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Romanesque North

Northern Spain is littered with Romanesque Art and Architecture.  A huge restoration project recently recieved the prestigious Europa Nostra Medal 2013

Románico Norte – or Romanesque North – is the name of a huge and impressive project in Northern Spain. From 2005 to 2012 a plan was laid to institute a complete restoration of 54 churches in the diocese of Palencia and Burgos, in the old Merindad Aguilar de Campo district. The geographical area covered by the Plan focuses on the North Eastern part of the Northwest province of Palencia and Burgos, where the Southern slope of the Cantabrian Mountains meet the Castilian plateau. The vast territory with its distinct topography has posed a major challenge for the whole team trying to implement the objectives of the plan for the development of the “Romanesque North”.

romanico-norte
San Juan Baptista

The work has – as can be ascertained from the website – been carried out in collaboration with a number of partners, who have provided state of the art solutions. Apart from local councils the work has been funded by La Consejería de Cultura y Turismo de la Junta de Castilla y León , la Fundación Siglo para las Artes de Castilla y León  and la Fundación Santa María la Real-Centro de Estudios del Románico . Partner has also been the Dioceses of Palencia and Burgos.

The aim has been to further sustainable economic growth, through taking care of and developing the nature, history and heritage, which is embedded in the landscape. Accordingly the work is still in progress since not only the churches but also the surrounding landscape is being analysed, described and restored.

Iglesia de San Juan Bautista
This has for instance been the case in the Iglesia de San Juan Bautista in Matamorisca, where the church is decorated with a series of very well preserved murals, which have been painstakingly restores. However, in order to provide lightening for the celebration of mass and other religious services, the church had installed a really terrifying lightening system  – with ripe possibilities for fires. Further the old lightening hampered the visitor, who wanted to study the murals in detail. Apart from restoring the church, the work carried out by Románico Norte consisted in installing a state of the art lightening, where 95% of the fuses etc. were hidden and at the same time providing a better experience both for the local villagers and the cultural tourists.

Románico Norte recently received the prestigious Europa Nostra Prize for 2013.  Read the validation here –  and see the video

READ MORE: 

Románico Norte

Read more about Romanesque art in Spain

Enciclopedia del Románico en la Peninsula Iberérica

– or access the encyclopedia in digital form

 

Medieval Power Struggle

Gardiner-Musto

The Medieval Academy of America torn in a new power  struggle

Last week The Medieval Academy of America announced that co-executive directors, Eileen Gardiner and Ron Musto have resigned, effective immediately. Richard W. Unger, president of the Academy, who made the announcement, called it regrettable. In an e-mail statement to Inside Higher Ed the two ex-directors said “they left because the board of the Academy was changing procedures to minimize the power of the staff members, who led the daily operations of the Academy, and forcing them to spend excessive time responding to “oversight” from board members.”

As far as can be gleaned from twitters and comments in blogs, observers are of the opinion that the fall-out is a reflection upon the many changes, which have taken place in the last two years, where Gardiner and Musto have worked to renew the internet-presence and the publications strategy of the Academy. So far no real explanation has been forthcoming.

However, it is a remarkable fact that a new survey on Medievalists and the Scholarly Digital Edition which was presented at the recent annual meeting in Knoxville, shows that about 50% of medievalists in 2011 still preferred to read at least some of their journals in print, while none professed to prefer exclusively to use scholarly editions in electronic form. Although the survey was done before the advent of the ipad and the other tablets on the market, it is an astounding fact that medievalists seem to be somewhat averse to electronic publishing.

In view of this it may seem a safe bet that the board might have felt inclined to reign in a future strategy whereby the Academy might move to render the established publishing houses obsolete in a situation where the new directives concerning open-access are calling for new business models. With more than 4000 members worldwide, one of the Academy’s assets is its ability to foster genuinely anonymous peer-reviews at a grand scale while at the same time turn itself into a proper medieval publishing house paid for by the money, which scholars in the future are expected to put down the publication of their work. A business model which the current publishers as opposed to a not-for-profit association cannot follow since they are in the business of making money. At the annual meeting several announcements were made, which points in this direction,  amongst these a revival of the Speculum Books Series and a possibility to discontinue reading Speculum in Print.

Gardiner and Musto have worked in various aspects of the book trade since 1967 and cofounded Italica Press in 1985. They have individually and jointly authored and edited numerous books, articles, reviews, and websites, with a concentration on medieval studies and e-publishing. They have most recently been working together on the book, The Digital Humanities: A Primer for Scholars and Studies, to be published by Cambridge University Press. However, both are also acclaimed medievalists.

Earthly Bread and Heavenly Food

Corpus-Cristi-Cologne

Earthly Bread and Heavenly Food…
Cabinet exhibition on the occasion of the Eucharistic Congress in Cologne.

The Catholic Church venerates the consecrated host as a symbol of the presence of Christ resurrected. In the Middle Ages Cologne was among the first cities in which on the feast day of Corpus Christi the body of Christ was carried through the city in a procession. For this occasion splendid monstrances were created, one of which is at the heart of this exhibition. Paintings and prints from Cologne from the Middle Ages to the modern era illustrate the veneration of the consecrated host through the ages. Today, as in the past, the celebration of the First Communion is at the centre of Eucharistic devotion.

Earthly Bread and Heavenly Food
Kölnisches Stadtmuseum
18.05.2013 –30.06.2013

 

Silk not Sin

silk-not-sin-mass-garments-köln

Silk not Sin – Ceremonial Garments for the Preparation of the Holy Mass.

In the Middle Ages great attention was paid to the preparation of the celebration of mass. By the ritual laying on of clerical vestments accompanied by vesting prayers, priests and bishops completed a transition from the secular to the sacred. Beginning with precious undergarments – these rare items will again be on display for the first time since 1985 at Museum Schnütgen – the exhibition follows the cleric step by step in the solemn preparatory ceremony up to the combing of the hair and washing of the hands. Precious treasures of ecclesiastical textile art including an undergarment from the 14th century and the medieval vestments from the church of St Andreas are presented together with liturgical objects such as the famous ivory comb of St Heribert.


Museum Schnütgen, Köln
23.05.2013 – 24.08.2014

Charlemagne and Switzerland

Codex Fabariensis - Stiftsarchiv St-Gallen

Charlemagne influenced a great deal in Europe. The changes and innovations brought about by him in many areas shaped the foundations of our culture. The 28th January 2014 marks the 1200th anniversary of the death of Charlemagne. On this occasion the Swiss National Museum will be devoting a large temporary exhibition to Charlemagne (741 – 814) and “Carolingian Switzerland”. The Exhibition will show what changed under Charlemagne, what effect his reforms had on education, faith and society and which innovations were made in art and architecture. Embedded in the European Context, the emphasis will be placed on Switzerland’s cultural heritage from Charlemagne’s time. The time frame will cover his reign of 771 – 814 through to the treaty of Verdun 843. Some topic areas will also take a look at the Merovingian period and the late 9th century. The exhibition is being prepared in close collaboration with the simultaneously planned book project “Die Zeit Karls des Grossen in der Schweiz” under the leadership of prof. Dr. Georges Descoudres, Dr. Jürg Goll and dr. Markus Riek.  Project manager is Christine Keller.

Charlemagne and Switzerland
20.09.2013 – 02.02.2014
National Museum Zurich

Lambs in the midst of Wolves

franciscan-martyrs--portugal-mafra-
Franciscan Martyrs. Mafra, Portugal.

“The Lord says: Behold, I am sending you as lambs in the midst of wolves. Therefore, be prudent as serpents and simple as doves” (Matt 10: 16)

The quotation above was used the introductory bible-verse to chapter 16 in the Franciscan Regula non Bullata from 1221. This chapter was devoted to “Those going amongst the Saracens and other non-believers. The advise was pertinent as the Franciscans believed there were two ways of living among the Muslims. Either one could live their humbly  and simply profess to be a Christian or one might boldly go there in order to preach the gospel. In that case on should not fear martyrdom. Already in 1220 five Franciscans had entered on this path. The five friars first went to Almohad Seville, where they preached the Gospel “and said many damnable things about Mohammad and his damnable law”. Accordingly the friars were imprisoned and sent to Marakech, where they began to preach anew. Finally the Caliph had them arrested, tortured and beheaded. Rumour later had it that the Caliph personally carried out the beheading and that his arm afterwards shrivelled to a pitiful stump. Whatever the truth of this, the bodies of the martyrs were taken to Portugal, where they duly performed miracles. According to a later source, Francis later exclaimed, “Now I can truly say that I have five brothers.” It is probably an unquestionable fact that Francis himself longed for a career as a martyr. (The story is told in Saint Francis and the Sultan. The curious History of a Christian-Muslim Encounter. By John Tolan. Oxford University Press 2009, pp. 6 – 7)

Perinde ac cadaver
Not so Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits. In 1553 he wrote in a letter to the Portuguese Jesuits the “we may agree to being surpassed by other religious orders in terms of fasts, vigils and other austerities… but in purty and perfection of obedience… and abnegation of judgment, dearest brothers, I hope most earnestly that those who follow God within this company may be singled out”.

At stake here was obviously the foundational core of the Jesuits that they according to Ignatius were supposed to “behave: first like a cadaver possessing neither will nor understanding; second, like a small crucifix that can easily be moved from one place to another…. In such a way must I stand ready to serve the Order and be used by it in all that may be commanded of me.” (Jesuits. A Multibiography. By Jean Lacouture. English Translation: Counterpoint 1995. p 75 ff.)

Such formulations later gave rise to the epithet: “perinde ac cadaver” (like a cadaver) signifying the chameleon-like character of Jesuits hell-bent on reaching a modus vivendi whether amongst Chinese, Muslims or Protestants.

To be a Franciscan was to bear public witness and if push came to shove end life as a martyr. To be a Jesuit was to serve silently and discreetly without needlessly throwing away one’s life or one’s health.

There is no doubt that the present Pope has lived with the dilemmas posed by these two different approaches “of how to go amongst the heathens” – in his case the murderous dictator Jorge Rafael Videla and his henchmen in the death squads during the Dirty War. What to do? Be prudent as a serpent or simple as a dove?

We don’t know exactly what took place during the war and how the Argentinian Jesuit, Jorge Bergoglio, handled the challenges, he met during the terrible years of 1973 – 1979, when he was provincial of the Jesuits in Argentina. However, as to the main charge against Bergoglio – that he was involved in the kidnapping of two Jesuit priests, Orland Yorio and Francisco Jalics, who were taken by Navy officers in May 1976 and held under inhumane conditions for the missionary work they conducted in the country’s slums – it seems he chose the route of the serpent by going behind the lines of the enemy and try to wriggle the priests out of the concentration camp, in which they were held. This is what he himself later claimed. A few days ago, one of the survivors – Francisco Jalics – finally broke the silence and confirmed this.  According to The Daily News, Jalics, who now lives in a monastery in Germany, cleared the air Wednesday the 21st of March (2013)  by issuing a statement: “I myself was once inclined to believe that we were the victims of a denunciation (by Bergoglio). But at the end of the ’90s, after numerous conversations, it became clear to me that this suspicion was unfounded. It is therefore wrong to assert that our capture took place at the initiative of Father Bergoglio,” he continued.

Thus it seems that “here endeth the lesson”. However, there is a postscript: By choosing the name of Francis, the present Pope has shown how important it is to know intimately the lives of the saints. Or in short: The History of the Church in its wider ramifications.

READ MORE: 

Jesuits. A Multibiography.
By Jean Lacouture. Editions Seuil 1991.
English Translation: Counterpoint 1995.

Saint Francis and the Sultan.
The curious History of a Christian-Muslim Encounter.
By John Tolan.
Oxford University Press 2009.

Digital Medieval Editions

Screen Shot 2013-03-24 at 2.12.38 PMWe all know what a proper edition is! Way back the standard was set by such gigantic projects like Monumenta Germaniae Historica or the homunculus Patrologiae Cursus Completus. Such projects later resulted in more nationally oriented editions of charters, manuscripts and other literary left-overs from both ancient and medieval history. Any medievalist worth his or her salt knows of the pertinent editions inside their field and that is all well; especially now when they are becoming digitized and generally more available for scholars and students in the periphery of minor universities and colleges around the world.

However, recent years have witnessed a whole new genre: the proper digitized edition of texts – complete with not only text-editions and translations, but also photos, links to relevant literature etc. Examples are The Roman de la Rose Digital Library  and the edition of the plan of St. Gall presented at the very comprehensive website, Carolingian Culture at Reichenau and St. Gall. A new initiative is the ongoing digitization of the Vatican Apostolic Archive with over 80.000 manuscripts and 8900 rare incunabula in the pipeline towards the digital printing press. The digitization is going to fill up 2.8 petabytes and cover any publication before 1501. The digitization is sponsored by the EMC Corporation, which is a global leader in enabling businesses and service providers to transform their operations and deliver IT as a service.

Whether the last initiative will just provide storage or the plan is to supplement it later with proper editorial work is a yet unknown. The project, however, is part of this on-going trend: to deliver state-of-the-art-editions, which properly uses the medium to present not only content but also context.

Focus for the two scholarly roundtables at the upcoming meeting of the Medieval Academy 201 in Knoxville are initiatives as these. At the first roundtable “A New Age of Exploration: Scholars and Digitized Manuscripts” will be debated, while the next morning the debate will be broadened: Back to the Future: Exploring New Digital Initiatives in Medieval Studies.

Speakers will – amongst others – be:

  • Abigail Firey, University of Kentucky
Chair, who will talk about the The Carolingian Canon Law Project, The Carolingian Canon Law project, which is a searchable, electronic rendition of works of canon law used by Carolingian readers. This project maps the extent of variation in “standard” legal texts known to Carolingian readers, and identifies particular points of variation. In addition to clarifying the textual history of medieval canon law, the project will provide historical and bibliographic annotation of several hundred canons used by jurists before, during, and after the Carolingian period.
  • Patrick J. Geary, Institute for Advanced Studies, who is in charge of the digital edition of the plan of St. Gal at “Carolingian Culture at Reichenau and St. Gall”
  • Elizaveta Strakhov, who will talk about “The Canterbury Tales Project”, which aims to investigate the textual tradition of Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales in order to achieve a better understanding of the history of its composition and publication before 1500. This project is housed at the Institute for Textual Scholarship and Electronic Editing at the University of Birmingham.
  • Lynn Ramey, Associate Professor of French at Vanderbilt University, who will speak on her involvement in the Digital project: The Discoveries of the Americas
  • Timothy Stinson, North Carolina State University, who is working on the Piers Plowmann Electronic Archive plus meta-reflexions on digital editing and publishing in connection with the Medieval Electronic Scholarly Alliance run by Dot Porter.
  • Wolfgang-Valentin Ikas, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, who will present European regia, a project, in which five major libraries located in four countries and with the support of the European Commission, digitized more than 1000 rare and precious manuscripts from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. All of them were once part of three great royal collections that are currently dispersed and which represent European cultural activity at three distinct periods in history: the Bibliotheca Carolina (8th and 9th centuries), the Library of Charles V and Family (14th century) and the Library of the Aragonese Kings of Naples (15th and 16th centuries). These manuscripts are now fully accessible on the websites of the partner libraries and have also been included in Europeana. For a reflection on types of readers and users and the formation of the project in general see the article on “Consultation of manuscripts online: a qualitative study of three potential user categories” in Digital Medievalist 8 (2012)
  • Charlotte Denoël, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, who is also involved in the Europeana regia project.
  • The Rev. Columba Stewart, OSB, who is executive director of the Hill Museum and Manuscript Library at St. John’s University, will talk about the work with the manuscript preservation project, largely focused on the Middle East, Turkey and India. The initiative aims to help threatened communities to digitize their manuscript heritage just in case. Among the treasures now safely in digital form are all of the surviving Armenian and Syriac manuscripts held by churches in Turkey, some as old as the seventh and eighth centuries. Another initiative has been the work in Syria, which began several years ago, when the country appeared to be stable. As of now two churches have been shelled, one of them largely destroyed while the offices of a cathedral in Aleppo, whose library Hill has digitized, have been ransacked, and the archbishop has fled to Lebanon. These events serves to underline the importance of this ongoing work.

READ MORE:

Preparing for the debates at the roundtable?
– read the illuminating article:

Medievalists and the Scholarly Digital Edition.
By Dot Porter.
In: Scholarly Editing: The Annual of the Association for Documentary Editing. Vol 34, 2013.

– delve into the fascinating material made available at www.digitalmedievalist.org, where all the digitizers convene.

– check out the Medieval Electronic Scholarly Alliance