ARTH-211 – History of World Art 1
Instructor: Ann Porter
Office: 304A
Phone: 642-6275
E-mail: AnnPorter@bhsu.edu
Notes for pages 512-551 Gothic Art of the 12th and 13th Century
Saint-Denis, page 517
Notre-Dame, page 518Chartres, pages 515, 518-528
Gargoyles at Notre Dame
http://www.raingod.com/angus/Gallery/Photos/Europe/France/Paris/images/NotreDameGargoyles01.jpg
http://www.intergate.com/~digital/l35f.JPG
Gargoyles originally functioned as down spouts to direct rainwater away from the masonry of medieval cathedrals. The sound
of water gurgling out of these sculptures led to the name "gargoyle." However, over the passage of time, it became a term used
to describe all the fantastic creatures of the Cathedral and even other grotesques from around the world. The medieval
imagination, being fertile, whimsical and attracted to the fantastic, was quick to transform them into marvelous sculptures
thought to ward off evil from the Cathedral. Some of the world's most famous gargoyles can be found at Notre Dame de Paris,
constructed in the 12th century. Many of its gargoyles were designed by Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc, entrusted in the
1840s with restoring the Cathedral to its original Gothic splendor following centuries of deterioration and neglect.
Stained Glass
Chartres Rose Window, page 529
St Lubin
http://www.kidcrosswords.com/kidreader/tower/stained_glass1.jpg
Last Supper
http://www.wf-f.org/WFFResource/Lastsupper-Chartres.jpg
Bishop
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.fll.vt.edu/French/paris_2002/chrt_win6.JPG&imgrefurl=http://ww
w.fll.vt.edu/French/paris_2002/photos1_paris2002.htm&h=480&w=640&sz=64&tbnid=VuTVJ2b_l6UJ:&tbnh=101&tbn
w=134&start=46&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dchartres%2Bstained%2Bglass%26start%3D40%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa
%3DN
Amiens, page 530-533
Sculpture, page 535, 545
Saint Francis Master—Assisi, Italy, page 550
Miracle of the Crib at Greccio c. 1295-1301/30
In memory of the birth of Christ at Bethlehem, Francis wanted to reproduce the scene. He asked that a crib be prepared, straw
fetched, and an ox and ass be brought to the crib. He then gave a sermon about the birth of the poor King. While he was in
prayer, a knight present for this ceremony saw the Infant Jesus come and take the place of the baby Francis had placed in the
crib.
The front plane is separated from the background by a marble wall (iconostasis), surmounted by a pulpit on the left. In the rear
part of the church there is a suspended cross. Through the door of the iconostasis several women enter the presbytery: they want
to take part in the festivity of the crib wanted by Saint Francis, but the lectern, standing between them and the Saint, prevents
them from following the ceremony.
Francis, wearing the deacon’s dress, is turned to the right , kneeling in front of a crib; he is holding the Child wrapped up in
swaddling clothes; also an ox and a donkey are present, even if very small: they are lying in front of the crib.
In the presbytery on the right side of the scene, under a little niche similar to a ciborium, a priest is celebrating the Holy Mass.
The celebrant and a few friars, gathered around him, are looking at Francis, while singing at the top of their voices.
The left side of the picture is taken up by men with hats on, dressed in a very distinguished manner, and by singing friars.
http://www.sanfrancescoassisi.org/index.php?dir=arte&subdir=ciclostoriesf&lang=eng&url=index.php&paramid=13
Social & Political Changes
The Bright Side of the Black Death
In the early 1330s an outbreak of deadly bubonic plague occurred in China. Plague mainly affects rodents, but fleas can
transmit the disease to people. Once people are infected, they infect others very rapidly. Plague causes fever and a painful
swelling of the lymph glands called buboes, which is how it gets its name. The disease also causes spots on the skin that are
red at first and then turn black.
Since China was one of the busiest of the world's trading nations, it was only a matter of time before the outbreak of plague in
China spread to western Asia and Europe. In October of 1347, several Italian merchant ships returned from a trip to the Black
Sea, one of the key links in trade with China. When the ships docked in Sicily, many of those on board were already dying of
plague. Within days the disease spread to the city and the surrounding countryside. An eyewitness tells what happened:
"Realizing what a deadly disaster had come to them, the people quickly drove the Italians from their city. But the disease
remained, and soon death was everywhere. Fathers abandoned their sick sons. Lawyers refused to come and make out wills for
the dying. Friars and nuns were left to care for the sick, and monasteries and convents were soon deserted, as they were
stricken, too. Bodies were left in empty houses, and there was no one to give them a Christian burial."
The disease struck and killed people with terrible speed. The Italian writer Boccaccio said its victims often
"ate lunch with their friends and dinner with their ancestors in paradise."
By the following August, the plague had spread as far north as England, where people called it "The Black Death" because of
the black spots it produced on the skin. A terrible killer was loose across Europe, and Medieval medicine had nothing to
combat it.
In winter the disease seemed to disappear, but only because fleas--which were now helping to carry it from person to person-are dormant then. Each spring, the plague attacked again, killing new victims. After five years 25 million people were dead-one-third of Europe's people.
Even when the worst was over, smaller outbreaks continued, not just for years, but for centuries. The survivors lived in
constant fear of the plague's return, and the disease did not disappear until the 1600s.
Medieval society never recovered from the results of the plague. So many people had died that there were serious labor
shortages all over Europe. This led workers to demand higher wages, but landlords refused those demands. By the end of the
1300s peasant revolts broke out in England, France, Belgium and Italy.
The disease took its toll on the church as well. People throughout Christendom had prayed devoutly for deliverance from the
plague. Why hadn't those prayers been answered? A new period of political turmoil and philosophical questioning lay ahead.
Estimated population of Europe from 1000 to 1352.
1000 38 million
1100 48 million
1200 59 million
1300 70 million
1347 75 million
1352 50 million
25 million people died in just under five years between 1347 and 1352.
http://www.byu.edu/ipt/projects/middleages/LifeTimes/Plague.html
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Bibliography:
Camille, Gothic Art—Glorious Visions, Abrams
Cheam, Great Cathedrals; Camden
Text
Art to remember for Exam:
Chartres Cathedral 16-8
The Rose of France, 16-14
Amiens Cathedral, 16-20
Miracle of the Crib, 16-44
Vocabulary to remember for Exam: Flying Buttress, Clerestory, Aspidal Chapels, Choir,
Nave, Came
ESSAY QUESTION FOR EXAM 9:45 AM THURSDAY 12/18:
Describe in detail the style used in Giotto’s Lamentation. After a brief paragraph on where and
how the painting was made, you should address three basic issues in this discussion of style: the
balance between naturalism and abstraction, the treatment of the human figure and how the
emotional content of the scene influences the choice and position of compositional elements. In
conclusion, touch briefly on how these elements embody Giotto’s departure from past work by
other painters.
Introduction
Naturalism/Abstraction
Human Figure
Composition
Conclusion
5 Points
10 Points
10 Points
10 Points
5 Points