art history

Lindisfarne Gospels: St. Matthew, cross-carpet page; St. Luke portrait page; St. Luke incipit page. Early medieval (Hiberno Saxon) Europe. c. 700 C.E. Illuminated manuscript (ink, pigments, and gold on vellum). CROSS INSCRIBED CARPET PAGE; PRODUCED IN A NORTHUMBRIAN MONASTERY ON LINDISFARNE ISLAND; FUSION OF CHRISTIAN IMAGERY AND STYLE OF NORTHERN WARLORDS BOOK CONTAINS SEVERAL ORNAMENTAL PAGES AND EXEMPLIFIES HIBERNO-SAXON ART; INTRICATE PATTERNING AND DETAIL; SERPENTINE INTERLACEMENTS OF FANTASTIC ANIMALS DEVOUR EACHOTHER, CURLING OVER AND OVER  RHYTHM OF OF EXPANDING AND CONTRACTIG FORMS PRODUCES A VIVID EFFECT OF MOTION AND CHANGE  DOMINATING MOTIF OF THE CROSS STABILIZES THE RHYTHMS OF THE SERPENTS AND IN CONTRAST, HEIGHTENS THE EFFECTS OF THE MOTION  MOTIFS W DETAILED SYMMETRIES; WITH INVERSIONS, REVERSALS AND REPETITIONS THAT THE VIEWER MUST STUDY CLOSELY IN ORDER TO APPRECIATE NOT ONLY THEIR VARIETY BUT ALSO THEIR MAZELIKE COMPLEXITY; VIBRATES W ENERG...

Time Period: 450-1050 Merovingian Art (France) Hiberno-Saxon Art (British Isles) Mass migrations across Europe  "Dark Ages" desperation; stability achieved  Monasteries centers of learning  Manuscripts; scribes important in society; illustrators; freedom of expression  Decoration of manuscript art: codices  Painted by monks or nuns Books covered in bindings of wood and leather; gold leaf  Portable; animals in designs  Fibula: clasp to fasten garments Merovingian: internal struggles, civil wars  rulers exploited kingdom's wealth, lived lavishly  personal jewelry items popular, such as brooches, discs, pins, earrings, and bracelets  objects inlaid with harsh stones such as garnets  Hiberno-Saxon Art:  exceptional handling of color and form  specialized in illuminated manuscripts  relies on complicated patterns; ornamented 

Merovingian looped fibulae . Early medieval Europe. Mid-sixth century C.E. Silver gilt worked in ligree, with inlays of garnets and other stones. STATUS SYMBOLS FOR ELITE PATRONS MOST PRESTIGE ADORNMENTS OF THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD MEN AND WOMEN ALIKE USED FIBULAE TO FASTEN THEIR GARMENTS MADE OF BRONZE, SILVER, GOLD DECORATIVE, PRECIOUS STONES LIKELY THE POSSESSION OF A WEALTHY MEROVINGIAN WOMAN EMBLEMS OF OFFICE AND PRESTIGE DECORATIVE PATTERNS ADJUSTED TO THE BASIC SHAPE OF THE OBJECT Fibulae (singular: fibula) are brooches that were made popular by Roman military campaigns. They all consist of a body, a pin, and a catch. Ornate fibulae became all the rage in the early middle ages, and are one of the most commonly found objects in barbarian* grave sites. The diverse ethnic groups were constantly borrowing from one another, while putting their own spin on things. Although precious and intricate, it is a relatively simple design, indicative of the Byzantine/Roman fibulae...