The Romanesque Period — 1050-1200

Architecture and Sculpture

 

The term “Romanesque” was coined in the 19th century and means “Roman-like.”  Art historically, it was used to describe a widespread revival of the barrel and groin vault, but it is now is used to refer to the history and culture in Western Europe between 1050 and 1200.

 

During the Romanesque period, Monastic orders grew.  Also, the crusades began in 1095 -- Christians wanted to return Jerusalem to Christian control, rather than Moslem.

 

The Romanesque period was further characterized by technological and economic resurgence in Europe.  There was better farming and more productivity.  The agricultural basis of the early Medieval period was slowly replaced by the emergence of towns whose economy was based on commerce. 

 

 

 

 

We should also note that in the year 1000, people were preparing for the end of the world (as many were again in 2000).  Thus, the Romanesque period marked the beginning of pilgrimages, that is people traveling to see and experience the holy powers of relics.  Note that the pilgrim routes and merchant route were often the same. 

 

Relic/Reliquary — St. Alexander Stavelot, 1145

 

 

A relic is something that belonged to someone holy. Relics were valued by degree:    

The reliquary is the receptacle for the relic.  Above is the head reliquary of St. Alexander from the Stavelot Abbey in Belgium.  That means it is a receptacle for the skull of St. Alexander; it is a first degree relic.  As a work of sculpture, it can be described as an idealized head made from silver with bronze gilding.  The portrait head is adorned with a collar of jewels and enamel plaques and sits on an elaborate box supported by four bronze dragons.  The center panel on cloisonné is a portrait of Alexander when he was Pope.  

 

During the Romanesque Period, relics become extremely important.  During a pilgrimage people would stop at many holy spots and would get a little leaden symbol at each location.  For some churches, guidebooks were written that stated the miraculous stories associated with the relics.  The churches with the bodies of martyrs became popular and wealthy.  In most cases, the villagers alone could not have built the large churches required to accommodate vast crowds of pilgrims.  The money depended on the pilgrims and the trade route.  Thus, the attraction to relics was part of a very intensive belief system, but one that was encouraged by economics as well.  This emphasis on relics did attract criticism that the church was spending more money on decoration than on its own people, but this complaint did not diminish the practice.

 

St. Sernin at Toulouse, France, ca. 107--1120

 

 

The cathedral of St. Sernin at Toulouse is the largest surviving Romanesque church in France.  This location was in the heart of ancient Gaul, which was a Roman province.  The exterior is brick, and the masonry walls are very thick.  The additive quality of this structure is also typically Romanesque.  It's not highly decorated on the outside — but there is some bit of decoration around the arches.

 

As noted above, during the Romanesque period, thousands of people embarked on holy pilgrimages.  The churches that contained important relics needed to have enough space to accommodate the all the travelers. Therefore, they discarded the Early Christian basilican plan as too small.  Also, all of the basilican churches that we studied had a wooden, trussed roof.  These were  prone to fire.  

 

Instead, they turned to the Roman barrel vaults to cover the nave.  However, there is one large difference.  Most Roman vaults were executed in concrete — these are made of stone.  They required the skill of professional stone masons.  These could not be built by monks — rather monks would have to hire masons.  Very quickly, masons became a professional organization and went from site to site to practice their skills.  We can see the emergence of the Medieval guild system associated with various trades.

 

St. Sernin, Plan

 

 

 

Compare the plan above to the aerial view of the church and notice that the ground plan, particularly the chapels, can be seen from the outside.  St. Sernin at Toulouse had a huge central nave.  It also had two side aisles and was designed to allow pilgrims to flow all around the church — including through the ambulatory in the apse.  The overall shape of the plan is cruciform.  The apse is greatly extended.  Also note the chapels in the apse — each contained relics.  At the very end was a chevet, an extended apse without an ambulatory.   The central tower over the crossing made it easy for pilgrims to identify the structure at their destination.

 

St. Sernin, Interior

 

 

The interior of St. Sernin is a monumental space — equivalent to Hagia Sophia.  It consists of massive barrel vaults with supporting arches.  As stated earlier, it does not have the flat roof typical of the basilican plan.  It is an interior that is very dark, heavy, and  massive.  

 

Romanesque Portal

 

 

 

 

As stone construction became important during the Romanesque period, so did large-scale stone sculpture.  Free standing statuary was rare because it still held connotations of idolatry.  However, architectural sculpture became more and more common. 

 

In particular, many Romanesque churches had grand portals with the following architectural elements:

St. Pierre, Moissac, France, South Portal, 1115-1135

 Tympanum of the South Portal

The tympanum from the Church of St. Pierre at Moissac, France, is an excellent example of Romanesque style marble relief sculpture. The subject is the Second Coming of Christ as King and Judge of the World in its Last Days — it's apocalyptic imagery from the Book of Revelation. In the center of the tympanum we see Christ enthroned. This is an image we’ve seen over and over again since the early Christian period.  Here, however, Christ is no longer the young beardless shepherd. Instead, he is foreboding and stern.  The drapery displays hard folds and severe cuts.  Overall, Christ is executed in rather shallow relief.  Also note that Christ is the largest figure in the composition — this is a hieratic emphasis again! Christ is flanked by the symbols of the Four Evangelists. To either side of them are angels holding the scrolls that record those human deeds which require judgment. The remaining figures are crowned musicians who make music to praise God. The figures are highly elongated and almost disjointed. The lintel is embellished with a series of rosette patterns. The entire surface is ornamented.

 

St. Pierre, Moissac, France, Trumeau  

 

Above is an example of the trumeau sculpture from the church of St. Pierre.  At the front are six intertwined lions.  In the Old Testament, the Lion of Judah belonged to King David, who founded Israel.  This reference appears directly underneath Christ — which is meant to suggest that the Old Testament King is supporting the New Testament King. 

 

On the side, the trumeau sculpture depicts an Old Testament Prophet, who may be Jeremiah or Isaiah.  His identity as a prophet is based on the scroll which he holds.  Stylistically, this prophet is very similar to the angels that flank the symbols of the Four Evangelists.  The figure is very elongated.  There is no sense of body proportion.  There is no weight shift — in fact, the body appears totally weightless.  The carving is very shallow, and the folds associated with the drapery are very flat and stylized and reminiscent of manuscript illumination.   The prophet face is very compassionate.  Note that this is the face that one would see upon leaving the church.  Is well placed and visually effective.

 

Thus, the fear invoked by the tympanum leads the pilgrim into the church, and the caring face of the prophet provides comfort and reassurance on the way out. 

 

Gislebertus, West Tympanum of St. Lazare, Autun, France, ca. 1120-1135

 

This example from the church of St. Lazare in Autun is another Romanesque tympanum sculpture.  It is also an Apocalyptic scene, but is even more more dire than than the tympanum from the Church of St. Pierre at Moissac. All who have died are now being judged to determine whether they will be blessed or damned.At the bottom left, souls are lining up to be judged. In the center, we see Christ enthroned within a mandorla or full-body halo. 

To the right of Christ (which is Christ’s left), we see angels and demons manipulating the scales as the souls are weighed. Finally, on the bottom right, we see the damned. The sculpture is annotated with the following inscription: “May this terror terrify those whom earthly error binds, for the horror of these images here in this manner truly depicts what will be.” We also know who the artist is because the sculpture is signed with his name -- Gislebertus!