The Medieval Period 450 – 1450 A.D.

Also Known As: “The Middle Ages” “The Dark Ages” This was because of a lack of central government, poverty and ignorance

Characteristics Society was made up of 3 orders: clergy, nobility & serfs Once in an order, a person was pretty much locked into it This included their ancestors to follow them

The Clergy Subject to their own laws Observed their own levels of social class Administered “divine justice” Were looked to for blessings Were the guardians of society

The Nobility Upper nobility were the kings followed by large land owners with titles like “Duke” or “Count” Lower nobility were smaller land owners – the “Knight” class

The Serfs These people worked land owned by others They paid a share to the land owner and kept the rest Serfs were free but still beholden to the land owners they served

What This Means: Power & Money were held by the few The majority of people were uneducated and concerned with survival The church held great power over all

The Rise of the Christian Church This setting promoted the rise of a religion that promised happiness in the afterlife: Christianity Serfs saw their lives as a penance to be paid in order to gain eternal salvation

More About the Rise: This attitude helped the nobility to maintain control It also gave great power to the church as it was viewed as the over riding power in Europe during this time

Impact on the Arts: The majority of art was produced and controlled by the church and wealthy Enjoyment of the arts was limited to the few with the exception of social fads

Characteristics of Medieval Fine Art The arts appeal to the emotions and stress the importance of religion in all aspects of life The purpose is to instruct the populace in the Christian faith

Types of Medieval Fine Art Illuminated Manuscripts Celtic Art Byzantine, Romanesque & Gothic Architecture Dance Macabre Gregorian Chant Morality Plays The Tarantella Minstrels

Illuminated Manuscript This is artwork that is used to decorate text Drawings are 2-dimentional and use primary colors mostly Ornamentation is used freely No other form captures the Medieval spirit as well

Examples:

The Book of Kells The most famous collection of illuminated manuscript An Irish manuscript that contained the four gospels The detail in the knot designs shows great care

Examples:

Byzantine Architecture Heavy Roman influence: vaults, arches, domes, columns Mixture of brick, stone & mortar Monumental in size Decorated with gold & mosaics Middle Eastern Basilica of Hagia Sophia

Mosaics Works created by gluing little, colorful pieces of stone together Used by the Byzantines as a major source of artistic expression Most works are religious

Examples

Romanesque Architecture The style of the traditional Medieval castle Geometric shapes Round arches Decorated with Relief Sculptures to teach the Christian faith Shelter & protection

Relief Sculpture

Gothic Architecture “Gothic” was a term used for designs against the classical form It was against the Greek & Roman styles Tried to create a new Christian style of design

More Gothic: Since the design was religious in nature, the most impressive examples are Cathedrals The most famous of which is the Notre Dame in the center of Paris, France

Innovations in Design Pointed Arches Gargoyles

Innovations in Design Rose Window Flying Buttress

Dance Macabre Art that depicts skeletons dancing Influenced by the Black Death Shows societies infatuation with death Still used in modern art (Halloween)

Examples

Gregorian Chant When Pope Gregory I decided to reorganize the church, he wanted uniform service music This required that a form of notation be created so that everyone would be playing the same songs

Gregorian Chant This was the first music ever written in a universal style Made up of a single melody and nothing else Words are biblical text Was the official music of the church for 1000 years

Polyphony Developed after Gregorian Chant Combines two chant melodies to produce harmony Comes from Greek “poly” (many) & “phones” (voice)

Secular Music Unlike chant & polyphony that was for the church (sacred) Topics of words were “wine, women & song” Not written Learned by rote Sung with lute accompaniment

Morality Plays Drama of the Medieval Period Taught moral lessons from the church 1st dealt with the lives of saints & was performed in church Classic tales of good vs. evil

“Everyman” Best example of a morality play Protagonist is a symbol for all human kind It tells the story of his life & acts Characters are “love”, “greed”, “death”, etc Only “good deeds” is with him at the end

Tarantella Popular dance of the late Medieval Native dance of south Italy 1st move is a jump as if bitten by a spider Dancers play tambourines & castanets while dancing Named for the tarantula spider

Dance Mania Known as “St. Vitus’s Dance Frantic dance to exhaustion that sometimes ended in death Believed to combat the plague A combination of dance marathons & mosh pits

Thus Endth: The Medieval Period