Old St. Peter’s Basillica – c. 319 CE – Comissioned by Constantine. Most important to Catholics. One exists on the same spot. The old one doesn’t exist anymore. St. Peter was one of Jesus’ disciples (1 of 12). Jesus says to him, you’re the rock, the foundation upon which I will build my church. Peter considered the first Pope. Peter in Italian, Pietro (rock). Tomb could be there. Vatican has grown up around it. Basillica, Roman emperors were still building them for law courts – Christians found that the buildings worked well for their worship. Entered through round arches, courtyard. Narthex, “entrance proper”. Long center aisle, Nave. Side aisles. Roof of Nave is higher than side aisles for Clear Story. Apse (usually held enthroned image of the emperor) put the alter there. Aisle perpendicular to the Nave “Transept”, intersected with the longitudinal nave (cross). Did not sit, people stood and focused attention on the alter where the priest performed the mass. Alter was the most important part. Allowed people to focus on it. When the Round arch springs from the capital, aracade. Colonade on the Nave  Timber roof. Mosaic, just a fragment of a part that had been in the apse. Common in early Christian/Byzantine churches. Early Christians used glass mosaics up high and they sparkle with the light. Also laid sheets of gold leaf, adhered to the glass. Gold symbolically stands for the light of heaven. The fragment on the right is Paul (frequently depicted with Peter, both imprisoned and killed in Rome for preaching – Peter crucified upside down out of deference to his Master, Paul was beheaded). Modeling present (light and dark). Now most of it dates from the 17^th century. Cistine chapel, Michelangelo painted ceiling. Inside is ornate and richly decorated.

Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus – c. 359 CE – Sculpture not prevalent in Christian art. No graven images. Some rare sculptures of Jesus. Most sculpture on sarcophagi. Junius Bassus high government official, inscription on the top showing his name. All works depicted are from the Bible, normally would show face of deceased but not on this one. Mostly about the life of Christ, some old testament. Marble, just under 4’ feet tall, 8 feet long. In museum at the Vatican.  10 compartments. Basic theme between each is suffering, sacrifice, trials, tribulations for Christians – went through a lot just to be Christian – Suffered similarity to Jesus. Jesus flanked by Peter and Paul (heraldic).  Jesus riding on a Donkey, the last week of his life, entered Jerusalem, crucified at the end of the week (entered on a Sunday, Palm Sunday). Thursday, eating last meal with disciples, captured on Friday and crucified. Easter Sunday, triumphs over death – 40 days spent on Earth, ascends to Heaven. Jesus brought before Pilot, Herod, Cayathus, Anis, found him innocent, wash hands of everything. Crowd elects to crucify Jesus.  Peter taken prisoner, Paul being led to martyrdom. Lions den. No nudity – the only time we will see it where the Bible warrants it (2 places – Adam and Eve, Genesis – 2 sons, garden of Eden, blissfully naked, knowledge of good and evil – sent out of garden, have to hide their nakedness. Last judgment also shows nudity [Egyptian book of the Dead] souls naked before God). Entering a  symbolic era of art – not about world around us, rather the spiritual world. Bodies will not look anatomically correct, not looking at the world around us. Modeling, perspective, go away.

Mosaic of the Good Shepard, Mausoleum of Galla Placidia – c. 425 CE – I am the good shepard, sheep are followers. Jesus. Again symbolic. Holding a cross. 3 sheep on each side, nicely symmetrical, rocks and sheep looking stylized – reverting. Modeling attempted with grey tesserae. 

Purse Cover from Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, England. C 625 – Found in a ship burial (on land, entire ship buried). Purse itself not existent, this is just the clasp. Decorated in a cloisonné, solder strips of metal onto, place stones and precious metals between the strips. Draw a line down the middle, symmetrical. Eagle capturing a duck, beak fitting convexly into concave duck’s beak. Human being shown (rare, much like prehistoric art), being attacked by two animals, heraldic arrangement perhaps being protected. Interlace – abstract patterning of line, dizzying, very intricate and symmetrical – Eastern influence. 

Monastery Reconstruction and Plan – c. 819, St. Gaul, Switzerland. Have the original architectural rendering in a library. Copying the Bible and keeping learning alive. Teach, operated like schools and taught. Like autonomous cities, raised cattle, mill, press, barn, garden, kitchen, almondry, trees, barrels. Main part was the church – Latin cross with longer nave, shorter transept. Apse. Latrine outside. Refectory – near kitchen where they ate. Dormitory. Cloister, outdoor spa with flowers. Scriptorium – where they copied the gospels – considered a sacred responsibility. Guest house. School. Abbot. Leaching and physician together (thought they could leach out sickness). 

St. Matthew, Gospel Book of Charlemagne – Supposedly on his knees when opened his tomb in ~1000. C 800-810. Light and shadow in his robes, modeling! 1000 thought to be the end of the world. Came and went, Thanks God, we’ll build a bunch of churches.

Crucifix of Archbishop Gero, c. 970 – Cathedral Cologne, Germany – Painted wood, 6ft tall. Suffering Christ, Christus Patiens, hanging heavily on the cross, bloated belly, suffering under torture. Expressive art. Art of this area is very graphic and expressive, sometimes disturbing, intended to make viewer dwell on the pain. Four nails in this depiction (more common of the middle ages, 3 nails earlier interpretation, sometimes 2 nails, Romans thought to have used only rope, no nails). 

San Vitale, 526-547 Ravenna, Italy – Like Mausoleum of Galla Facidia, covered in mosaics. Local banker paid 26,000 gold coins (350 lbs of gold) to pay for the decoration of this place. Inside looking toward the apse, Jesus on an orb (the world) he is the king. Building plan is an octagon, ambulatory on the inside. Reserved more for martyrial churches (saint Vitale). New type of capital, inventing new types of capitals often with Biblical imagery. 

Apse Mosaic, San Vitale – Jesus in the middle (know its him, not God. In his halo there is a cross. Holy people with have a halo, suggests divinity in art). Inscription telling us the name of the man, Bishop under whom the building of the church began, handing a model of San Vitale to an angel, dedicating it to Jesus. Tesserae again at angles to catch and reflect light. Artist included other precious materials (mother of pearl for example) in addition to gold leaf. Jesus handing a crown to Saint Vitale, reach for the crown with covered hands out of reverence for the sacred nature of receiving something touched by Jesus. Attempt to model to suggest folds in drapery and in the faces to suggest three dimensional form. 

Justinian and Attendents, Chancel mosaic, San Vitale c. 547 – Justinian never traveled here, just sent his generals. Knew what he looked like, portrait. Wearing royal purple – denotes royalty – Christ wears purple often. Maximiamus, bishop when Church was finished. Carrying cross. Another man carrying, incense to make it smell better, dirty time. 12 people attending him, symbolic of the 12 disciples. Justinian wears a halo, not divine but has been given his power to rule by divinity. He represents the divine. Stylistically – float, don’t really stand firmly on the ground, attempt at modeling, motionless in front of flat gold background. Shield of Justinian’s men, Greek letters, first three letters of Jesus’s name. Mother of pearl in the crown. Justinian holding a platter of bread

Theodora and her attendents, Chancel Mosaic, San Vitale  c. 547 – holding a chalice. Priest presents the Eucharist, bread and wine passed around. Symbolic reenactment of last supper with his disciples. Jesus said to them, take eat this is my body broken for your sins. This is my blood, poured for your sins. Main focus of the mass. Justinian and Theodora presenting to Christ above them. Elaborate dresses on her and attendents. Mother of pearl on her headdress. Jewelry, rings. On Theodorra’s hem, 2.5 figures – adoration of the magi – when Jesus is born, bible tells of wise men from east traveled 12 days gifts, pay homage to him. doesn’t really say three in the bible, in art, always see three because bible says three gifts were given. Bringing gifts much like Theodora and Justinian. Number three is significant in Christian belief in symbolism (3 persons, God the father, Jesus and holy spirit – trinity).  

Abraham Mosaic, San Vitale 526-547 – Story from Genesis, tells us about Abraham and Sara. Visited by three angels and tell them they are going to have a son. Miraculously. Named Isaac. Feed the angels a meal and very happy to have a child. God tests Abrahams faith and commands him to take his only son and sacrifice him. Abraham obeys and puts him on a alter and angel stops him before he actually does it. Prefiguration of new testament, in which God sacrafices his own son – this is known as TYPOLOGY – scene from the old testament model for something in the New Testament. God represented as a hand descending from the sky, early period. In the Bible, many references to the hand of God. 

Hagia Sophia – 532-537, Constantinople (Istanbul), Turkey. Means “Holy Wisdom”. Domed middle and semi-domes. Large church. Inside filled with light (symbolic for Christians). 40 Windows in the clearstory of the dome (40 days on Earth after Jesus resurrected, 40 days Noah’s Ark). Windows all over. Square nave, angular with corners. How do you set round dome on angular bottom, use wedge shaped triangular areas, to provide transition from circle to angular bottom pendentives.

Monastery of St. Catherine, Mt. Sinai, Egypt – Women only allowed in recently.
Virgin and Child – 6^th or 7^th Century – Mary holding Jesus, on her left side, sit on the throne, halos, symmetrical with saints or angels on either side. This is the prototype for Madonna, Mary with Jesus. After 431 when she was declared Theotokos. George and Theodore shown here, put to death in ancient roman times, flank mary and Jesus. Two angels behind them, pointing to hand of god. Egypt Christianized, buried mummies in wooden ones and painted them with likeness, encaustic mix hot wax with pigments and then painted image. Used here in this. Sylistically – trace a line vertically through Jesus and mary’s halo, and horizontally through saint’s halo makes a cross. Real gold leaf in halos, designs made on them, technique called tooling. People prayed to these icons, point at which they believed in front of whatever saint you were praying in front of that the saint could see and hear you, pholiturgical powers. If you prayed reverently enough, she would answer prayers. 

Rebecca and Eliezer at the Well, Vienna Genesis, early 6^th century – Codex, starting to replace the scroll in the late Roman empire. Codex much easier to reference, had covers. First book existent still today with scenes from the Bible, scenes from Genesis. Now in Vienna, Austria. The pages are dyed purple, royal color, probably produced for high byzantine person, perhaps an emperor. The inks are gold and silver, most people didn’t read. Had to be wealthy and learned. 1 ft high by 9 inches. Not on paper but animal skin, this is on calf skin vellum. Press dried to be very thin and durable. Sometimes the scribe drew the illuminations but more often it was two different people, perhaps a third to bind the pages. Isaac suitable wife, send Eliezer to the well, Rebecca meets first and he chooses her, she’s just left her town and walked past pillars with empty jug, personification of stream, finds well where she will fill jug where eliezer, ends up as Isaacs wife. Rebecca and Isaac have to twins, Jacob and (?), Jacob wrestles with angel – page is purple (very expensive dye from sea animals in the Mediterranean , lettering is Greek which tells us it’s Greek. Jacob has two wives, and sons Joseph and Benjamin, Joseph sent to find his brothers. Stylized and divided into registers. Illuminated Manuscript, done by hand. 24 out of what might have been as many as 90 illuminations

Church of St. Sernin, c. 1070-1120 – Died terrible death, tied to bulls and shoved off a cliff. Saint during ancient Roman empire. Martyred, lived in the 3^rd century. Big church, pilgrimage church. Towns in Europe growing up, replacing the monasteries and universities start becoming the center of education. Feudal system starts to erode. Traveled to sacred spots, culminate in the crusades when they travel to the middle east, trying to go to the holy lands and convert non-Christians. Pilgrimages to any church that held relics of saints (such as St. Peter’s). Relic – bit, piece, part, clothing, something that touched the saint – believed to hold power, churches owned these. People traveled to Toulouse, on the route towards other pilgrimage spots. Lots of room inside for people to come venerate, worship and donate, could become very wealthy. Lots of stuff connected to Jesus, not much connected to Mary (body went to heaven when she died). Reliquary, cased in silver often, glass case so you can look at it. Another basilica plan, transept, nave narthex, latin cross. Round arches indicative of this period. Rounded areas were chapels to house relics, radiating chapels.
Inside – clearstory and windows not very big – makes everything a little dark. 5 radiating chapels (wounds of Christ). Side aisles had groin vaults. Main nave barrel vault. Can walk all the way up the side aisles, around the transept, and view the chapels – ambulatory. Modular, ½ of crossing square makes a section of columns, width of nave section is double the side aisle section or bay, Nave bay is twice the width of the side aisle bay. 11 side aisle bays. Arches are transverse, cross the nave, start as an engaged column, spring across the nave and meets as another engaged column. Not ottonian square pier, but a bundle of engaged columns – compound pier –

4 major problems with building churches in Romanesque and Gothic 1)size, 2)stable vaulting, 3)adequate illumination, 4)aesthetically pleasing.

Mission of the Apostles Church of Sainte Madeline  1104-1132 – heavily sculptured doors, so person entering would immediately start thinking spiritually. Lots of exterior portal sculpture. Reminiscent of Greek pediment sculpture. 3^rd crusade started from here, 2^nd crusade preach given here, 1^st speech supposedly here. Crusaders and traders traveled, encourages trade and exchange of culture and ideas and economic growth. Tympanum, Jesus with apostles on each side, telling them to go. Men of other lands have dog faces and pig snouts, dwarfs. Jesus shown bigger than apostles, indicates importance. Drapery travels in whirls, like manuscript, stylistic. Jesus is too long, attenuated. Cross in his halo, in an almond shape, mandorla, indicates divinity. 
Tympanum – Part above the lintel (like the pediment) heavily sculptured. Didactic – teaching depiction. 

3 reasons for church decoration

1)      Didactic

2)      Beautify god’s house

3)      Inspire worshiper to think heavenly thoughts

Trumeau –Main vertical post in the middle
Jamb – Side vertical posts
Tympanum
Lentil
Archivolts – Around the tympanum, voussoirs were the individual bricks of the archivolt.

Giselbertus, Last Judgment c. 1120-1135, Sain-Lazare, Autun, France – Lived during Jesus time and was raised from the dead by him. Had been dead for four days, starting to decompose. One of the miracles he performed. Lazarus was Mary Magdalene’s brother. This portal shows the scene of the last judgment, most common. Jesus in the middle, in mandorla and with cruciform halo. Giselbertus (sculptor, signed It very unusual for the middle ages). Portal sculptures would have been painted, possibly gilded (this one was). Inscription in latin that talks about your last judgment “may this terror frighten those who are bound by worldly error, it will be true just as the horror of this images indicates”. Jesus bigger, attenuated, on his right is heaven shown as Romanesque, people in the lentil are waiting to be judged, scales weighing the souls (book of the dead). Convention of good on the right, 40 days on earth passage says that he went to the right hand of God. Crucifixions show good people on right of Jesus, bad people on his left. 

Saint-Etienne 1067 – Caen, France St. Steven’s, commissioned by William the Conqueror, 1066 Battle of Hastings won. Died in 1087. Round arches on towers, Gothic tops of the towers. Common now in this era of France to have two towers flanking the nave. Central door, two side aisle doors. Lots of number symbolism. Inside: 3 story elevation (bottom ‘nave arcade’, top ‘clear story’, middle walkway ‘tribune’). Ceiling of the nave ‘rib’s going across (intersection round transverse arches and diagonal transverse arches form groin vaults, form 6 part vaulting)

Bayeux Tapestry, c. 1070-1080 – Bayeux France – Embroidery upon which people would make stiches on top of the fabric. Misnomer, tapestries are made on a loom. Commissioned by William the Conqueror’s brother who was a Bishop, 230 ft long in church of Bayeux. Not sure who made it. 1 ft 8 inches tall. 50 scenes, 600 figures, 700 animals, 2,000 letters. Trajan’s column, Parthenon procession scene. Don’t know why it’s in a church, it’s a secular thing. 

Cathedral begun c. 1190, Laon France- two towers (standard now), a rose window, and lots of points.

There are some round arches but still has very many point. Romanesque churches had few windows

and a lot of wall space. In gothic they have dematerialization of the walls where there are spaces. In the

towers you can see all the way through them. Dematerialization will decrease stone and wall space. The

rose window is stained glass, the pieces are held together by pieces of stones called tracery. In early

gothic tracery is thick called plate. Late in gothic it will get thinner and be called bar tracery. There are

three stained glass windows that are tall with a slight poit at the top, these are called lancets. Inside

piers are holding up. There are transversing columns with ribs. There are the nave archade on bottom,

a gallery above, above that is the triforium (called this because there are usually three arches), and then

the clear story. This church is different because the apse is squared off like English do it. Has six-point

vaulting in the nave. There are 11 bays in the nave. Stained glass windows in red, blue, green, yellow,

and whites. Windows are filled with biblical imagery. Stained glass windows are also for the three

reasons. They don’t let in as much light as clear glass. Vaulting is 80 ft high.

Cathedral of Notre-Dame 1163 Paris, France- dedicated to Mary, oriented toward the east. Still two

towered. Architects did a four story elevation for the façade (4 for the number of gospels). There is

a rose with tracery. The third level is dematerialized into a lacey wall, very light and airy. There are

the three portals with stories. The center portal has the last judgment like in the Romanesque period

reminding you to behave because if not you’re going to hell. He is enthroned. Inside there are lancet

windows in the apse. Vaulting is 105 ft high. Apse is separated into five wedge shapes (5=number of

wounds). The transept is odd because the transept arms are truncated, cut off. The vaulting is six-part.

In the apse there are five bays, in the nave there are twice as many. This will become popular 1x2.

There is the nave arcade, the triphorium, and the clear story which is more standard with three part

elevation. The cathedral is set on an island in the river in paris. Flying buttresses (a support)- they spring

up to the clear story to help support. The buttresses are attached to a vertical post (they are typical in

gothic period because with dematerialization you need more support). Three major characteristics of

the gothic- buttresses, the rose, and the pointed arch. The north and south transepts rose are held up by

iron armliture to be able to take them down in war time.

Cathedral Chartes, France c. 1145-1155, rebuilt after 1194 – Fire in 1194, west façade dates before that most burned down. Rebuilt it even bigger and better. Holds a relic of Mary, her veil (no body remember). Dominate the countryside, visible from miles around. 80 cathedrals dedicated to virgin Mary in the Gothic period. Civic competition, economic and spiritual rivalry drove. South arm and north arm of the transept (when façade faces west, apse oriented to the east holy land). Elevations of the interiors, becomes standard to have three divisions in the nave – nave arcade, trophorium, clearstory. 120 ft. 4 part vaulting from now on. 7 bays in the nave (days in creation), 4 in the choir.
Cathedral, Chartes France, North Transept Rose window and lancets – has the most intact stained glass work. Rose window (tracery- stone pieces around rose window, quite fat called “plate”, tracery gets thinner and more eleant). Two more roses on the North and South transepts. All three roses dedicated to virgin Mary. North – 43 ft in diameter (designer, cut class, paint, fire it, put together, held together in iron armature, goes up in stone tracery). Complex spiritual program, Mary sits in the middle holding baby Jesus. 12 prophets in the half moon shape on the outside. 12 diamond shapes hold 12 old testament kings (David right above Mary), believed to be ancestors of Christ. Right above Mary, 4 doves, symbol of holy spirit. Around Mary, 12 smaller panels of glass with fleur de li, lily with strait petals, symbol for France (important because it was a gift from the queen of France to Chartes). 12 Four-leaf clover with 4 fleur de li inside (called quatre-foil). Vertical stain glass has the fleur de li everywhere. In yellow on red we see 3 castles Blanche the queen was from Spain (Castille, word for castle).
Pointed vertical panels called – Lancets 5 of them here (wounds). Middle it’s Mary’s mother (Anne) holding baby Mary, 4 male figures flanking (Christ’s genealogy). 1000s of images all around the cathedral.

4 main developments:

1.       Getting taller, heightening

2.       Demateriaslization of the wall space (less wall means more light)

3.       Increased lighting

4.       Pointed arches get more pointed

3 roles of Mary

1.       Intercessor (afraid of Jesus, turn to nurturing mother)

2.       Mother of God

3.       Queen of Heaven

3 ingredients of Gothic recipe

1.       Stain glass

2.       Pointed arch

3.       Flying buttress

Cathedral, Reims, France – c. 1225-1290 – Coronation church of the French kings. Different kings underneath the arches on the west façade (really pointed arches). Two towered façade, 3 porches and pointed arches. No sculpture in the tympanum instead there’s stained glass. Slender tracery, quatre-foil, rose with elegant tracery, pointy pointy pointy point. Can see through the towers and second story. Delicate tracery patterns looking through to the sky, flying buttresses (support cleastory, exterior) visible, no walls. Tall very pointed arches. 127 ft inside. Above main portal, Mary with angels being crowned by Jesus. Trumeau, Mary holding babyJ. Queen of heaven takes on even more relevance when there are powerful Queens (Kings off on crusades, fighting wars). Center portal, right jamb – four figures illustrate Mary in annunciation (Gabriel announcing to Mary, bare son of God, March 25, god becoming man - incarnation), and visitation [Mary visits Elizabeth her cousin, both pregnant, along with John the Baptist who was Jesus’ cousin] (made by 3 different artists, c. 1230-1255). (visitation)Two with sharp drapery folds, almost classical. Another with nice attempt at showing body underneath the drapery (Mary, annunciation). Third artist made the angel (body is in a s curve, elegant swaying pose that comes towards the end of the Gothic period. All four in contrapposto. Shows a return to realism at the end of the Gothic.
Interior – more space given to windows, apse shows windows really pointed. 4 part vaulting. Radiating chapels. 

Cathedral of Notre-Dame, 1220, Amiens, France – John the Baptist’s relics here. Kings of France very powerful, purchased the relics. Towers 14^th and 15^th century, church itself in 1200s. Tympanum has a last judgment sculpture. Jesus in the Trumeau, blessing, welcoming, kind god. 144 ft. Attempted 157 ft but collapsed (near by town). Complete, totally high gothic. Again, four part vaulting. 7 bays, 4 in choir area. Apse has 7 pie shaped wedges. Radiating chapels. Apex of the Gothic period. Pointedness increases. Excellent compound piers. Quatre-foil (4 lobes), troisfoil (3 lobes) shown here atop lancet shaped tracery. In second level, complete dematerialization. Light delicate, allows you to see through windows. 2^nd level in choir area given away to stain glass, below clearstory. Architecture becoming less substantial, sculpture becoming more substantial. 

Sainte-Chapelle, 1243-1248, Paris, France – Louis IX. Royal palace was attached, royal family could just walk from palace to chapel without going outside. Louis and immediate surrounding loyals didn’t have to mingle with lesser beings. Huge rose window, elegant tracery. In the middle of the Seine river. 6450 sq ft of stained glass. No walls. Complete dematerialization. ~49 ft high, 15 ft wide (each section). Extensive iconography from old testament and new testament, myriad of shapes in panels. Alter with tabernacle, housed relics. Louis’ relative (last byzantine emperor) Louis IX purchases relics from him, carries relics through Paris barefoot. Crown of thorns among them. Taken down during French revolution for safety, they are supposedly now in treasury of Notre Dame – inside a reliquary that is totally closed. Downstairs, less elaborate. Beautifully painted, gilded. Yellow fleur de li on blue painted column signifies France. Yellow castles here again on red columns (Blanche of Castille was Louis IX’s mother) equal number of columns with French columns.