Search Results (7)

The twelfth-century Beneventan manuscripts of the Cathedral Chapter Library of Benevento constitute a largely understudied corpus of medieval illumination, whose material composition has not yet been investigated. This paper presents an in situ non-invasive multi-analytical investigation of three of these codices: Ms. 7 and Ms. 17 (Sanctorale), and Ms. 19 (Missal–Breviary) assigned to two different production environments, through a workflow combining elemental/molecular spectroscopy with point-based and Vis-NIR hyperspectral imaging and high-resolution microscopy. The study examines pigments, binders, and inks, across the three manuscripts, with the aim of establishing an exploratory research protocol that combines autoptic observations and diagnostic analyses to characterising and comparing manuscript production environments. The principal pigments identified across the three manuscripts are cinnabar, natural ultramarine (lapis lazuli), a copper-based green, and lead white, with iron-gall ink consistently present for text writing. Notable differences between the two production environments include the use of orpiment versus an unidentified organic lake for yellow, and the presence of minium, a red–purple lake, and gold exclusively in Ms. 19. A particularly significant finding is the use of iron gall ink, employed across all three manuscripts as a writing medium and as a pigment for modulating tonal values. Moreover, a brown ink was identified in preparatory underdrawings and decorative details, but its composition remains undetermined. Full article

This article addresses Alfonso’s miracle about a vision of the Virgin to the Pope and Emperor which foretold the snow which was to fall in August in Rome. Little has been written about the feast of Holy Mary of the Snows with regard to the Cantigas de Santa Maria (CSM), the Marian miracle collection compiled by Alfonso X, King of Castile and Leon. However, the feast of Holy Mary of the Snows begins to appear in Castilian and Leonese breviaries from the very beginning of the fourteenth century, shortly after the death of Alfonso in 1284. Comparing the near-contemporary versions of the miracle reveals that Alfonso’s version of the miracle foregrounds the relationship of the Pope and Emperor, whereas the liturgical versions include the vision of the Pope as well as of the Patrician John and his wife. This article concludes that Alfonso, seeking to promote his imperial ambitions, may have brought this miracle and others back to Castile. No trace of the miracle exists in the kingdom before Alfonso’s CSM. Alfonso sought to emphasize the collaboration of Pope and Emperor which suited his purpose. The foundation of the Basilica dedicated to the Virgin in Rome paralleled the cathedral founded in the city of Seville, recently conquered by his father. Full article

This article analyses the iconographic cycle of the Sacristy of the Virgin in the Basílica del Pilar, with the aim of unveiling the complex system of visual symbols present in its bas-reliefs. Through a typological and exegetical approach, the study examines the various Marian representations, highlighting their connection with Old Testament, Patristic, Scholastic, and Baroque traditions. The research demonstrates how these visual emblems embody the principles of Divine Motherhood, purity, Co-Redemptrix, and the Virgin’s spiritual superiority. Furthermore, it explores the relationship between the carvings and hermeneutic and emblematic literature, revealing how tradition and devotion intertwine to configure a genuine Baroque iconographic breviary. The findings allow for an interpretation of Mary not only as an object of worship but also as a theological paradigm and aesthetic model of divine perfection, thus offering a comprehensive vision of Baroque Mariology and of the didactic and devotional function of the Sacristy of the Virgin. Full article

This article investigates the role of hagiography as a mediating genre between Scripture and liturgy. Hagiographical readings for saints (legenda) have been featured in the office of Matins in Rome from at least the eighth century. By the early modern period, these texts came under scrutiny for a lack of historical credibility, a concern echoed in the reform of the breviary after the Second Vatican Council which pruned the office of much legendary material. Yet recent scholarship on hagiography suggests that the dominant postconciliar concern—historicity—failed to fully understand the genre. Legenda were not bad history, but forms of narrative exegesis, a means to “display to the faithful fitting examples for their imitation” (SC 111). The liturgical function of the hagiographical readings emerges clearly in four case studies comparing Matins of the Breviarum Romanum 1568 to the Liturgia Horarum of 1971 for Agatha, Cecilia, Agnes, and Lucy. These feasts demonstrate both the motivation and the result of the directive to reform the readings of the saints to accord with the “facts of history” (SC 92c). This study demonstrates the need for further work on these understudied hagiographical readings, which use the liturgical and Scriptural context to propose saints as living extensions of the Gospel, rendered concrete and attractive through narrative. Full article

In the last 40 years, the exegesis of the Psalms has made it increasingly clear that the Psalms should be read as a coherent book, since the individual Psalms are linked together by iuxtapositio and concatenatio. They are not just isolated poems but tell a story, the story of David, God’s anointed king who is persecuted and suffers, but ultimately is triumphant—a Christological story. This article examines how the principle of lectio continua of the Psalter is taken into account in the breviaries of Pius V, Pius X and Paul VI, and it shows what problems arise when it is disregarded. Full article

Medieval colors used in illuminated manuscripts from the 12th to 15th centuries can be at risk. Knowing the binding media used, the medieval tempera, is fundamental to developing new and greener methodologies to increase sustainability in Cultural Heritage. A closer look at the tempera used in medieval illuminated manuscripts kept in Portuguese collections, namely, the Ajuda Songbook (13th c.), the winter breviary (14th to 15th c.), the books of hours (15th c.), and a Renaissance Charter (1512), shows that most of the paints analyzed used a tempera similar to gum mesquite. Infrared spectra were the basis for the differentiation between the gums used in medieval times originating from Prosopis spp. and Senegalia spp., gum mesquite and gum arabic, respectively. The ethnobotanical uses of gum mesquite further engage the reader. This micro review represents a significant step forward in Heritage Conservation, offering new perspectives for innovative and greener treatments. Our research, focusing on the differentiation of gums used in medieval times and the identification of the binding media, has the potential to revolutionize our understanding and the preservation of illuminated manuscripts in Cultural Heritage. Full article

Devotions in the Ancient Way of Offices was first published as a Catholic primer for worship between intimates, then reformed for individual Protestant worship, and then reformed again for Protestant worship between intimates. Each adaptation engages the so-called “ancient” quality of its offices, primarily medieval, as authorization for the kinds of domestic worship it promotes. I examine how the author and adapters of the text authorize their creative and adaptive devotional texts through a nostalgic interpretation of medieval worship practices as uniquely representative of the worship practices of the early church. While confessional debates had polarized discussions about the lineage of the church, this text represents a trend in seventeenth-century Protestant devotional primers attempting to reconcile spiritual divisions by re-introducing Protestant believers to pre-Reformation practices of domestic devotion. Full article