Live-Blogging Kalamazoo: Saturday 10:00

The Usage of Models in Medieval Book Illumination (Ninth to Fifteenth Century)

Wall Painting in Central Italy and the Quest for a Unitary Model -- Alison Locke Perchuk, Occidental College

(I came in late due to getting into a conversation in the book-room, so I think I missed this entire talk.)

The Models of the Illuminators around 1200 -- Laurence Terrier, Univ. of Geneva

General discussion of transmission of classic models from late Roman work to new art produced ca. 13th c. in western Europe. Relationship of clothing (drapery treatments) between classic sculptural works and early medieval Christian manuscript art and sculpture. Comparison of specific sculptural models with manuscript and wall-paintings using similar human postures, facial/expression treatments, etc. Example: focus on classical and medieval sculpture in Sens, France that show closely parallel treatments, suggesting direct modeling on earlier works. Comparison of near contemporary "Christ in majesty" figure on enameled plaque and manuscript that are almost exact copies, both in posture and draperies. Suggestion that developing conventions of shading and highlightng in manuscript illumination is taken from light and shadow effects observed on sculpture. Comparison of "Horus Deliciarum" scene found in 3 different works, both manuscript and wall painting, in a 20-year span, that clearly were not direct copies of each other but could only have been worked from the same common model given the number of points of identity. Significant evidence that these common models may have included Byzantine manuscripts that were in circulation in the West.

Note: I was particularly interested in this session due to my interest in the usefulness of depictions of material culture in manuscript art for understanding actual contemporary artifacts. To the extent that illuminations are being created based on common archaic and foreign model-books, the specific provenance of a manuscript may be irrelevant to some (much?) of the incidental material culture reflected in its illuminations. This has a particular impact on the understanding of clothing materials, shapes, and methods of wearing, if the common depiction of apparently light-weight, voluminous, highly draped garments in 12-13th c. art are reflecting classical sculptures of up to a millennium earlier rather than being observational depictions of the artists' contemporaries, even in an idealized form. This isn't a new concern of mine, but it's interesting to see clear evidence of the problem illustrated by someone who has hunted down the comparisons.

A Model Community? Archetypes for Illumination in Thirteenth-Century Oxford -- Cynthia Johnston, Institute of English Studies, Univ. of London

Introduction to the book-making community in the immediate neighborhood of the Church of St. Mary the Virgin on High Street; 18 illuminators lived in this neighborhood in the early part of the 13th c., many of them known by name from legal records. One of these, De Brailes, seems to have inserted himself (with small labels identifying himself) in several of his works and his output is known to have been prolific. (We now get a long catalog of all the manuscripts either known or strongly argued to have been the work of De Brailes.) Despite this enormous output, we have no direct evidence for a permanent, organized "workshop" producing them, as opposed to a loose association of collaborators. But repetition of highly similar motifs (e.g., specific illuminated capitals) suggests work from a common model, or who lent specific talents, e.g., certain works that regularly contain elaborate gilded pen flourishes, or a group that contain specific sets of blue-and-red decorated initials and associated flourishes. Certain groups of human figures contained in capitals show a clearly common original model while having sufficient differences in execution to suggest different hands at work. There is a "signature" dragon grotesque that appears reguarly through works associated with De Brailes that seems to serve almost as a "maker's mark".

Use and Adaption of Models by the Masters of Zweder van Culemborg -- Miranda Bloem, Univ. van Amsterdam

Contemporaries of the Limbourg brothers, predecessors (and possibly teachers) of the master of the Hours of Catharine of Cleves. Masterpiece was the Breviary of Arnold of Egmond (husband of Catharine of Cleves), ca. 1435-40. (The presenter suggests there may have been an element of rivalry in the later creation of Catharine's book.) Focus on one miniature: the stoning of St. Stephen (not part of the Breviary, but a separate leaf held at London). Comparison of the same scene from the Masters of Zweder, and one in one of the works by the Limbourg brothers, which show strong similarities in certain of the figures. But the London stoning is taken from entirely different models, showing figure simliarities with their depictions of the flagellation of Christ by the Limbourg brothers, which figure similarities also show up in some other manuscripts. These repeating figures include certain "crowd figures" in various other scenes of witnesses to events. The ways in which these repeating figures are re-combined in different scenes suggests a "menu" of models that could be used to create a consitent visual vocabulary without a sense of monotony. Infrared reflectometry images of the London stoning show that the Stephen figure was original posed slightly differently, and that original pose can be identified in certain other scenes. Similarly, this technique demonstrates that the background figure of a young Saul, claiming St. Stephen's clothing, was a later addition to the painting (this is also indicated by the disproportionate size of the figure and differences in the coloring). Another background figure stands out due to the unusual (in this work) use of lapis lazuli and gilding which suggests it may have been intended as the older Saul who was then superceded by the young figure for story-representing purposes. One of the "stoners" has been substituted in the composition where the original model (the flagellation scene) had the whipping post and this figure show the remnants of a sketsh with a slightly different pose that was altered during painting. The faces of this individual and the "young Saul" show similarities that set them apart from the other faces in the scene, suggesting the work of a different painter from the main scene made these later additions. Overall, the resulting work shows the combination not only of the use of models, but of pulling models both from other workshops (the Limbourg flagellation) and their own previous works, with the various sources being re-combined to form new scenes.

Live-Blogging Kalamazoo: Saturday 13:30

New Work by Young Celtic Studies Scholars

(Note: I confess it makes me wince to hear people giving papers on Welsh topics mangling Welsh names and terminology. )

Of Amobr and Amobrwyr -- Lizabeth Johnson, South Dakota State Univ.

(Amobr = payment due from a woman or her family to the lord or to her father's superior on marriage or non-marital sexual activity, or on pregnancy if neither of the prevous had applied.) While native laws discuss amobr, it is only post-conquest court records that give evidence of the practicalities and problems of assessment, collection, and payment. The amount of the amobr was dependent on social status. The amobr was originally only due once for each woman but there is later evidence that it might be assessed multiple times in cases of remarriage or adultery, thus showing a drift from the original purpose. Although a judge would assess the payment, there were designated officials "amobrwyr" (amobr-men) whose job was to collect it. There were various dodges to avoid paying it, including claiming English (rather than Welsh) status. Various records show that the collection was farmed out to amobrwyr who paid a fixed annual amount to the lord in exchange for the right to do the collection (and presumably keep the proceeds). (Note: This suggests to me a motive for finding reasons for re-assessments!) The differences in amobr amount based on social and ethnic status could result in conflicts over the amount owed, as when the widow of a freeman re-married a bondman, but he was assessed the higher amobr of a free woman on the charge that she retained that status rather than taking his. Similarly, a woman whose first husband had held land by Welsh tenure had subsequently acquired land held by English tenure and claimed exemption on that basis on her second marriage, but it was held that she still had Welsh status and therefore owed the amobr. Two cases provide examples of unmarried women assessed amobr, presumably for illicit sex, who handed over garments in lieu of payment as they had insufficient funds. Several records of amobrwyr being violently assaulted when they showed up to collect the assessment, with the attackers being assessed further fines for the violence that could exceed the original assessment. Interestingly, though amobr could be assessed for illicit sex or re-marriage, evidently it was not assessed for certain non-marital cohabitation arrangements, thus creating a pressure in some cases to avoid formal marriage, although later this loophole was omitted. Similarly, in an earlier period an explicit professional prostitute was exempt from the payment (as contrasted with casual fornication) but later this loophole was also dropped.

A Land Now Vacant: Northeastern Wales as a Frontier, 1066–1283 -- Alexis Miller, Univ. of Missouri–Columbia

Question arises from a reference in the context of a dispute over ecclesiastical jurisdiction, where the region between the jurisdictions of Chester and Bangor is refered to as "a land now vacant". Area largely dependent on pastoral economy which proved a disincentive for settlers from the east (English of whatever flavor) along with geographic barriers. Place and personal names indicate the region remained largely Welsh up until the Edwardian conquest, although religious institutions showed more Anglo-Norman penetration. Welsh land tenure based on distribution of commonly-held land among kin groups with dispersed settlements (due to the logistics of seasonal pasturage and minimal arable land) linked by extended family relationships. Only significant town was Rhuddlan (near the mouth of the Clwyd). During the early Norman period, while there was significant foreign migration to South Wales, the migration to the north tended to be relocation of Welsh populations from other regions. Population density extremely low in comparative terms. The Norman landholders in this area recorded in Domesday tended to have more extensive holdings elsewhere and likely paid little attention to the area. In addition to the actual population density issue, there was an external perception that pastoral society was viewed as uncivilized and lazy, affecting perceptions of the value of the land and region. The relatively small amount of good arable land meant that the English habit of attracting and rewarding English settlers for newly established towns with land created disruption as the existing Welsh inhabitants of this type of land were relocated (or converted to English tenure). Some Welsh legal aspects remained, as records show that fees for landholding were still sometimes paid by the kin-group as a whole, rather than by individuals. But overall, despite population increases and shifts, there seem to have been only minor changes to the overall social and legal structures, even with the establishemend of English towns.

Chwedlau Odo: Middle Welsh Beast Fables -- Carol Witt, St. Michael’s College, Univ. of Toronto

(Speaker scratched.)

Live-Blogging Kalamazoo: Saturday 13:30

Feast and Famine: Abundance, Scarcity, and Power in the Medieval World

What Not to Eat: Excess and Moderation at the Medieval Catalan Table -- Donna M. Rogers, Dalhousie Univ.

Constraints on food based on health/medicine, religious ritual, etc. For Christian Europe, restrictions on consumption were regular and ritualized but in addition to notions of self-related reasons (piety, self-denial) the overt justification might also include societal reasons, e.g., restricting food consumption to be able to share with others. But underlying these ritualized restrictions, for much of the population the constraints were more practical based on practical limitations on both quantity and variety of what was available to eat. Major focus on grains and grain products in pre-plague Europe, but afterwards the lower population and greater labor needs of agriculture led to a higher proportion of animal content in the diet. Products and technologies introduced from the Arabic world, as in Iberia, could increase the variety and productivity of food products. Ingredients reflecting these influences include sugar, pomegrante, citron, chickpeas, saffron. Book of Saint Sovi & Libro del Coch include many recipes overtly associated with health, e.g., "for the sick". Treatise (missed the reference?) covering gluttony including drunkenness, and other health and behavior issues around consumption. Excerpt from a letter from a monk to a physician describing a patient's lavish diet requesting advice on consumption. (Includes useful information about meal structures.) The physician replies rather harshly, i.e., the virtuous choice is self-denial. The treatise goes on to courtesy and table manners. (There's a fair amount of reading excerpts for entertainment here.) Treatise conclude with advice for serving. (I think the treatise's author is something like "Eshemen"???)

The Manipulation of Feasting and Drinking Practices During the Christianization of Anglo-Saxon England -- Kevin Lasko, Catholic Univ. of America

Begins by discussing "drinking culture", i.e., how cultures interact with and understand the consumption of alcohol. (We now get some illustrative examples of modern American drinking culture to loosen up the audience.) Thesis is that Christian missionaries adapted and manipulated AS drinking practices to establish and promote Christian culture among the AS nobility. For the context of pre-Christian AS drinking culture he's using Beowulf and Tacitus's Germania which doesn't seem to bode well for the depth of investigation. Emphasis on generous hospitality, offering food and drink to anyone who arrives. Drinking as a context for serious political, social, and economic negotiations. Evidence for beer-like drink made from barley and wheat, less commonly wine via trade. Examples of women as a mediator for ritual drink consumption. Discussion of the changing symbolism of the drinking horn, comparing mention of drinking horns in an episode from the Voyage of Saint Brendan (who has what to do with Anglo-Saxons?) where the voyagers are tempted to steal some treasures including drinking horns. But the presenter claims this contextualizes drinking horns as a symbol of negative power (rather than a symbol of tempting wealth). The comparison is to an episode in the life of St. Cuthbert who turns water into wine by drinking from it. I'm confused how these things are supposed to relate to each other. Drinking culture in early medieval penitentials, esp. concerning drunkenness. Drunkenness not a sin if it comes from what one has been commanded to drink by a supervisor by a (religious) superior, contrasted with drunkenness done against a lord's prohibition. This is presented as a Christian versus pre-Christian contrast in culpability but I see it as a recognition of the mitigation of obedience in wrongdoing. Now we're contrasting a law regarding the stealing of a swarm of bees with a later tax paid in wine. This is again presented as a contrast between earlier "Germanic" versus later "Christian" concerns (honey=mead >> wine) but ... but ... oh, never mind. Excerpts from Bede, one concerning an excommunication including a prohibition on food and drink, the other concerning a sick man healed when sent a drink of wine in a chalice by a bishop.

(Note: he mentioned at the beginning that this paper is condensed from his Master's thesis. It definitely strikes me as student work. The examples are too superficial and tenuous to convince me of much of anything in areas I'm not familiar with. In fact, in my opinion, the argument structure alternates between self-contradictory, irrelevant, and incoherent.)

Perspectives on the Catalan Famine of 1333: Food History as Urban History -- Marie A. Kelleher, California State Univ.–Long Beach

Extreme weather conditions cause significant agricultural failures in Catalonia in 1332-35, but especially 1333, resulting in famine and widespread sickness. As her research progressed, the focus became less about the famine itself and more on how food issues help understand urban history. Research into famine tends to focus on quantitative research, rather than qualitative issues of choice, status, or ritual. But just as qualitative research can sketch an understanding of cultural history, can it reveal the history of a city? Food geographers can shed light on this topic by looking at networks tying together city, region, government, etc. Looking at 3 case studies that shed light on the city of Barcelona via food issues.

City as urban unit: Tension between natural and man-made geologies of food. Ordinances passed against food hoarding and other supply problems. Official correspondence grows increasingly panicked regarding shortages and their social consequences. Rumors circulated that the city councilors were hoarding grain themselves resulting in attacks and ransacking. The actions and reactions suggested a view of the crisis as an internal matter for the city, not an external problem.

City as member of network of cities: Barcelona had insufficient associated agricultural land to support itself, therefore competition between cities for available supplies became critical in time of shortage. When grain shipments intended for Barcelona were hijacked by a town they passed through, the defense was that the shipper couldn't prove that the grain belonged to the city and not to a speculator. This didn't go over well.

City as center of Mediterranean network: Portuguese fleet bringing grain from Sicily to Lisbon are hijacked by pirates and brought to Barcelona. Conflict between the Portuguese merchants and the Barcelonan pirate crews. The merchants complained to the courts in Barcelona to no avail and the cargos were sold within the city.

This crisis highlights the impact of extra-official agents and and groups on the outcome of legal and social processes.