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Medieval Christian Religion and Art

by María Elvira Mocholí Martínez

Religions 2024, 15(3), 298; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15030298 - 28 Feb 2024

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Abstract

The Middle Ages was the period in which most of the iconographic types of the Christian tradition were formed and solidified [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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20 pages, 7366 KiB

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Between Scriptura et Pictura: Meditation on the Domus Dei and the Devotion of the Holy House of Mary

by Denise Fallena

Religions 2024, 15(2), 183; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15020183 - 31 Jan 2024

Viewed by 914

Abstract

This article examines the representation and significance of the Holy House of Mary as a metaphor for the domus Dei in the initial letters of a 13th-century Book of Hours (Brailes Hours BL MS Add. 49999) using hermeneutics, visual studies, and anthropology of [...] Read more.

This article examines the representation and significance of the Holy House of Mary as a metaphor for the domus Dei in the initial letters of a 13th-century Book of Hours (Brailes Hours BL MS Add. 49999) using hermeneutics, visual studies, and anthropology of art methodologies. The manuscript delves into the theological implications of the doctrine of the Incarnation and the virginal divine motherhood of Mary depicted in these images. Additionally, it explores the connection between these representations and the devotion to the Holy House of Nazareth and its replica in the sanctuary of Our Lady of Walsingham, recognized as a sacred pilgrimage site. To conduct this analysis, the article considers the figures of the Holy House depicted on pilgrim badges and religious jewels. Specifically, it focuses on the Hylle jewel, whose effectiveness, attributed to its form and materiality, symbolized the aurea palatium Dei. Full article

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15 pages, 8336 KiB

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Visual Traditions in the Formation of the Iconographic Types of the Investiture and Triumph of Patriarch Joseph

by María Ángeles Martí Bonafé

Religions 2024, 15(1), 86; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15010086 - 10 Jan 2024

Viewed by 984

Abstract

The story of the patriarch Joseph is a very recurring theme in medieval visual artistic Christian tradition. Joseph, Jacob’s beloved son, is a prefiguration of Christ. The story in Genesis 41, 37–44 fosters the creation of two iconographic types: Joseph’s investiture and Joseph [...] Read more.

The story of the patriarch Joseph is a very recurring theme in medieval visual artistic Christian tradition. Joseph, Jacob’s beloved son, is a prefiguration of Christ. The story in Genesis 41, 37–44 fosters the creation of two iconographic types: Joseph’s investiture and Joseph on the Pharaoh’s chariot. The narrative places patriarch Joseph in the court of the Pharaoh of Egypt. However, Christian visuality was created according to the iconic criteria for the representation of political power, contemporary to the configuration of both iconographic types. The aim of this paper is to study the visual mechanisms used in the iconic configuration of the iconographic types of Joseph’s investiture and Joseph on the Pharaoh’s chariot, when the monarch bestows upon Joseph the privilege of his trust. The iconographic analysis of some early and medieval examples of the artistic visuality of Joseph’s story, in Eastern and Western traditions, confirms that they refer back to late ancient and medieval Byzantine tradition. Likewise, it was detected that the resources used in the visual configuration of both iconographic types are linked to the conventionalised mechanisms of the symbolic construction of power. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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14 pages, 8737 KiB

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Chastity in Temperance’s Images

by María Montesinos Castañeda

Religions 2023, 14(11), 1409; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14111409 - 10 Nov 2023

Viewed by 1146

Abstract

Ancient thinking conceived Temperance as the enemy of pleasures and excesses, mainly bodily pleasures. This idea was the source of Temperance’s depictions in the Middle Ages. Attributes such as the torch and jug, castle, tower, bit, salamander, ermine, or the presence of Cupid [...] Read more.

Ancient thinking conceived Temperance as the enemy of pleasures and excesses, mainly bodily pleasures. This idea was the source of Temperance’s depictions in the Middle Ages. Attributes such as the torch and jug, castle, tower, bit, salamander, ermine, or the presence of Cupid accompany Temperance’s personification as controlling elements of bodily pleasures. The combinations of attributes relative to chastity give rise to two different iconographic types. These iconographic types translate theoretical considerations about this virtue visually. Full article

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15 pages, 3286 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Saint Dionysius and Saint Margaret Altarpiece from the Cathedral of València

by Lluis Ramón i Ferrer

Religions 2023, 14(1), 77; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14010077 - 5 Jan 2023

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Abstract

This work studies the iconography of Vicent Macip’s altarpiece dedicated to Saint Dionysius and Saint Margaret, which is found in the Cathedral of València. The main subject of the altarpiece is the presence of the Virgin Mary in salvation history. Iconographic categories have [...] Read more.

This work studies the iconography of Vicent Macip’s altarpiece dedicated to Saint Dionysius and Saint Margaret, which is found in the Cathedral of València. The main subject of the altarpiece is the presence of the Virgin Mary in salvation history. Iconographic categories have been described according to their possible relationship to the descriptions that appear in Francesc Eiximenis’s Vida de Jesucrist [Life of Jesus Christ, in Catalan] (Hereafter, this text will be referred to as VCE). or Isabel de Villena’s Vita Christi [Life of Christ, in Latin] (Hereafter, this text will be referred to as VCV), which are important works of 15th-century Valencian literature in the Catalan language that were read during the time the altarpiece was finished. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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29 pages, 19863 KiB

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The Woman and the Dragon—The Formation of the Image of the Mulier Amicta Sole in the Revelation of St. John in Western Medieval Art

by Sergi Doménech García

Religions 2023, 14(1), 18; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14010018 - 22 Dec 2022

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Abstract

This article aims to study the visual tradition of the Woman Clothed with the Sun from chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation in medieval times, in particular the formation, continuity and variations of the various iconographic types. For this purpose, we firstly [...] Read more.

This article aims to study the visual tradition of the Woman Clothed with the Sun from chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation in medieval times, in particular the formation, continuity and variations of the various iconographic types. For this purpose, we firstly approach the main sources, both the Book of Revelation and the exegesis or interpretation of the Church Fathers. Secondly, we analyse the first preserved representations (ninth to twelfth centuries) that correspond to examples of the Italian and French tradition and the Beatus from the Iberian tradition, works that, most likely, followed original models from the first centuries of Christianity that have now disappeared. This section is followed by the study of representations from between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries and the importance of the Anglo-Norman Apocalypses. The article closes with an iconological section in which the importance of the mulier as an ecclesiological symbol and, subsequently, its Marian interpretation is pointed out. Full article

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28 pages, 10308 KiB

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The Iconographic Type of the Coronation of the Virgin in the Renaissance Italian Painting in the Light of the Medieval Theology

by José María Salvador-González

Religions 2022, 13(12), 1145; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13121145 - 24 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3552

Abstract

This article highlights the artistic and conceptual relevance of the iconographic type of the Coronation of Mary in Italy during the Late Middle Ages and Early Modernity. We have analyzed 14 Italian Renaissance paintings, aiming to discover the possible doctrinal sources that inspire [...] Read more.

This article highlights the artistic and conceptual relevance of the iconographic type of the Coronation of Mary in Italy during the Late Middle Ages and Early Modernity. We have analyzed 14 Italian Renaissance paintings, aiming to discover the possible doctrinal sources that inspire them. From a conceptual perspective, we have specified that the iconography of The Coronation of the Virgin in Italy is directly inspired by the comments of some Church Fathers and medieval theologians and hymnographers. From the formal perspective, we discover that three different iconographyc types complement each other as progressively more complex variants of a similar basic structure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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23 pages, 6966 KiB

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Virgin Mary as the “Gate of Heaven” with Angelic Musicians in the Doorway of the Apostles at the Cathedral of Valencia

by Montiel Seguí

Religions 2022, 13(11), 1098; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13111098 - 14 Nov 2022

Viewed by 2074

Abstract

The Door of the Apostles at the Cathedral of Valencia stands as a treasure of sacred Gothic architecture and sculpture. A modification to its original structure in 1599 removed the mullion and the stone image of the Virgin that is to be found [...] Read more.

The Door of the Apostles at the Cathedral of Valencia stands as a treasure of sacred Gothic architecture and sculpture. A modification to its original structure in 1599 removed the mullion and the stone image of the Virgin that is to be found today in the tympanum. However, regardless of her location, Mary Mater Dei presided over everything that was happening in the doorway. She guided those who crossed the temple’s threshold, placed as she was on the mullion so as to appear as a Porta Coeli. In addition, she was the conductor of the characters on the door such as apostles, prophets, patriarchs, virgins and angelic sonadors (sound-makers). The latter appeared playing various instruments from both profane and sacred medieval traditions. Their location in the tympanum, playing a role in the meaning of the message, showed the importance of music as a vehicle for conveying the revelation of the Incarnation of Christ. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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28 pages, 13439 KiB

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The Demons of Judas and Mary Magdalene in Medieval Art

by Elena Monzón Pertejo and Victoria Bernad López

Religions 2022, 13(11), 1048; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13111048 - 2 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 9698

Abstract

There are few specific studies on the demonic possession of Judas and Mary Magdalene, especially as regards the representation of these demons in medieval art. This article analyses the matter in order to subsequently carry out a comparative analysis of the two characters [...] Read more.

There are few specific studies on the demonic possession of Judas and Mary Magdalene, especially as regards the representation of these demons in medieval art. This article analyses the matter in order to subsequently carry out a comparative analysis of the two characters and thus respond to both the general and specific objectives put forward: the reason for the difference in quantity in the representations of Judas with his demons compared to Magdalena; the type of demons represented; their possible meanings; and some considerations related to gender issues. The analysis has been carried out with a cultural perspective, comparing images with texts, as well as putting these materials into context. Taking all of this into account, it is shown that the main cause behind the quantitative difference in the images of the two characters lies in their subsequent fates: Magdalene, exorcised, becomes an example of repentance, confession, and penance for the faithful, whereas Judas is condemned and never abandoned by the devil. The reason for the choice of Judas and Mary Magdalene is that they are two of the most important characters in the New Testament to have suffered from demonic possession, though there are also depictions of different exorcisms performed by Jesus. Furthermore, the antagonism of these characters forms a key feature in both art and religion in the medieval West, as demonstrated at the end of this article. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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16 pages, 8277 KiB

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Civic Pride and Political Devotion: The Relics of Thomas Becket in Siena

by Cecilia Mazzocchio

Religions 2022, 13(11), 1010; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13111010 - 25 Oct 2022

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Abstract

Through a survey of archival and primary source material, this article discusses the existence of St. Thomas Becket’s relics in Siena cathedral. The institution’s inventories indicate that, from 1482 until ca. 1529, the relics were housed in an ostensory kept in the sacristy. [...] Read more.

Through a survey of archival and primary source material, this article discusses the existence of St. Thomas Becket’s relics in Siena cathedral. The institution’s inventories indicate that, from 1482 until ca. 1529, the relics were housed in an ostensory kept in the sacristy. Today, this object is displayed in the Sala del Tesoro, in the Museum of the Opera del Duomo in Siena. Although the ostensory has been examined in previous scholarship concerned with mapping the cathedral’s heritage, its function as a vessel for the relics of Thomas Becket, and indeed the very presence of these relics in Siena, remain unexplored. Thus, seeking to understand the nature of Becket’s reception in Siena, I examine the whereabouts of his relics within the cathedral, to then widen the investigation to the city at large. The evidence shows that although there were no chapels, altars or churches dedicated to Thomas Becket within the city walls, Siena still engaged with Becket’s sainthood and legacy on multiple levels. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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27 pages, 3988 KiB

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Vincent Ferrer’s Vision: Oral Traditions, Texts and Imagery

by Óscar Calvé Mascarell

Religions 2022, 13(10), 940; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13100940 - 9 Oct 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2787

Abstract

All stories vary depending on the channel through which they are presented. In the Late Middle Ages, the transmission of a single fact or event differed significantly according to the means of communication. Since at least 1408, Dominican preacher Saint Vincent Ferrer (c. [...] Read more.

All stories vary depending on the channel through which they are presented. In the Late Middle Ages, the transmission of a single fact or event differed significantly according to the means of communication. Since at least 1408, Dominican preacher Saint Vincent Ferrer (c. 1350–1419) used to talk, in some sermons, about the vision experienced by a nameless friar who, being healed in extremis by Christ, preached the arrival of Antichrist afterward. In 1412, Ferrer wrote a letter addressed to pope Benedict XIII including the story of this ecstasy, though with some changes. In 1429, in the parish church of Santa Maria Assunta (frazione Stella, Macello, Piedmont) the earliest depiction of this legendary episode was made. Ferrer was explicitly identified for the first time as the unknown friar mentioned in his sermons from 1408. Extraordinarily, a picture of the friar’s figure appeared beside a literal copy of some passages from Ferrer’s letter to Benedict XIII, incorporated in the same frescoes. This rich documentation reveals the importance of interactions between sermons, texts and images in shaping the narrative of Vincent Ferrer’s vision and its later memory. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Medieval Christian Religion and Art)

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