W11 L2 Romanesque Art and Architecture Learning Cards

Overview of Romanesque Art and Architecture (ca. 1000–1250 CE)

• Timeline and Scope: The Romanesque style flourished approximately between $1000$ and $1250$ CE.

• Primary Building Types: Churches and monasteries were the most common architectural structures of this period.

• Architectural Goals:     * Builders aimed primarily to enclose and illuminate interior spaces.     * A central objective was to use incombustible masonry construction to reduce fire hazards, thereby protecting valuable religious relics.

• Etymology: The term "Romanesque" implies "Roman-like," signifying a connection to the Roman past through used forms and techniques, exemplified by structures like Saint-Martin-du-Canigou and Saint Philibert at Tournus.

Regional Styles of Romanesque Architecture: Germany

• Speyer Cathedral (Imperial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption and St. Stephen):     * Construction Phases: The initial construction occurred ca. $1030$–$1082$. It underwent significant remodeling between $1082$ and $1137$.     * Exterior Features: The exterior utilizes "Lombard bands" (decorative blind arcading) and blind arches to articulate the wall surfaces.     * Interior Features and Vaulting:         * The original wooden ceiling was replaced by groin vaults.         * The nave is separated by transverse arch bands.         * The design features alternating engaged columns and pilasters that connect the side aisles to the clerestory.

Regional Styles of Romanesque Architecture: Italy (Tuscany)

• San Miniato al Monte, Florence (ca. 1062–1090):     * Façade Design: The façade mimics a small classical temple with Corinthian pilasters and a pediment. A small aedicula is located in the center.     * Architectural Features:         * The nave is positioned higher than the side aisles.         * The design uses a heavy contrast of dark and light stone (polychrome).         * There is a use of trompe l’oeil "doors" positioned between the actual functional doors.         * The arcade features Corinthian columns, a design choice referencing ancient Roman and Early Christian architecture.         * A mosaic dating to $1260$ is visible on the upper façade.     * Interior Characteristics:         * Features an interior arcade and a clerestory.         * Utilizes diaphragm arches and a wooden truss ceiling.         * The walls are decorated with polychrome marble revetment.

Regional Styles of Romanesque Architecture: Italy (Lombardy)

• Sant’ Ambrogio, Milan (ca. 1080–1140):     * Layout: Includes an atrium to the west and a two-story narthex defined by arches.     * Towers: Features two western bell towers dating from the $10^{th}$ and $12^{th}$ centuries.     * Structural Elements:         * The nave consists of four vaulted bays (c. $1128$–$1140$).         * Includes aisles and galleries located above the aisles.         * Ribbed groin vaults are utilized over the nave.         * An octagonal dome with windows is situated at the east end.         * Features a central apse with smaller chapels at the rear (chevet).         * The exterior features characteristic "Lombard bands."

Pilgrimage and the Pilgrimage Church

• Core Destinations:     * Jerusalem: Sites of interest included the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Temple Mount (Dome of the Rock).     * Rome: Centered around Old St. Peter’s Cathedral.     * Santiago de Compostela, Spain: The shrine of St. James (Santiago).

• Pilgrimage Infrastructure: Churches were strategically built along major routes to accommodate the influx of pilgrims traveling across Europe (Aquitaine, Gascony, Toulouse, etc.) to these holy sites.

Romanesque Architecture of France

• Saint-Sernin, Toulouse (1080–1120): Built by the Counts (nobles) of Toulouse.

• Sainte-Foy, Conques (ca. 1050–1130):     * Built under the leadership of Abbot Odoloric.     * Located on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela.     * Artistic Highlights:         * The Reliquary of Sainte-Foy.         * The Western façade featuring towers and a portal with a sculpted tympanum depicting the Last Judgment.     * Last Judgment Iconography: Christ is central. To His right are Mary, St. Peter, and potentially Charlemagne and his family. The narrative shows the "Heavenly City" on the left and "Hell" on the right.

The Benedictine Order and the Abbey of Cluny

• The Rule of St. Benedict: The order emphasized that churches should be beautiful to help the faithful contemplate spiritual values.

• Abbey of Cluny (Southern Burgundy):     * Foundation: Founded in $910$ by Duke William of Aquitaine.     * Leadership: Initial leader was Abbot Berno ($910$–$925$).     * History: The monastery followed strict observance and held a charter exempting it from the control of local bishops, making it directly responsible to the Pope in Rome.     * Cluny I (ca. 910): A simple, barn-like structure.     * Cluny II (ca. 955): Featured a basilica plan, narthex, nave, aisles, transept, choir, and "in echelon" side chapels. It utilized transverse barrel vaults over the nave (illuminated barrel vaults).     * Cluny III (ca. 1088):         * Commissioned by Abbot Hugh of Semur and designed by architect Hézelon de Liège (with Gunzo).         * It was the largest church in Christendom for over $200$ years.         * Dimensions: The nave was $100$ feet high and $496$ feet long.         * Features: Double side aisles, double transepts, towers over the west entrance, the major crossing, and the transept arms. It used pointed arches in the nave and an octagonal dome with decorated capitals.         * Status: Dismantled for stone after the French Revolution; only the south arm of the major transept survives today.

Anatomy of a Romanesque Portal

• Archivolt: Concentric decorative molded bands framing the tympanum.

• Voussoir: Wedge-shaped stones forming the archivolts.

• Tympanum: The semi-circular sculpted area above the lintel.

• Lintel: The horizontal beam supported by the trumeau and jambs.

• Trumeau: The central pillar supporting the lintel.

• Jamb: Vertical side posts of the door.

• Colonnette: Small decorative columns attached to the jambs.

• Capital: The crowning part of a column or pilaster.

• Pilaster: A rectangular column projecting from the wall.

Cathedral of Saint-Lazare, Autun (1120–1135/40)

• Context: A Benedictine church inspired by the Abbey at Cluny.

• Portal Sculpture: Attributed to the artist Gislebertus ("Gislebertus hoc fecit").

• The Last Judgment (Tympanum):     * Inscription: "May this terror frighten those who are bound by worldly error. It will be true just as the horror of these images indicates."     * Saved (Christ’s Right): Those going to Heaven. Pilgrims are identified by symbols on their bags, such as the Cross and the Cockle Shell (sea shell).     * Damned (Christ’s Left): Those designated for "the other place."     * Scriptural Source: Matthew 25:31-46, describing the separation of the sheep (right) from the goats (left) based on their treatment of the hungry, thirsty, and imprisoned.

• Historiated Capitals: Figures and narrative scenes carved into capitals, including "The Flight into Egypt," "The Dream of the Magi," "Judas," and a lintel block depicting "Eve."

Church of Sainte-Madeleine, Vézelay (1120–1138)

• The Mystic Mill Capital: A historiated capital from the south aisle. It features an allegory of the reconciliation of the Old and New Testaments. Moses and Paul are shown grinding grain into flour (the bread of communion), representing the transformation of the Old Law into the New Grace.

Architectural Symbolism and Philosophy of Decoration

• Hrabanus Maurus (c. 840): Wrote that the door of the temple represents the Lord ("I am the door"). Columns represent the teachers of the faithful, and the tops (capitals) of the columns represent the minds of these teachers.

• Theophilus (On Divers Arts, ca. 1100): Defended the embellishment of the material "House of God." He argued that artists are guided by the Holy Spirit and that physical beauty in a church reflects the heavenly court.

• Cistercian Reform (Alternative Approach):     * Abbey at Fontenay (1139–1147): Represented the Cistercian order, founded in $1098$.     * Bernard of Clairvaux: Criticized Cluniac extravagance, calling the elaborate carvings "ridiculous monsters" and a "comely deformity."     * Cistercian Principles: Rejection of elaborate decoration; orderly plans based on a square module; monasteries located in remote areas away from settlements; strict adherence to the Rule of St. Benedict.