratelyy decorated
Tympanum (plural: tympana): a
rounded sculpture placed over the
p
portal
Voussoir : a wedge-shaped stone
that forms the curved part of a n
arch. The central voussoir is
called a keystone.
SCULPTURE & PAINTING
´
´
´
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Rigid and schematic
human figures
Figures outlined in black
and painted in bright
colors
colors.
No background
landscapes
landscapes.
Educational and
religious purpose: to
teach illiterate people
about Christianity.
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Figures adapted to the
space available.
Hierarchy of Scale:
Changing size of figures
- the most important
ones, were represented
as larger
Artists didn´t care about
realistic representations.
M
Most
common subjects:
bj
stories of the Bible and
danger of sins
12-2: RELIQUARY STATUE OF SAINTE-FOY,
Cue Card
LATE 10TH TO EARLY 11TH CENTURY
´
´
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´
Cult of Relics – The faithful believed
relics (bones,
(bones clothing,
clothing instruments
of martyrdom) had the power to heal
the body and soul
This image contained the skull of
Saint Faith - one of the most lavish
Romanesque reliquaries.
A monk from the abbey church at
stole the saint’s skull from a nearby
church around 880. The monks
justified the act as holy theft,
claiming the Saint wished to be
moved.
furta sacra – Latin for “holy theft”
12-5: St. Etienne, Vignory, France, 1050-1057
Radiating chapels
12-5: St. Sernin, Toulouse, France
Ca. 1070-1120
Compare with Saint-Etienne
•Pilgrimage church Charlemagne donated
relics to it
•Double side aisle
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•Pilgrimage church containing ambulatory around apse with radiating chapels for relics –
Charlemagne donated a quantity of relics to it – important stop to Santiago de
Compostela
•Barrel-vaulted interior with demarcated ribs; corresponding buttresses on the exterior
•Buttress strips on exterior mark the internal structure of the bays
•Double side aisles
•Square
Square schematism: a church plan in which the crossing square is used as a module
for all parts of the design-each nave bay ½ central square; each side aisle ¼ central
square
•Very dark, lacks a clerestory
SAINT SERNIN, TOULOUSE, FRANCE
NAVE
Groin
Vaults
AISLES
Tribune-a gallery over the inner aisle flanking the nave
Christ in Majesty, Saint-Sernin
Apostle
Angel
Mandorla – a large almond-shaped orb
around holy figures like Christ
Angel
Apostle
The vast tympanum that
crowns the south portal of
Saint Pierre depicts the
second Coming of Christ
as King and Judge of the
world in its last days, a
theme alreadyy alluded to
at Saint Genis-desFontaines.
As befits his majesty, the
enthroned Christ is at the
center, reflecting a
compositional rule
followed since Early
Christian times.
The signs of the Four
Evangelists flank him.
Tympanum of the south portal of Saint-Pierre, 1211: Moissac, France, marble, ca. 1115-1135
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Cloister: covered courtyard
in a monastery where monks and nuns
prayed and meditated in quiet seclusion.
Historiated (decorated with plants
plants, animals
animals, or
human figures) Bestiaries (real or imaginary
animals) capitals
Cloister of Saint-Pierre,
Moissac, France
Griffins
Christ in Majesty
with angels and
Twenty-Four Elders
Saint-Pierre,
Cue Card
Moissac, France.
Tympanum – rounded sculpture
placed over the portal
Lions and Old Testament prophet
(Jeremiah or Isaiah?)
Saint-Pierre, Moissac, France,
ca 1115
1130
ca.
1115-1130
Trumeau – central pillar that
stabilizes the structure, often
elaborately decorated
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The Cluniac bishop Etienne de Bage had
the cathedral built, and it was consecrated
in 1132.
Autun the Judgment is in progress
At Autun,
progress,
announced by four trumpet-blowing
angels.
In the typanum’s
yp
center, far large
g than any
y
other figure, is Christ, enthroned in a
mandorla angel support, dispassionately
presiding over the separation of the
Blessed from the Damned.
Damned
At the far left, an obliging angel boosts
one of the Blessed into the heavenly city.
Mandorla – a large almondshaped orb around holy
figures like Christ
Gislebertus, Last Judgment
(plaster cast),
cast) West tympanum
of Saint-Lazare, 12-1: Autun,
France, ca. 1120-1135, marble
approximately 21’ wide at base
Eve, N. Side
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GISLEBERTUS,
LAST JUDGMENT
Weighing of the souls
•Scene of the Last Judgment:
Jesus at the Second Coming, with
those saved on his right and those
damned on his left
•To enter the church, people walk
through the door on the right below
the scene of the condemned, and
exit out the door on the left where
the saved are depicted
•Figures are linear, twisting, and
writhing; they have an emaciated
appearance
•Souls are weighed to determine
the fate of the deceased-heavy
souls fall to hell, light souls rise to
heave; weighing souls is a tradition
that goes back to ancient Egypt
•Hierarch
Hierarch of scale ranks
importance of figures
•Horror of the evils of hell are
vividly contrasted with the sanctity
off the
th angles
l
12-14: Ascension of Christ and Mission of the
Apostles
La Madeleine, Vezelay, France
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Moralia in Job, Initial R with
knight fighting a dragon
•Ornamented initials
date to the Hiberno –
Saxon era
•The theme is
Romanesque – duel
between knight and
dragons symbolized
a monk’s
k’ spiritual
ii l
struggle
Christ
Ch
i t in
i Majesty,
M j t
Santa Maria de Mur,
Catalonia, Spain.
Fresco, 24’
24 high
Christ appears in a mandorla
between the four evangelists
12-19: MORGAN MADONNA , AUVERGNE, FRANCE
SECOND HALF OF 12TH CENTURY
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PAINTED WOOD
•
•
•
•
•
Throne of Wisdom – Mary
serves as the throne for Christ
Jesus' great wisdom is reflected
in his adult head, which
appears on a small person’s
body
Chambers in the back of the
two figures would have held
relics - functioned as a reliquary
They sit emotionless and erect
W d sculpture
Wooden
l t
att one ti
time
brilliantly painted
Speyer Cathedral
Compound piers –
piers with attached
columns
Groin vaults
Clerestory windows
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12-23: The Vision of Hildegard of Bingen
Detail of facsimile of a lost folio
in the Scivias by Hildegard of Bingen, from Trier
Bingen Germany
or Bingen,
ca. 1050-1079,
•Bingen s divine visions come from heaven
•Bingen’s
and pour down on her as if they were
flames
•She sits as an author portrait recording
her vision
•Her scribe, Volmar, waits by her side with
a book
•Heavy
Heavy black outline defines the forms
•Figures dominate architectural setting
•Expressive drapery folds indicate legs and
arms but little other body form
•Hildegard
Hild
d as patroness
t
off thi
this b
book
k
12-21: Sant’Ambrogio, Milan, Italy
Rib
Vaulting
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Regionalism - verticality
St. Sernin,
Toulouse, France
Speyer Cathedral
Germany
Sant’Ambrogio,
Milan, Italy
12-26: CATHEDRAL COMPLEX, PISA
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Incrustation –
wall decoration
consisting of
bright panels of
different colors
Baptistery
Cathedral
Bell
Tower
(Campanile
– bell tower,
(
p
using free standing)
12-26: CATHEDRAL COMPLEX, PISA
Baptistery
Cathedral
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•Arcades and blind arcades used on
façade
ç
•Separate campanile, famous for its
unintended lean
•Wooden roof over nave continues
tradition of Early Christian churches
•Groin vaults over side aisles
•Inspired by classical architecture in the
use of arches, columns, and capitals;
granite columns in nave taken from a
Roman temple in Elba
•Transept is actually a second basilica
with apse intersecting the nave at the
crossing
•Exterior marble facing typical of
Romanesque architecture in Tuscany
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Baptistery of San Giovanni
Giovanni, Florence
Marble inlay
SAN MINIATO AL MONTE
Diaphragm arches –
Arches built across a
nave or hall that
support walls rather
than vaults
Wiligelmo, 12:28: Creation of Adam and Eve, frieze on the west façade,
Modena Cathedral, Modena, Italy, ca. 1110, marble, approximately 3 ft. high
Cue Card
The segment shown illustrates the creation and temptation of Adam and Eve the theme
employed almost exactly a century earlier on Bishop Bernward’s bronze doors to Saint
Michael’s at Hildesheim.
Christ is at the far left
left, framed by a mandorla held up by angels-a
angels a variation on both the
motifs and the themes of the lintel at Saint Genis-des-Fontaines and the relief's of SaintSernin.
The creation of Adam, then Eve, and the serpent’s temptation of Eve are to the right.
Creation and temptation of Adam and Eve.
Modena Cathedral
Cue Card
•Composition inspired by
Early Christian sarcophagi
•Figures dominate
architectural settings;
narrative breaks the frame
•High
Hi h relief
li f
•Faithful enter the church
with the reminder of
Original
g
Sin,, which is the
fall of Adam and Eve and
the corresponding
redemption of humankind
through Christ’s sacrifice
•Inscription: “Among sculptors, your work shines
forth, Wiligelmo” illustrates the pride the donors felt
in having such a significant artist work for them
12-30: St. Etienne, Caen, France
Begun 1067
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•Façade looks forward to
verticalityy of Gothic; spires
p
are
a Gothic feature added later
•Originally had a timber roof,
replaced by sexpartite rib
vaults; added engage columns
•Piers are uniformly articulated
Rib vault
Division into 3’s
12-33: DURHAM CATHEDRAL,
ENGLAND, BEGUN CA. 1093
Ribbed
Ribb
d groin
i vault
l over 3
story nave
•First use of rib vaults
•English tradition: very long nave
•Abstract patterns on the piers
derived from metalwork form
Early Medieval art
•Alternating
Alternating rhythm of piers
•Slightly pointed arches
foreshadows the Gothic
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Interior arches
•Tapestry a misnomer; actually an embroidery
•Probably designed by a man; executed by women
•Commissioned by Bishop Odo, half-brother of William the Conqueror
Tells the story (in Latin) of William's conquest of England at the Battle of Hastings in
•Tells
1066
•Fanciful beasts in upper and lower registers
• Borders sometimes comment on the main scenes, or show scenes of everyday
y y life
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Funeral of Edward the Confessor, procession to Westminster Abbey
detail of the Bayeux Tapestry, 12-37: From Bayeux Cathedral, Bayeux,
France, ca. 1070-1080, embroidered wool on linen, 229 ft. 8 in. overall
Bayeux Tapestry
Funeral procession to Westminster Abbey
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Norman Cavalry Charging
Battle of Hastings
12-36: Eadwine ,
Psalter , ca. 1160-1170
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•Self portrait of one of the many of monks to
worked as scribes
•Architecturally sophisticated throne
•Dressed as a monk
•Right hand has paintbrush and left a scraper to
erase his errors
•Self-portrait
S lf
t it off one off many monks
k who
h
worked as a scribe on this Psalter; a generic
portrait rather than a realistic likeness; rare
Romanesque portrait
•Comparison with evangelist portraits of the
New Testament
•Dressed
Dressed as a monk with tonsured hair and
great swirling cape
•Enthroned on an architecturally sophisticated
throne
•Right hand holds a paintbrush, left hand holds
a scraper to erase errors on the page
SUMMARY
Rounded arches, piers, and heavy walls are
reflected in the Romanesque tradition
´ Romanesque builders enlarged the size of
buildings to support many Europeans of whom
were traveling on pilgrimages.
´ Sculpture was done around the main portals of
churches. Sculptors carved energetic and
elongated figures that often look flattened
against the surface of the stone.
´ Cathedrals were sources of civil pride, artistic
expression, and spiritual devotion.
´