After I posted my last entry, I realized that I started at the very end of manuscript production, so I feel like I should go back and post about the beginnings of medieval manuscripts, mainly those from the
Carolingian era. (Although now I realize this post is really about the late-Carolingian era and that I should probably go back even further!)
I am, by no means, an expert in this area, but what I do know is that this is the time-period when
Gospel Books were very popular with the ruling elite. During this period, the bible, in its entirety was a rare thing to come across, much more common are codexes like Gospel Books, which only contain parts of the biblical narrative. And these manuscripts were
sumptuous. The manuscript to the left comes from a monastery in Echternach (now Luxemborg). The backgrounds were often painted purple, and gold was used almost everywhere else. Usually they included lush illuminations of the 4 evangelists as well. (
Here's a bigger version of the image.)
Over in England, the monks were making this type of book as well. Another popular type of manuscript from this period is a
Psalter, which contains the Psalms and various prayers. The manuscript on the right was made by a monk named Eadui Basan, from Christ Church, Canterbury. The style of manuscripts in England is different, but this type of manuscript is a lavish affair no matter where it is made. On the right, David kills Goliath (a bigger image can be found
here).
These aren't the only types of manuscripts that were being made, of course. Only the richest, most powerful people and monasteries had sumptous gospel books and psalters. Among the other manuscripts that survive, most aren't as breath-taking in terms of their art-historical value. A great many of these manuscripts hardly have any decoration at all. These manuscripts are still amazing records of medieval technology, however. The manuscript on the left uses trypical black ink, with red ink for the capitals and headings. The scriptorium must have been conserving their vellum, because in the center of the bottom red capital, there is a big hole on the page! The scribe, very ingeniously, worked around this problem, and made it a feature of his manuscript! It's little things like that, which make me smile when I'm looking through a manuscript. (
Here's a bigger image.)
I am, by no means, an expert in this area, but what I do know is that this is the time-period when Gospel Books were very popular with the ruling elite. During this period, the bible, in its entirety was a rare thing to come across, much more common are codexes like Gospel Books, which only contain parts of the biblical narrative. And these manuscripts were sumptuous. The manuscript to the left comes from a monastery in Echternach (now Luxemborg). The backgrounds were often painted purple, and gold was used almost everywhere else. Usually they included lush illuminations of the 4 evangelists as well. (Here's a bigger version of the image.)
Over in England, the monks were making this type of book as well. Another popular type of manuscript from this period is a Psalter, which contains the Psalms and various prayers. The manuscript on the right was made by a monk named Eadui Basan, from Christ Church, Canterbury. The style of manuscripts in England is different, but this type of manuscript is a lavish affair no matter where it is made. On the right, David kills Goliath (a bigger image can be found here).
These aren't the only types of manuscripts that were being made, of course. Only the richest, most powerful people and monasteries had sumptous gospel books and psalters. Among the other manuscripts that survive, most aren't as breath-taking in terms of their art-historical value. A great many of these manuscripts hardly have any decoration at all. These manuscripts are still amazing records of medieval technology, however. The manuscript on the left uses trypical black ink, with red ink for the capitals and headings. The scriptorium must have been conserving their vellum, because in the center of the bottom red capital, there is a big hole on the page! The scribe, very ingeniously, worked around this problem, and made it a feature of his manuscript! It's little things like that, which make me smile when I'm looking through a manuscript. (Here's a bigger image.)
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