Romanesque Art and Architecture

Time Period: 11th and 12th centuries (1000s-1100s AD)
Focus: Romanesque art and architecture, particularly the development of architecture.
Durham Cathedral: Example of a structure dating back to the 1000s, witnessing significant historical events.

List characteristics of Romanesque art and architecture.
Discuss experimental vaulting in Romanesque cathedrals.
Discuss the functional design of great pilgrimage churches.
Recognize the Cathedral Of Saint James in Santiago De Compostela as a pilgrimage church.

Rodolphus Glaber Quote: \"Each people of Christendom rivaled with each other to see which should worship in the finest buildings. The world shook herself clothed everywhere in a white garment of churches.\"
European Context:
- Increasing domestic warfare, but a prosperous economy (antithesis).
- Localized populations with allegiance to city states or provinces (e.g., Parisians identifying with Paris, not France).
- Heightened sense of identity and competition.
- The Church as the most powerful political force.
Church Building Rivalry:
- City states competed to build larger and more impressive churches.
- The European landscape became filled with churches.
- Most churches were built from limestone, which was initially white but dulled over time.

Definition: Romanesque means \"in the Roman manner.\" Applies to art and architecture of the 11th and 12th centuries in Europe.
Art as Cumulative: Art reflects the current state and builds upon previous influences.
Characteristics:
- Simpler and more spiritual in nature.
- Less ornate and detailed due to rapid church construction and high demand for artwork.
- Example: Christ in Majesty in the apse of the Church Of San Clemente.
- Simplified figures with black outlines and filled-in colors, lacking three-dimensionality.
Educational Role of Churches:
- Churches served as the house of God.
- Interiors reflected salvation and heaven.
- Artwork educated a largely illiterate population through visual storytelling of religious themes and biblical stories.

Structures: Primarily castles and churches.
Associated Features: Large towers, rounded arches, and interior ceiling vaults.
Characteristics:
- Thick, heavy, grounded walls.
- A sense of rigidity and earthbound appearance.
- Large, simplistic geometric masses.
- The exterior reflected the interior layout.
- Small windows leading to dark and cold interiors.
Massive Walls: Necessary to support heavy stone roofs.
Rounded Arches: Displaced forces to the sides, with walls carrying the weight.
Vaults.

Ribbed Vaults/Groin Vaults:
- Used to open up the interior space of churches.
- Barrel Vault: A long, continuous arch.
- Groin Vault (Ribbed Vault): Intersection of two barrel vaults.
- Ribs were built first, then the ceiling was applied on top.
- Allowed for greater open space, creating a mystical presence.

Pilgrim Definition: A devout individual undertaking a journey to a sacred place (typically a church) housing a relic of a saint.
Relics: Pieces of clothing or bone fragments of canonized saints believed to have curative powers.
Pilgrimage Definition: The journey undertaken by a pilgrim.
Development of Pilgrimage Churches:
- Pre-Romanesque churches were not designed for the influx of pilgrims.
- Original church purpose (mass services) conflicted with pilgrimage activities (praying and venerating relics).
- Pilgrimage churches were designed to accommodate both purposes.
Design Elements:
- Portals on the sides (open all the time) to avoid distractions.
- Side aisles that allowed pilgrims to walk around the church without disturbing parishioners.
- Niches or cutouts in the walls for statues of saints or relics.