Tag: Reims

Hurault Gospels | Art for Christmas 1C

John 1:1 In principio erat Verbum et Verbum erat apud Deum et Deus erat Verbum.

Hurault Gospels
Hurault Gospels
Portrait of Saint Jean and beginning of his Gospel
Reims, 2nd quarter of the 9th century
Bibliothèque nationale de France, manuscripts, Latin fol 265. 176-177
school of the Palace of Charlemagne
attributed to Greek artists of North Italy.
Click image for more information.

______________
Commentary by Hovak Najarian

 

Portrait of Saint Jean (John) and the Beginning of His Gospel, 9th Century, Illuminated Manuscript, Monastery at Reims, France

In the fifth century, Rome was sacked by Visigoths and Vandals, and threatened by Huns; it was conquered finally in AD 476 by Odoacer, a barbarian from a Germanic tribe.  The eastern portion of the Roman Empire remained free from invasion, however, and its culture continued.  Europe, on the other hand, faced very troubled times.  By the ninth century, Latin was being lost as a unifying common language and literacy had declined greatly.  Greek and Roman culture was almost forgotten.  Small kingdoms and tribes fought to control their territories and the Church tried to hold on to its power and influence.  During these unstable times, monasteries were places where literature, knowledge and Christian history was preserved.  They were centers of learning.

In the eighth century, Charles I – a Frank known as Charlemagne – fought numerous wars, formed an empire, and was determined to re-establish literacy and culture among his people.  Art played a key role in the renaissance he had in mind.  Under Charlemagne, copying and originating illuminated manuscripts was a priority and at the monastery in Reims, under Archbishop Ebbo’s direction, gospel books such as “Saint   John” were made.  The portrait of John depicted at the front of his book shows him looking out at the viewer; his seated position is a much repeated pose copied from Byzantine sources.  Although a quill and scroll are being held to indicate he is the writer of the gospel that bears his name, an eagle, the animal associated with him and included usually as an identifying feature, is missing.  The Latin text starts with the very large decorative first letter “I” and to its right the letter “N.”  The letter “N” also is large but almost hidden beneath its embellishment.  Though spaced apart, the two letters spell the word “IN” which begins the introductory words of John’s Gospel; “IN PRINCIPIO ERAT VERBUM” (“In the beginning was the word”).  The lacy designs, vines, and animal decorative work of the middle ages are not from Greek or Roman sources but the result of the assimilation of images brought into Europe by barbarian tribes.

Note

Making books at a monastery required a team of artists with specialized skills; these included not only calligraphers and painters but also people who prepared vellum, ground pigment, mixed inks, and bound books,  Often goldsmiths were employed to create a book’s cover and embellish it with precious jewels.

The city of Byzantium was founded by Greeks in the fifth century BC and named after their king, Byzas.  When the Roman Emperor Constantine moved his capital east to Byzantium in AD 330, the city was renamed Constantinople (now called Istanbul).  The eastern portion of the Roman Empire was not called the “Byzantine Empire” during its time.  Historians of the sixteenth century were responsible for that designation.

Hovak Najarian © 2012

Visitation Group | Art for Advent 4C

Luke 1:39-40 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.

Visitation Group
Visitation Group
1211-25
Stone
Cathedral, Reims
GOTHIC SCULPTOR, French
(active c. 1211-1225)
Click image for more information.

______________
Commentary by Hovak Najarian

Annunciation and Visitation (Jamb Figures of the Central Portal), Stone, c. 1225-1245, Unknown Sculptors, Cathedral of Notre Dame de Reims, France

During the Gothic Period (the late middle ages) churches increased greatly in size.  Stained glass and sculpture was used extensively and the three west facing entrances (portals) were enriched with statues and ornamentation.  The central portal was always the largest and all three were recessed.  The placement of relief sculpture on the jambs (columns that support the arch over the portals) began during the Romanesque period and the tradition continued in Gothic cathedrals.  As people entered a church they walked past a receiving line of larger than life stone figures that depicted saints, church dignitaries, and heavenly beings.  On the right side of the central portal of the cathedral at Reims the Archangel Gabriel is standing next to Mary; bringing news that she is to be the mother of Christ.  To their right, two pregnant women, Elizabeth and Mary are visiting.

At first, portal figures were carved out of the same stone as the jambs.  These figures called statue columns have almost no form to their bodies and   their robes hang as though they are covering a post.  Changes took place during the “High Gothic” period, however, and at Reims, the figures have discernable human forms; their facial expressions communicate feelings.  Archangel Gabriel’s head is tilted toward Mary and there is a smile on his face.  Mary’s face suggests she is thinking about all that is to come in the future.  Parts of some of the arms have broken but it can be seen that gestures are being used to convey meaning.  This also was a time when liberation of sculpture from the wall was taking place.  Although at Reims the figures are still in relief, they are in “high relief” and almost free from the column.  Reims Cathedral was started in the early thirteenth century and work on it continued until the early Renaissance in the fifteenth century.

Note

The term “Gothic” (in the manner of the Goths) was not in use during the “Gothic Period.”  This term began to be used during the Renaissance.  The tribes that sacked Rome – the Goths – were regarded to be barbaric and uncultured.  Thus the term, “Gothic,” in reference to the time period when cathedrals were built, was intended as a derogatory term.  From the viewpoint of a Renaissance classicist, the cathedrals were monstrous, disorderly, and barbarous in form.

All large churches are not cathedrals.  The term for a bishop’s throne is “cathedra,” therefore, the bishop’s church, the church in which the bishop’s chair is located, is called a “cathedral.”  One of the largest churches in the world, St. Peter’s in Rome is not a cathedral.  St. John Lateran’s Basilica is the Cathedral of the Diocese of Rome.

Many cathedrals are laid out to have an east-west axis; the facade and portals facing west and the altar facing east.  Inside the church, a congregation faces the direction of the sunrise which is associated with Christ’s ascension.  Even in churches where the axis is not in an east-west direction the altar end often is referred to as being “East.”

Hovak Najarian © 2012