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Art of the Middle Ages,
550-1450, was complex
and intriguing, fraught
with religious fervor
and symbolism. The
Catholic Church, the all
powerful institution of
the time, commissioned
Biblically themed
art-works such as
paintings, sculptures,
architecture and
illuminated manuscripts.
Stories of the Bible
were told and retold
continuously--painted,
sermonized, allegorized,
embellished, creating a
convincing and
mysterious faith.
In a society of limited
literacy, constant
outbreaks of black
death, smallpox,
leprosy, and the ever
present threat of
famine, art was a true
sanctuary. Paintings
were darkly mystical,
infused with an ethereal
emotional intensity. The
mysticism of the Middle
Ages imparts a sense of
uniqueness and wonder to
art. Painters from this
time period had a taste
for the poetic and their
use of symbols are
secretive hints and
glances into the
mysterious religious
world that lies behind
the dark reality of the
times. As time went on
the style of painting
was a reflection of the
transformation that was
taking place in Europe,
the change from the
feudal system to a more
enlightened society.
Manuscript illumination
offers some of the
greatest examples of
Biblically themed
paintings. These early
masterworks were created
in monasteries by pious
monks. The room in the
monastery where
illuminators worked was
called a scriptorium.
According to Medieval
historian John William
Bradley, "In the sixth
century the monasteries,
such as they were,
necessarily kept
themselves very quiet
and unobtrusive. They
were situated usually in
out-of-the-way corners,
solitudes apart from
civilization, or, at
least, apart from the
busy haunts of men. "
According to art
historian Clara Erskine
Clement "The Middle Ages
extend from the latter
part of the fifth
century to the time of
the Renaissance, or
about the fifteenth
century. The painting of
this period has little
to attract attention if
regarded only from an
artistic stand-point,
for we may truly say
that, comparing it with
the Greek art which had
preceded it, or with the
Italian art which
followed it, that of the
Middle Ages had no claim
to the beautiful. On the
other hand, it is full
of interest to students,
because it has its part
in the history of art;
therefore I shall give a
mere outline of it, so
that this link in the
chain which unites
ancient and modern
painting may not be
entirely wanting in our
book.
Early mediæval painting,
down to about a.d. 950,
consists principally of
paintings in
burial-places, mosaics
(usually in churches),
and of miniatures, or
the illustration and
illumination of MSS.,
which were the books of
that time, and were
almost without exception
religious writings. This
period is called the
Early Period of the
Middle Ages, and the
pictures are often
called the works of
Early Christian Art."
With the triumph of
Christianity, artists
aspired to reawaken the
divine spirit of holy
figures rather than
depict their physical
qualities. Their unique
style is a combination
of frontal simplicity,
truth to nature,
harmonious unity
together with precision
in details. The use of
costly materials such as
gold, precious stones
and ivory indicates the
degree of wealth that
was common during this
period, and attests to
the sophistication of
the culture. "
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