France: Castles and Chivalry Exam 2

Marraine

godmother in French

Parrain

godfather in French

Ciborium

a term applied to both a liturgical vessel used for holding the consecrated Host and an altar canopy supported on columns. In ecclesiastical architecture, a ciborium is a canopy or covering supported by columns, freestanding in the sanctuary that covers the altar in a basilica or other church. 

Canopy of honor

a paneled canopy above an altar or crucifix.  In art, a canopy of honor is usually depicted to stress the social status of an individual. 

Pleurant

a weeping figure with face traditionally covered by a veil, most common in French tomb sculpture.

Freestanding

not supported by another structure.  Not relying on or linked to anything else; independent

Pendants

paired imagery, either portraits or statues

Gisant

a recumbent sculpture of a deceased person shown usually with arms crossed over the chest

Seraphim

An angelic being, regarded in traditional Christian angelology as belonging to the highest order of the nine-fold celestial hierarchy, associated with light, ardor, and purity.  Seraphim (singular “Seraph”), the highest angelic class and serve as the caretakers of God’s throne and continuously shout praises: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” According to Isaiah 6:2, the Seraphim have six wings: “with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.”

Cherubim

is a type of spiritual being mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and cited later on in the Christian Biblical Canons, usually associated with the presence of God. The plural can be written as cherubim or cherubs. 

Instruments of passion (long)

(also known as Arma Christi “Weapons of Christ”), or the Instruments of the Passion, are the objects associated with Jesus' Passion in Christian symbolism and art.  The instruments of the passion include among others: veil of Veronica, column of the flagellation, nails, lance, crown of thorns, sponge, reed, scepter, pincers, ladder, etc.

Ecclesia

Latin word for Church as a contrast to the Synagogue

Anastasis

Descent to Limbo: Resurrected Christ descent to the Underworld to rescue the souls of the departed Just or Righteous – i,e. Adam and Eve, Hebrew patriarchs and matriarchs

Orans Figure

figure represented in the act of praying with hands depicted either outstretched or clasped together 

Genre

a category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject matter. In art, it refers to a scene of everyday life.  

Historiated initial

is an enlarged letter at the beginning of a paragraph or other section of text, which contains a picture. 

Inhabited Initial

contains figures (human or animal) that are decorative only, without forming a subject as in the case of an historiated initial. Both sorts became very common and elaborate in luxury illuminated manuscripts.

Historiated Bible (Bible historiée)

like a historiated letter, it is a bible that has been illustrated with 

narrative subjects. 

Moralized Bible (Bible moralisée)

juxtaposes biblical subjects with contemporary scenes to provide a lesson in morality.

Order of the Star

(French: Ordre de l'Étoile) was an order of chivalry founded on 6 November 1351 by John II of France in imitation of the Order of the Garter founded in 1347 by Edward III of England. The inaugural ceremony of the order took place on 6 January 1352 at Saint-Ouen, from which it is sometimes called the Order of Knights of the Noble House of Saint Ouen

Entremets

(Old French, literally meaning ‘between servings’) is in modern French cuisine a small dish served between courses or simply a dessert.  Performances taking place between main dishes were also called entremets.

Amethyst

a violet variety of quartz often used in jewelry.  The name comes from the Ancient Greek word for ‘not intoxicated’, a reference to the belief that the stone protected its owner from drunkenness; the ancient Greeks and Romans wore amethyst and made drinking vessels of it in the belief that it would prevent intoxication

Holy Thorn

a piece or one of the thorns from the Crown of Thorns

Man of Sorrows

the iconic devotional image shows Christ, usually naked above the waist, with the wounds of his Passion prominently displayed on his hands and side, often crowned with the Crown of Thorns and sometimes attended by angels.  It developed in Europe from the 13^th century and was especially popular in Northern Europe. The image continued to spread and develop iconographical complexity until well after the Renaissance, but the Man of Sorrows in its many artistic forms is the most precise visual expression of the piety of the later Middle Ages, which took its character from mystical contemplation rather than from theological speculation"

Monstrance

the vessel used in the Roman Catholic, Old Catholic and Anglican churches to display the consecrated Eucharistic host, during Eucharistic adoration or Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Created in the medieval period for the public display of relics, the monstrance today is usually restricted for vessels used for hosts. The word monstrance comes from the Latin word monstrare, meaning "to show", and is cognate with the English word demonstrate, meaning "to show clearly".  In Latin, the monstrance is known as an ostensorium (from ostendere, ‘to show’). In Anglican churches, it is called a monstre/monstral

Ostensorium

a vessel designed for the exhibition of some object of piety.

Paten

(or diskos), a small plate, usually made of silver or gold, used to hold Eucharistic bread which is to be consecrated. It is generally used during the service itself, while the reserved hosts are stored in the Tabernacle in a ciborium

Canonical Hours

(Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, None, vespers, Compline): are divisions of time which serve as increments between the prescribed prayers of the daily round. A Book of Hours contains such a set of prayers

Coronation of the Virgin

a subject in Christian art, especially popular in Italy in the 13th to 15th centuries but continuing in popularity until the 18th century and beyond.

Diptych

any object with two flat plates attached at a hinge. Devices of this form were quite popular in the ancient world, wax tablets being coated with wax on inner faces, for recording notes and for measuring time and direction. The term is also used figuratively for a thematically-linked sequence of two books

Gothic sway

a S shaped curve in the body that originated due to the shape of ivory tusk.

Grisaille

a term for painting executed entirely in monochrome or near-monochrome, usually in shades of grey.

Instruments of the Passion (short)

(Arma Christi): the objects associated with Christ’s Passion in Christian symbolism and art

Polyptych

refers generally to a painting which is divided into multiple sections, or panels

Rayonnant

a term used to describe a period in the development of French Gothic architecture, c. 1240–1350. Developing out of the High Gothic style, Rayonnant is characterized by a shift in focus away from the great scale and spatial rationalism of buildings like Chartres Cathedral or the nave of Amiens Cathedral, towards a greater concern for two dimensional surfaces and the repetition of decorative motifs at different scales. After the mid-14th century, Rayonnant gradually evolved into the Late Gothic, Flamboyant style, though as usual with such arbitrary stylistic labels, the point of transition is not clearly defined.

Trumeau

is a central stone upright supporting the tympanum of a wide doorway, especially of a medieval church

Trumeau figure 

is a carved figure attached to it.

Tympanum

(plural, tympana) is the semi-circular or triangular decorative wall surface over an entrance, bounded by a lintel and arch. It often contains sculpture or other imagery or ornaments

Consecrate

to make or declare (something, typically a church) sacred; dedicate formally to a religious or divine purpose.

Christ in Majesty

image of Christ seated on a throne as ruler of the world, always seen frontally in the centre of the composition, and often flanked by other sacred figures

Oratory

a small chapel, esp. for private worship.

Tracery

ornamental stone openwork, typically in the upper part of a Gothic window. A delicate branching pattern: “a tracery of red veins.”  In Rayonnant style, tracery was used as ornamental detail.  Tracery is only ornamental and could be either open or blind.  Open tracery is see-through, while blind is closed.

Trefoil

graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism. The term is also applied to other symbols of three-fold shape.

Quatrefoil

etymologically means “four leaves,” and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts

Gilding

the decorative technique of applying fine gold leaf or powder to solid surfaces such as wood, stone, or metal to give a thin coating of gold

Tabernacle

is an ornamented receptacle or cabinet in which a pyx or ciborium containing the reserved sacrament may be placed in Catholic churches, usually on or above an altar

Missel

a prayer book

Apse

a semicircular or polygonal termination to the choir, chancel, or aisle of a public building, first used in pre-Christian Roman architecture. Originally a large niche to hold the statue of a deity in a temple, the apse also appeared in ancient baths and basilicas. The domed apse became a standard part of the Christian church plan.

Nave

main part of a Christian church, extending from the entrance (the narthex) to the transept or chancel (area around the altar). In a basilica church, which has side aisles, nave refers only to the central section. Medieval naves were generally divided into many bays, producing the effect of great length. During the Renaissance, the nave format became more flexible, and the nave was divided into fewer compartments, giving a feeling of spaciousness and balanced proportion among the height, length, and width.

Oculus

(Latin: “eye”) in architecture, any of several elements resembling an eye, such as a round or oval window or the round opening at the top of some domes. The capital of an Ionic column features an oculus in the form of a disk at the center of each of its spiral scrolls.

Lancet window

is a tall, narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the ‘lancet’ name from its resemblance to a lance Instances of this architectural motif are typical of Gothic ecclesiastical structures of the earliest period. Lancet windows may occur singly, or paired under a single molding, or grouped in an odd number with the tallest window at the center.

Flamboyant style

name given to late 15^th century French Gothic architecture. It is called after the pattern of the tracery that may evoke flames.  The flamboyant style evolved out of the Rayonnant style’s increasing emphasis on decoration. Its most conspicuous feature is the dominance in stone window tracery of a flame-like S-shaped curve.

Ark of the Covenant

in Judaism and Christianity, the ornate, gold-plated wooden chest that in Biblical times housed the two tablets of the Law given to Moses by God.

Tetramorph

is the emblematic animals assigned to identify each Evangelist.  At the same time, is the union of the four attributes of the Evangelists in one figure, which is represented as winged, and standing on winged fiery wheels, the wings being covered with eyes. The representations of it are evidently suggested by the vision of Ezekiel

Machicolation

an overhanging defensive structure at the top of a medieval fortification, with floor openings through which boiling water or oil, missiles, etc., could be dropped on attackers

Pieta

as a theme in Christian art, it is the depiction of the Virgin Mary supporting the body of the dead Christ. Some representations of the Pietà include John the Apostle, Mary Magdalene, and sometimes other figures on either side of the Virgin, but the great majority show only Mary and her Son. The Pietà was widely represented in both painting and sculpture, being one of the most poignant visual expressions of popular concern with the emotional aspects of the lives of Christ and the Virgin

Attribute

an object associated with or symbolic of a character, office, or quality, as the keys of St. Peter or the lion skin of Hercules.

Motto

a short sentence or phrase chosen as encapsulating the beliefs or ideals guiding an individual, family, or institution

Châtelet

(lit. ‘Small castle’) fortress entrance, which as a separate structure contained the guard-house

Chemin de Ronde

(French, ‘round path’ or ‘patrol path’) is a raised protected walkway behind a castle battlement

Lancet

narrow, high window capped by a lancet, or acute, arch. The lancet arch is a variety of pointed arch in which each of the arcs, or curves, of the arch have a radius longer than the width of the arch. It takes its name from being shaped like the tip of a lance. The lancet window is one of the typical features of the Early English (13^th century) period in Gothic architecture

Spire

a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, typically a church tower

Vault

a roof in the form of an arch or a series of arches, typical of churches and other large, formal buildings

Wainscoting

Paneling was developed in antiquity to make rooms in stone buildings more comfortable. The panels served to insulate the room from the cold stone 

Aracoeli

(lit. ‘altar of heaven;’‘ara’ altar and ‘coeli’ sky) According to a legend, the Emperor Augustus consulted the Tiburtine Sibyl. While she was speaking, the Emperor had a vision: the Virgin was standing on an altar holding the baby Jesus in her arms. Augustus heard a voice saying: “This is the altar of the Son of God.” So the Emperor raised an altar on that place, the Ara Coeli, meaning altar of the heavens. 

Apotropaic

is an object used to ward against evil. An object that supposedly having the power to avert evil influences 

Triptych

a painting, usually an altarpiece, on three hinged wooden panels that may be closed like a book 

Reliquary

is an object that contains a fragment of a reported saint; A container for holy relics. 

Relic

part of a deceased holy person's body or belongings kept as an object of reverence

Pastiglia

(gesso) an Italian term meaning ‘paste work.’ is low relief decoration, normally modeled in gesso or white lead, applied to build up a surface that may then be gilded or painted, or left plain 

Stylized

depicted or treated in a mannered and nonrealistic style; to depict or treat in a mannered and nonrealistic style. 

Iconography

traditional or conventional images or symbols associated with a subject and especially a religious or legendary subject; the imagery or symbolism of a work of art, an artist, or a body of art