CHARLEMAGNE AND THE CAROLINGIAN RENAISSANCE — 800-900

Carolingian Manuscripts

 

 

In the West in the 9th century, there were three political groupings:

The Franks were Germanic peoples.  They had first come under Roman patronage, but then, as Roman power was declining, they became part of the large invasion of Germanic tribes that contributed to the collapse of the Roman empire.  Towards the end of the 5th century, Clovis managed to bring clan after clan of these different Germanic tribes under his leadership. So Clovis became the first King of the Franks.  Eventually, he became the sole military authority of the Ancient Roman province of Gaul.  Clovis, however, was a treacherous leader, and exacted high taxes without returning much of anything to his people.

 

In the 8th century, Gaul came under the threat of Moslem invasion through Spain.  They were successfully held back by Charles Martel at the Battle of Poitiers in 732.  Charles Martel was a member of the powerful Arnulfinger family -- a family which held large tracts of land in Gaul.  This clan called one son in every other generation Charles — and therefore became known as the Carolingians.

 

Charles Martel’s son, Pepin succeeded him and consolidated his strength.  In 754, with the support of the church, Pepin also unseated the successors to Clovis — and made himself King of the Franks.  Pepin, therefore, marks the beginning of the Carolingian period.

 

Charlemagne was Pepin’s son and Pepin’s successor. As a man, he was notorious for his hunting and "wenching."  He managed to expand his authority over other Germanic tribes — the Bavarians, the Avars, the Lombards — and to unify these lands through the economy of the large estate.  The various owners of these various estates believed that it was politically prudent to be loyal to the King of the Franks.

 

Charlemagne also saw himself as a legitimate successor to the Roman empire.  In 768, he became king, and in 800 he became emperor.  Significantly, he  was crowned in St. Peter’s basilica by Pope Leo III in Rome in 800 on Christmas day.  This emphasized his ties to Rome and his Christian faith.  Not surprisingly, the Byzantine Empire was appalled by this claim.  Charlemagne marks the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire.

 

Equestrian portrait of Charlemagne, bronze (org. gilt), 9 ˝ in., early 9th century

  

 

 

This is a small bronze sculpture that may be Charlemagne (or Charlemagne’s son, Charles the Bald).  Does it look familiar??  Once again, we see the clear revival of the traditional Roman Imperial pose — an allusion to the Adventus.

 

Saint Matthew, Coronation Gospels, ca. 800-810

 

 

 

Charlemagne was a great patron of the arts and had a very high regard for books.  Book production was important during the Carolingian era.  For example, approximately 1,600 books from the Ancient World survive and approximately 9,000 books survive from the Frankish territory that were crafted between 800-900!  Although many of these were biblical texts, there were other texts created during the Carolingian period, such as herbals, literary works, surveying manuals, etc. 

 

The above miniature of St. Matthew is from a book which has come to be known as “The Coronation Gospels” because it was supposedly found in Charlemagne’s tomb when the tomb was opened in the year 1,000.

 

It is a Gospel book, and has Evangelist portraits.  This is St. Matthew, which we know based on the placement of this image in the book.  In other words, we do not see Matthew's symbolic attributes (the angel or the man).

 

The style is based on Greco-Roman painting.  It is highly colored.  The figure is framed.  We have a clearly defined background, foreground, sky.  St. Mathew is a full-bodied figure that turns in space -- note the light and the modeling.

 

We do not know where this work was executed.  If it was executed by a Frankish artist at the court of Charlemagne, then it is a remarkable achievement.  However, it could have been done by an Italian or Byzantine artist on behalf of Charlemagne.

 

Saint Matthew, Ebbo Gospels, ca. 816-835

 

 

This miniature is from the Ebbo Gospels, a Gospel book executed for Archbishop Ebbo who was associated with the monastery at Reims, France.  The book is written in the purest Roman capitals, but the first letter is in the interlace tradition.  This book, we believe, was not done by an Italian painter, but rather a Northern artist trained in the north and exposed to Southern tradition.

 

It is also an author portrait of St. Matthew.  Here we know this because we have his traditional symbol — the man or angel in the upper right corner.  Notice the rapid pen movement — there is excitement imbued in the image conveying an emotional experience.  It is a very energetic, nervous technique.  Even the hills appear to be full of life.  St. Matthew has an inspired look.  This miniature represents a blend of Hiberno-Saxon and Greco-Roman Style. 

 

Utrecht Psalter, ca. 820-835  (these are not the same as the illustration in your textbook)

 

 

 

Utrecht was located in a Carolingian territory.  This, however, is not a Gospel book.  It is a Psalm Book from the Old Testament.  Each of the Psalms is introduced by a miniature. It was created with ink on vellum.  It was not elaborately painted.  Although we know that most manuscripts were copied from other manuscripts, it is not clear if this is a copy or an entirely original work of art.  What is clear is that it was executed in a very vigorous, expressive style, akin to that used in the Ebbo Gospels. 

 

Psalter of Charles the Bald, from Saint-Denis, France, ca. 865

 

 

As noted previously, the production of the medieval book was an expensive and laborious endeavor.  It required sacrifice of many animals for sufficient parchment or vellum.  Then hours and hours were spent in hand copying.  Many of these medieval books were initially bound in vellum.  However, some of the more sumptuous examples produced during the Carolingian period were covered with elaborate bejeweled covers. This cover, for example, was made for the Psalter of Charles the Bald, the grandson of Charlemagne.  It was crafted in St. Denis, the royal Abbey near Paris.  In the center is a carved ivory panel.  The rest of the cover is silver covered with gold or silver-gilt and inlaid with cabochon gems. 

 

The ivory plaque is a visual translation of Psalm 57:

 

Oh God, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge . . . My soul is among the lions; and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongues a sharp sword. . . . They have prepared a net for my steps ; they have digged a pit a pit before me, into the midst thereof they are fallen themselves. 

 

At the top:  The psalmist is in the Lord’s lap flanked by Lions.  (Above him is Christ in Majestry)

In the middle: Army

At the bottom: Men are digging a pit and falling into it themselves

 

In other words, it is the same artistic approach as seen in the Utrecht Psalter.  We also see the same energetic style, but here carved into ivory.

 

Crucifixion, Front Cover of the Lindau Gospels, ca. 870

 

 

This is the front cover of the Lindau Gospels was created around 870.   The back (not shown here) was created around 800.  These covers were not original to this Gospel book, were not executed at the same time, but are Carolingian.  The front cover was probably executed in the same workshop that made the cover of the Psalter of Charles the Bald.  It is crafted from hammered gold, that is, it represents another example of repoussé.  

 

The theme is the crucifixion with eight mourning angels.  As of the Carolingian period, the crucifixion becomes an important subject.  At the same time, Christ is youthful, beardless, and not suffering.  It is more of Classical conception.  The angels, in contrast, are expressive, lamenting, strongly gesturing in the typical style of the Northern artistic tradition.