![]() ![]() This book was created at some point between 14 and it opens up with a beautiful albeit "exuberant pen decoration" 4 as well as the coat of arms for Kaspar II Augsburger and the monastery of St. 3Īt the core of my exhibit, I have chosen folio 1 from Thomas à Kempis', Imatio Christi. As a result, these after the fact additions can be very useful for art historians. The notes and scribbles in the margin reveal things such as past ownership or reader notes. Furthermore, marginal content tends to be added to the page without planning. While bas-de-page illustration deals strictly with content found at the bottom of the page, marginal illustration and notation can be found anywhere on the page. Randall argues that the protest against bas-de-page illustration had died out due to ecclesiastic, social, economic, and intellectual changes. The Cistercian monk's opposition stems from “a protest against both the distractive influence and the extravagance of this type of ornament.” 2 By the end of the thirteenth century, Lilian M. Few instances of opposition occur when it comes to bas-de-page illustration, but the most notable instance comes from Bernard of Clairvaux. Surprisingly, these illustrations are marked by a widespread tolerance. As Krystyna Weinstein states “fewer conventions limited their imagination when it came to the bas de page,” 1 and as a result, we are left with many manuscripts (often times religious) containing secular, ars profana. Thematically, bas de page illustrations can range from coat’s of arms to comical depictions of animals. However, this does not mean that the illustrations need to relate to the text directly. More specifically, these illustrations tend to come at the bottom of a body of text. Bas de page illustration is the term used to describe any illustrative content that exists at the bottom of a manuscript page. Randal, I thought it might be interesting to explore what might be found in the gutters of the cornerstone of medieval artistry.īefore exploring any manuscript it is important that the terms bas de page and marginal content be defined. Following the lead of art historians like Lilian M. Part of my reason for exploring this topic is because of the interesting nature of the imagery but also because so much time is spent on the main content of a manuscript (for obvious reasons). From learning about provenance to gaining insight into a manuscripts production, the margin and the bottom of the page are key to understanding the Medieval Period. Information that would otherwise have been lost to time or interpretation is solidified by these insightful insertions. ![]() The argument that I am looking to make is centered around the idea that the peripheral imagery located around the central content of a manuscript can often times shed more light on a manuscript's history than the main content itself. Often times this content will also be called bas de page illustration. Indeed, for many areas and time periods, they are the only surviving examples of painting.The focus of my exhibition will be tied to the use of marginal imagery within European illuminated manuscripts from the medieval time period. They are also the best surviving specimens of medieval painting. Illuminated manuscripts are the most common type of artifact to survive from the middle ages. Most medieval manuscripts, illuminated or not, were written on parchment (most commonly calf, sheep,or goat skin) or vellum (calf skin).īeginning in the late middle ages manuscripts began to be produced on paper. A very few illuminated manuscript fragments survive on papyrus. Most illuminated manuscripts were created as codices, although many illuminated manuscripts were rolls or single sheets. However, especially from 13th century onward, an increasing number of secular texts were illuminated. The majority of these manuscripts are of a religious nature. The vast majority of surviving manuscripts are from the Middle Ages, although many illuminated manuscripts survive from the 15th century Renaissance, along with a very limited number from late antiquity. However, in both common usage and modern scholarship, the term is now used to refer to any decorated manuscript. In the strictest definition of the term, an illuminated manuscript only refers to manuscripts decorated with gold or silver. National Library of Israel, JerusalemĪn illuminmanuscript is a manuscript in which the text is supplemented by the addition of decoration or illustration, such as decorated initials, borders and miniatures. Illuminated manuscript on parchment of the Pentateuch, in Hebrew.
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