Roman
Roman CHAPTER 2
Roman
Roman CHAPTER 2
1
Relics and pilgrimages
From the Romanesque era onwards, it was important to have relics.

Pilgrims would walk many miles to see them or touch them. They hoped to see a miracle!

 

Architecture therefore had to adjust to this. For example, it was necessary to enlarge buildings to make room for all these new visitors.

 

This new type of building was spread through:

 

  • Networks between the monasteries, enabling them to exchange ideas
  • Architects travelling from city to city
Present-day facade of Sainte-Foy de Conques church
« It was as though the whole world put on a white coat of churches. »
Raoul Glaber
(11th century)
In a nutshell

In the 11th and 12th centuries, religious buildings were enlarged to make room for pilgrims who came to see the relics.

2
Romanesque architecture

How do you build a Romanesque church? Here is the method, which would have been adjusted to suit each region.

  1. Build it in stone, following a “basilica-type” plan (following an ancient model)
  2. Place the relics in the choir stalls (the most sacred area)
  3. Create “barrel” vaulted ceilings, with rounded arches (in a semicircle)
  4. Be careful, they are heavy and may push the walls apart. To avoid this, walls should be thick, with buttresses, and windows should be narrow
  5. Decorate them with wall paint and sculptures
Cross-section of Conques church
Conques Abbey, around 1041-12th century, Conques. Photo: Claude Valette, CC BY-ND 2.0

Basilica of Saint Mary Magdalen of Vézelay. 1120-1150, Vézelay. Photo: DKrieger, CC BY-SA 3.0
Basilica of Saint-Sermin around 1071-13th century, Toulouse. Photo: Patrice Bon, CC0 1.0

In a nutshell

Romanesque architecture has several characteristics: rounded arches, thick walls, narrow windows, painted decorations and sculptures.

3
The Cluniacs and the Cistercians

Not everyone followed these methods for building Romanesque architecture.

 
There were even two radically different movements.

The order of Cluny

 

On the one side, the Cluny religious order had big dreams for their buildings! They decorated many of them in rich, luxurious style. The Cluny church that they built is 190 metres long and would remain the largest in Europe for five centuries.

Cluny Abbey (reconstitution after its destruction during the Revolutionary period)
Photo: Juan Seguí Moreno, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Cloister, Saint Peter’s Abbey, Moissac.
Photo: Margaret Leighton, CC BY-NC 2.0

The Cistercian order

 

On the other side, the Cistercians could not stand decorations and colour. Their motto was soberness and simplicity.

Cloister of Fontenay Abbey
Photo: Flamoroux, CC BY-SA 2.0
Sciptorium, Fontenay Abbey
Photo: Jean-Christophe BENOIST, CC BY-SA 3.0
In a nutshell

The Cluny religious order loved decadent architecture, whilst the Citeaux order advocated for a plain and simple style.

4
Romanesque art

Of course, Romanesque art is not just a matter of architecture. The following is a brief summary of practice at the time.

  • Embroidery
  • Sculpture, often linked with spandrels (on the face of the church) or the heads of the columns. Sculpture was prolific and every frame was full of it, with no empty spaces! The characters were stiff and immobile.
  • Illuminated manuscripts
  • Precious gold and silver items (metalworking) and ivory pieces.
Scenes from the Bayeux Tapestry,
An 11th century tapestry measuring 20 inches x 224 feet, Bayeux Tapestry Museum, Bayeux. Photo: David Brossard, CC BY S-A 2.0
Tympanum of the Last Judgment,
towards 1107-1125, Conques Abbey, Conques, 11’9” x 12’2”. Photo: Titanet, CC BY S-A 3.0
Virgin and Child
12th century, Basilica of Our Lady, Orcival. Photo: Nastytroll, CC BY S-A 3.0
Initial of the letter ‘C’ featuring a hare playing an instrument
around 1220, illumination, Bibliothèque Les Champs Libres, Rennes. Photo: Bibliothèque Les Champs Libres, CC BY S-A 2.0
Carved Oliphant: this wind instrument was used to sound the alert,
13th century, elephant tusk, 25 x 5 inches, Cluny Museum – National Museum of the Middle Ages, Paris. Photo: Charlyne, CC BY 2.0
In a nutshell

Romanesque art is also found in embroidery, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts, metalwork and ivory.

5
Secular art and religious art

During the Middle Ages, religion was part of daily life. It’s not surprising to see a lot of sacred works, created for the glory of God!

Tympanum over the Miègeville Gate, The Ascension of Christ,
Basilica of Saint-Semin, Toulouse. Photo: PierreSelim, CC0

But “secular” art, meaning non-religious, also existed. We generally find it in properties belonging to rich lords…

 

…for instance, this scene of courtly love. 

 

The boundary between the two is sometimes unclear. This is illustrated by the Bayeux tapestry, which has a military theme, but installed in a church. As for the Lords, they had no hesitation in funding religious works to demonstrate their riches and power.

Grand Heidelberg Song manuscript known as the Manesse Codex
1300-1340, Heidelberg University Library, Zurich. Photo: Heidelberg University, CC0
In a nutshell

Sacred works of art are created for the glory of God, unlike secular art.

6
Enamel work

There was one type of artwork that was snapped up in the Middle Ages, whether or not it was religious: luxury metalwork. This was convenient, since the artists were excellent metalworkers at the time. In fact, they perfected a technique: enamel work.

  1. Powdered glass was coloured using metal oxides such as copper and iron.
  2. The mixture was applied to a gold, silver or copper base.
  3. And then it was put straight into the oven! The result was an enamel permanently attached to its base.
Screenshot of the video The enameling technique used by Vacheron Constantin for arts and crafts,
2014, via the Perpetuelle YouTube Channel
Plique Enamel, Paris
1300, cloisonne enamel, Cluny Museum – National Museum of the Middle Ages, Paris
Binding plate, Spain or Limoges,
12th century, cloisonne enamel and champleve enamel, 9.3 x 5 inches, Cluny Museum – National Museum of the Middle Ages, Paris. Photo: Spencer Means, CC BY-SA 2.0
Screenshot of the video How to create champleve enamel,
2009, shot by the Victoria and Albert Museum via the Victoria and Albert Museum YouTube channel
One of the many reliquaries made to house the relics of Saint Thomas Becket,
Late 12th – early 13th century, enameled copper using the champleve technique, 6.25 x 5.5 inches, Cluny Museum – National Museum of the Middle Ages, Paris
Ciborium by Master Alpaïs, Montmajour,
1200, gilded copper, champleve enamel, glass cabochons, Louvre Museum, Paris. Photo: World Imaging, CC BY-SA 3.0
In a nutshell

The metalworkers of the Middle Ages improved enamelling techniques (coloured glass powder set on a metal base).

7
Opening to the world

To make all these objects, the people had no choice but to bring raw materials from all over the world. This is enough to challenge the preconceived idea that people in the Middle Ages were inward-looking.

  • Spices would come from India
  • Ivory and gold would come mainly from East Africa
  • Lapis-lazuli would come from Afghanistan
  • Wood and furs would come from North Europe and Russia
  • Silk would come from China
  • Incense that was used in churches would come from the Middle East
Vase said to have belonged to Eleanor of Aquitaine,
between the sixth and 12th centuries, silver, rock crystal, champleve enamel, gold, niello, pearl, precious stones, 13.26 x 6 inches, Louvre Museum, Paris. Photo: © RMN-Grand Palais (Louvre Museum) / Daniel Arnaudet

In fact, there was a lot of travel during the Middle Ages, for various reasons: trade, pilgrimages, or war. The Crusades, for example, were an attempt to conquer the holy city of Jerusalem. Islamic artworks, whether acquired by peaceful means or not, were frequently encountered in the Mediaeval Western world!

In a nutshell

People and goods travelled a lot more than we think during the Middle Ages.

In summary, you have discovered:

  • Relics and pilgrimages
  • Romanesque architecture
  • The Cluniacs and the Cistercians
  • Romanesque art
  • Secular art and religious art
  • Enamel work
  • Opening to the world
To train

Relics are …

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A medieval religious order decorated its buildings in great luxury. Which one?

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What is mixed with glass paste to obtain enamel?

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