Vienna Moralized Bible Illumination Analysis

Extract

[...] In the upper register, a text is read on what could be likened to a lintel. The cartouche in question bears the following inscription: 'HERE: CRY: DEX: HEAVEN: AND: EARTH: SUN: MOON: AND: ALL: ELEMENTS'. As we will see, the study of iconographic attributes allows us to identify the central character of the composition. Around his head, a golden circle is clearly distinguishable. It is the nimbus, derived from the Latin nimbus, referring to the idea of irradiation of the head. [...]

[...] Written in 1246 and promoted to a certain success, The Image of the World of Gautier de Metz contributed to the dissemination of this conception. From then on, the illumination in question can be read as the representation of the creation of the world by the architect God. As we will see, the context of the image confirms this interpretation. After having brought the illumination into a scene of the Creation of the world by an architect God, it is now necessary to shed light on certain details. [...]

[...] Through this simple instrument, the image acquires an additional dimension that anchors it in a long time placed under the seal of God as we will see. As we recalled above, the Vienna Moralized Bible is centered on the Old Testament. The illumination analyzed here directly precedes a commented passage from Genesis. The first book of the Bible, Genesis relates the story of origins, particularly that of the first human couple, Adam and Eve, who after disobeying are excluded from the Garden of Eden. [...]

[...] Composed of 131 folios, it contains 1032 illuminated medallions. Another notable particularity, it is entirely written in vernacular language, Old French. As for its content, the manuscript contains only a part of the Old Testament, from Genesis to the fourth book of Kings 20). Represented on the first folio, the illumination here commented occupies the entire parchment and opens the moralized Bible. In the course of our discussion, we will ask ourselves to what extent this illumination informs us about the conception of the world in the Middle Ages. [...]

[...] The Vienna Moralized Bible (c. 1215-1230) - To what extent does this illumination inform us about the conception of the world in the Middle Ages? The Vienna Moralized Bible If the very term of 'Moralized Bible' is attested in sources only at the beginning of the 15th century,e century1, This type of manuscript appears two centuries earlier, at the threshold of the 13th century,e century. It would seem that Blanche of Castile (1188-1252) - daughter, wife and mother of kings - was behind the first commissions. [...]