Art and Architecture of the Romanesque and Gothic Periods

A collection of flashcards covering key terms and concepts in Romanesque and Gothic art and architecture.

Bayeux Embroidery

An embroidered narrative on linen depicting events leading up to the Battle of Hastings, serving as political propaganda.

Capella Palatina

A royal chapel combining Norman, Byzantine, and Islamic culture, used to legitimize the rule of Roger II.

Arm Reliquary of the Apostles

A Romanesque gilded metal reliquary shaped like a saint’s arm, encouraging devotion and showing the church's authority.

St. Philbert of Tourneau

A Romanesque pilgrimage church designed for worship, emphasizing stability with architectural features that accommodated large numbers of pilgrims. A big influential monastery where monks lived and pilgrims visited. Houses relics of St. Philibert.

Reliquary of Ste. Foy

A gilded reliquary of the child martyr containing her skull, believed to perform miracles and encourage devotion.

Conques Cathedral

A Romanesque pilgrimage church housing the reliquary of Sainte-Foy with architectural features for pilgrims to venerate relics.

Abbey of St. Denis

A proto-Gothic church rebuilt by Abbot Suger, known for its tall structures and stained glass that teach biblical stories.

Naumburg Cathedral

A Gothic cathedral featuring lifelike donor sculptures and emphasizing emotional responses through naturalistic figures.

Bamberg Cathedral

A Gothic cathedral with a tympanum that uses Old and New Testament figures to teach salvation history and moral lessons.

Sainte-Chapelle

A Gothic chapel known for its illuminated interior and sacred relics, symbolizing the connection between Paris and Christian salvation.

Aquamanile with Phyllis and Aristotle

A 13th-century bronze handwashing vessel depicting a playful scene that serves as a cautionary tale about human temptation.

Psalter of Bonne of Luxembourg

An illuminated manuscript emphasizing tactile piety and female experience of pain, linking Christ's suffering to childbirth.

Book of Hours of Jeanne d’Evreux

A pocket-sized devotional book fostering a personal connection to Christ and the Virgin, highlighting female patronage in religious practice. contains illuminated pages with prayers, psalms, and calendars to be read at specific hours of the day.

Passionale of Abbess Kunigunde

Is an illuminated manuscript that presents both a narrative of sainthood and elements of devotional imagery. It recounts the story of Cunigunde of Luxembourg, who proves her innocence through a trial by fire, emphasizing divine justice and female virtue. Includes imagery of the Crucifixion and the Arma Christi, to provoke tactile piety.

Mirror back with chess game

Is a miniature, luxury ivory secular mirror back showing a couple playing chess, symbolizing courtly love as a playful battle of the sexes, with voyeuristic viewing and connections to romantic tales like Tristan and Isolde.

Altneuschul Synagogue

A historic synagogue in Prague, known as the oldest surviving synagogue in Europe, reflecting Gothic architectural styles and serving as a central place of worship for the Jewish community.

Chartres Cathedral

It is a prime example of high Gothic architecture, rebuilt after a fire in 1194. Known for its stained glass windows in that Chartres blue and houses the relic of the Virgin Mary so its important pilgrimage site.