Romanesque Mural Painting of Catalonia [Reprint 2014 ed.] 9780674183889, 9780674180987

Citation preview

THE ROMANESQUE MURAL PAINTING OF CATALONIA

LONDON : HUMPHREY MILFOBD OXFORD UNIVERSITY

PRESS

ROMANESQUE MURAL PAINTING OF CATALONIA BY

CHARLES L. KUHN

CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS

HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS 1930

COPYRIGHT, 1930, BY THE PRESIDENT AND FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE ALL BIGHTS RESERVED

®fjc ftibeteroe $ r e s e CAMBRIDGE . MASSACHUSETTS PRINTED I N T H E UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

TO MY FATHER AND MOTHER AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED

PREFACE Catalonia, with its power plants and dams, factories and textile mills, wheat fields and vineyards, differs greatly from the Catalonia known to Oliva of Ripoll in the eleventh century. The commercial age has transformed a rugged, savage land into a civilized industrial center. Wars and treaties have reduced its size until its present extent is only a fraction of what it formerly was. It is the older and greater Catalonia that we are about to consider — the Catalonia that included not only the Spanish provinces of Barcelona, Tarragona, Gerona, and Lerida, but also the modern Republic of Andorra and the southeastern section of the French department of the Pyrenees-Orientales which was once ruled by the proud counts of Roussillon and Cerdagne. These districts, although separated by political and natural boundaries, have in common a language resembling Provengal but harsher and more virile. The people of Valencia and the eastern part of the province of Huesca in Aragon also speak Catalan, but the frescos from these districts belong to a different artistic tradition and so will not be treated here. Due to the fact that many of the books dealing with our subject are written in the language of Catalonia, a certain amount of confusion in nomenclature has crept into the literature. In order to avoid this, I have used the official names for all of the monuments. For those sites located in Spain I have given the Castilian names; for those in Roussillon, the French names; and those in Andorra, the Catalan names. In such instances where the Catalan differs greatly from the official nomenclature, I have indicated both. The bibliography of Catalonian mural painting is not very extensive. The source book is the four fascicles of Les Pintures Murals Catalanes by Professor Joseph Pijoan and published by the Institut d'Estudis Catalans of Barcelona. A fifth volume is soon to appear. Pijoan has also printed a brief account in the Burlington Magazine 1 and his address before the Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres has been published by M. Marcel Dieulafoy in an article on the subject.2 The books of Lamperez3 and J. Puig i Cadafalch4 are invaluable for their architectural treatment of the churches. They also contain brief mention of the frescos. Don Manuel Gomez-Moreno in his Iglesias Mozdrabes deals with the few monuments that fall within the MozaraΜ ODERN

1

Joseph Pijoan, "A Re-discovered School of Romanesque Frescos," in Burlington Magazine, Vol. XIX, pp. 67 ff. Marcel Dieulafoy, "Les Premieres Peintures de l'ficole Catalane," in Comptes Rendus des Stances de l'Acadimie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres (Paris, 1910), pp. 324-330. * Vincente Lamperez y Romea, Historia de la arquitectura cristiana espanola en la edad media (Madrid, 1908). 4 J. Puig i Cadafalch, L'Arquitectura Romänica a Catalunya (Barcelona, 1911). 2

[ vii ]

PREFACE bic period. Other brief accounts have been written by Marcario Golferichs,1 Ballesteros y Beretta, 2 Rovira i Virgili,3 and August L. Mayer.4 The section devoted to frescos in Richert's book is somewhat fuller but still suffers from brevity.6 The writings of Wilhelm Neuss are extremely valuable for manuscript illumination in Catalonia, but his treatment of the murals is largely limited to their connection with the miniatures.6 Sanpere i Miguel also deals almost exclusively with manuscripts 7 and Professor Walter W. S. Cook has made a detailed study of some of the painted and stucco altar frontals.8 The catalogue of the Romanesque section of the Barcelona Museum by Joaquin Folch i Torres treats the frescos now in that institution, and for them is very useful.9 The recent book by J. Gudiol i Cunill is the first work of any size to deal with the subject exclusively.10 The most important account of Catalonian frescos is the one by Professor Chandler R. Post in his monumental history of Spanish painting which has recently been published.11 My indebtedness to this work will be seen by the frequent references I have made to it. Many short articles and notices dealing with individual monuments of mural painting have appeared from time to time, notably in the Anuari of the Catalonian Institute and the Gaseta de les Arts. These are mentioned in connection with the frescos with which they deal. A word of explanation concerning the title of this study is necessary, as the term "Romanesque" is a somewhat loose one. The period with which we deal extends from the earliest known Christian mural paintings down to the time when the early medieval style is supplanted by the foreign importation, Gothic. We shall see that the Romanesque period lingers on well into the thirteenth century and that peasant paintings of a much later date contain strong suggestions of it. The material of the book is divided into two parts. The first contains a detailed study of the monuments and an attempt to establish a definite chronology for the more important ones. Those of less significance I have relegated to a separate chapter and have arranged in alphabetic order regardless of date. The second section contains a consideration of more general 1

Marcario Golferichs, "Arte y Artistas," in La Vanguardia (Barcelona, July 4 and 18, 1924). Antonio Ballesteros y Beretta, Histöria de ßspana y su influencia en la histöria universal (Barcelona, 1918), Vol. II, pp. 714 if. 3 Antoni Rovira i Virgili, Histdria nacional de Catalunya (Barcelona, 1924), Vol. IV, pp. 366 ff. 4 August L. Mayer, Geschichte der spanische Malerei (Leipzig, 1922). 6 Gertrud Richert, Mittelalterliche Malerei in Spanien, Katalanische Wand- und Tafelmalereien (Berlin, 1925). 9 Wilhelm Neuss, Die Katalanische Bibelillustration um die Wende des ersten Jahrtausends und die altspanische Buchmalerei (Bonn, 1922). 7 Sanpere i Miguel, " L a pintura migeval Catalana," in L'Art Barbre (Barcelona, 1908). 8 Professor Cook's articles have appeared from time to time in Art Studies and the Art Bulletin. 9 Joaquin Folch y Torres, Museo de la Ciudadela, Catdlogo de la secci&n de arte romdnico (Barcelona, 1926). 10 Josep Gudiol i Cunill, La Pintura Mig-Eval Catalana, Vol. I, Els Primitius (Barcelona, 1928). u Chandler Rathfon Post, History of Spanish Painting (Cambridge, Mass., 1930). 2

[ viii ]

PREFACE problems such as technique, iconography, origins of styles, and the division of the paintings into stylistic and geographic groups. In choosing the plates for reproduction I have attempted not only to supplement the existing works, but also to make as complete a photographic record as possible. For the comparative material I have been forced to limit myself in most cases to unpublished monuments. For those already published the footnotes indicate where the illustrations can be found. Among the many people in Spain and Italy to whom I am indebted, I wish to make particular mention of Don Francesc Martorell i Trabal of the Catalonian Institute, whose kindness was immeasurable, and Sig. Antonio Marassi of the Museo Brera at Milan, who generously placed much valuable unpublished material at my disposal. It is with special pleasure that I acknowledge the great help of Professors Chandler R. Post, A. Kingsley Porter, and Paul J. Sachs, whose advice and encouragement have enhanced whatever merits this book may have.

CONTENTS PART I. CHRONOLOGY I.

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY

II. III. IV.

T H E TWELFTH CENTURY

19

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS

44

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE

V.

54

CONCERNING FALSE RUMORS

P A R T II. I.

3

65

ORIGINS

FRESCO TECHNIQUE IN CATALONIA

69

ICONOGRAPHY

74

ΙΠ.

CATALONIA AND EUROPE

88

IV.

CONCLUSION

94

II.

PLATES AND M A P

95

INDEX

97

LIST OF P L A T E S I.

II.

III.

IV.

V.

VI.

VII.

VIII.

IX.

X.

XI. XII.

FIG. 1.

CAMPDEVANOL.

FIG. 2.

GBANADA, M U S E U M .

FRESCO. VISIGOTHIC G B A V E R E L I E F .

FIG. 3 .

GBANADA, M U S E U M .

VISIGOTHIC G R A V E R E L I E F .

FIG. 1.

S . M I G U E L DE T A B R A S A .

FIG. 2.

CARMONA, M U S E U M .

ELDEBS.

FIG. 3 .

PEDBET.

PEBSONIFICATION OF THE CHURCH.

FIG. 1.

PEDBET.

W I S E VIBGINS.

FIG. 2.

PEDBET.

FOOLISH V I B G I N S .

MOURNING FIGURE.

FIG. 1.

S . CLEMENTE DE T A H U L L .

FIG. 2 .

S . C L E M E N T E DE T A H U L L .

A P S E FBESCO. SYMBOL OF M A R K .

FIG. 3.

S . CLEMENTE DE T A H U L L .

V I R G I N AND APOSTLES.

FIG. 1.

S . CLEMENTE DE T A H U L L .

H E A D OF CHRIST.

FIG. 2.

S . C L E M E N T S DE T A H U L L .

SYMBOL OF S T . JOHN. S T . JAMES.

FIG. 1.

S . CLEMENTE DE T A H U L L .

FIG. 2.

S . CLEMENTE DE T A H U L L .

LAZABUS.

FIG. 3.

S . CLEMENTE DE T A H U L L .

A N G E L CHOIR.

FIG. 1.

S T A. M A M A DE T A H U L L .

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 2.

STA. M A R I A DE T A H U L L .

V I R G I N AND CHILD.

FIG. 1.

S T A . M A R I A DE T A H U L L .

MAGI.

FIG. 2.

STA. M A R I A DE T A H U L L .

APOSTLES.

FIG. 3.

STA. M A B I A DE T A H U L L .

ST. PETER.

FIG. 1.

STA. M A B I A DE T A H U L L .

GBOTESQUES I N MEDALLIONS.

FIG. 2 .

STA. M A B I A DE T A H U L L .

B O B D E B OF THE M A I N A P S E .

FIG. 3.

S T A . M A B I A DE T A H U L L .

EAST WALL.

FIG. 1.

MADEBUELO.

FIG. 2.

STA. M A R I A DE T A H U L L .

FBESCOS OF THE V A U L T . L A S T JUDGMENT.

FIG. 1.

STA. M A B I A DE T A H U L L .

NOBTH WALL. ZACCHABIAS AND THE SCBIBE.

FIG. 1.

STA. M A R I A DE T A H U L L .

FIG. 2.

STA. M A B I A DE T A H U L L .

D A V I D AND GOLIATH.

FIG. 3.

STA. M A R I A DE T A H U L L .

T O B T U B E OF THE D A M N E D . [ XIÜ ]

LIST OF PLATES XIII.

XIV.

XV.

XVI.

XVII.

XVIII.

XIX.

XX.

XXI.

FIG. 1.

BOHI.

TYMPANUM.

FIG. 2.

BOHI.

PORTAL FRESCOS.

FIG. 3 .

BARCELONA, ARCHIVES OF THE CROWN OF ABAGON.

FIG. 4.

BOHI.

STONING OF S T E P H E N .

FIG. 1.

BOHI.

NORTH WALL.

FIG. 2.

Born.

THE ARK.

FIG. 3.

Bom.

NOAH.

FIG. 1.

BOH!.

JUGGLERS FROM THE N O R T H W A L L .

FIG. 2.

BOHI.

F I G U R E S FROM THE N O R T H W A L L .

FIG. 1.

ESCORIAL.

FIG. 2.

T U B I L L A DEL A G U A .

C O D E X EMILIANENSIS, F O L . 1 0 .

FIG. 1.

URGEL.

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 2.

URGEL.

S S P E T E R AND P A U L .

FIG. 3.

URGEL.

V I R G I N AND JOHN THE EVANGELIST.

FRESCO.

FIG. 1.

E S T E R R I DE CARDOS.

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 2 .

E S T E R R I DE CARDOS.

CHRIST I N M A J E S T Y .

APOSTLES.

FIG. 1.

E S T E R R I D E CARDOS.

FIG. 2.

GINESTARRE DE CARDOS.

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 3 .

GINESTARRE DE CARDOS.

APOSTLES.

FIG. 1.

ANGULASTERS.

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 2.

ANGULASTERS.

ST. MICHAEL.

FIG. 3.

ANGULASTERS.

APOSTLES.

FIG. 1.

ARGOLELL.

APOSTLES.

FIG. 2 .

ARGOLELL.

APOSTLES AND VIRGIN.

XXII.

F I G . 1.

ARGOLELL.

ST. PAUL.

XXIII.

FIG. 1.

MUR.

FIG. 1.

MUR.

APOSTLES.

FIG. 2.

MUR.

SACRIFICE OF C A I N AND A B E L .

XXIV.

XXV.

XXVI.

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 1.

MUR.

VISITATION AND NATIVITY.

FIG. 2.

MUR.

FRESCO FROM M I N O R A P S E .

FIG. 1.

ESTAHON.

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 2.

ESTAHON.

A N G E L S AND EVANGELISTS.

FIG. 3 .

ESTAHON.

BAPTISM. [ »Ν

]

COD. 2 1 , FOL. 146V.

LIST OF PLATES XXVII.

FIG. 1.

MARCEVOL.

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 2.

MABCEVOL.

A P S E FRESCO, D E T A I L .

XXVIII.

FIG. 1.

FENOUILLAR.

MAJESTAS DOMINI.

XXIX.

FIG. 1. FIG. 2.

FENOUILLAR. FENOUILLAR.

ELDERS. NATIVITY.

XXX.

XXXI.

XXXII.

XXXIII.

XXXIV.

XXXV.

XXXVI.

XXXVII.

XXXVIII.

XXXIX.

XL. XLI.

XLII.

\

FIG. 1.

FENOUILLAR.

MAGI.

FIG. 2 .

FENOUILLAR.

MOUNTED MAGI.

FIG. 1.

P A R I S , B I B L . N A T . SACRAMENTARY OF LIMOGES.

FIG. 2.

POITIERS, S T . J E A N .

FIG. 3.

ST. SAVIN.

FIG. 1.

L'ESCLUSE.

FRESCO.

FRESCO. A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 1.

BURGAL.

PROPHET.

FIG. 2.

BURGAL.

S S J O H N AND P A U L , A F T E R RESTORATION.

FIG. 1.

BURGAL.

APOSTLES, B E F O R E RESTORATION.

FIG. 1.

S T A . M A R I A DE T A R R A S A .

FRESCOED N I C H E .

FIG. 2.

STA. M A R I A DE TARRASA.

CHRIST.

FIG. 1.

STA. M A R I A DE T A R R A S A .

M O C K I N G S T . THOMAS.

FIG. 2.

STA. M A R I A DE T A R R A S A .

D E A T H OF S T . THOMAS.

FIG. 1.

S T A . M A R I A DE T A R R A S A .

APOTHEOSIS OF S T . THOMAS' S O U L .

FIG. 2.

VICH, MUSEUM.

D E T A I L OF AN A N T E P E N D I U M .

FIG. 1.

ORCAU.

S S P A U L AND THOMAS.

FIG. 2.

ORCAU.

ST. PAUL, DETAIL.

FIG. 1.

SESCORTS.

LORD INSTRUCTING ADAM AND E V E .

FIG. 2.

SESCORTS.

EXPULSION.

FIG. 3.

PARIS, B I B L . N A T . BEATUS MANUSCRIPT.

FIG. 1.

MADERUELO.

STORY OF ADAM AND E V E .

FIG. 1.

STA. M A R I A D E ESTERRI D E A N E O .

A P S E FRESCO.

FIG. 2.

STA. M A R I A DE E S T E R R I D E A N E O .

MAGUS.

F I G . 1.

STA. M A R I A DE E S T E R R I D E A N E O .

SERAPH.

FIG. 2.

STA. M A R I A D E E S T E R R I D E A N E O .

ST. BENEDICT.

FIG. 3.

STA. M A R I A D E E S T E R R I D E A N E O .

RAPHAEL.

[ XV ]

LIST OF PLATES XLIII.

XLIV.

XLV.

XLVI.

XLVII.

XLVIII.

XLIX.

L.

LI.

LH.

LIII.

LIV.

F I G . 1.

OSORMORT.

F I G . 2.

OSORMORT.

A P S E FRESCO. APOSTLES.

FIG. 3.

OSORMORT.

LORD INSTRUCTING ADAM.

FIG. 4.

OSORMORT.

L O R D P O I N T I N G TO T H E T R E E OF K N O W L E D G E .

F I G . 1.

OSORMORT.

EXPULSION.

FIG. 2.

OSORMORT.

C R E A T I O N OF A D A M .

FIG. 3.

POITIERS, LIBRARY.

L I F E OF S T E . RADEGONDE.

FIG. 1.

BRULL.

D R A W I N G OF FRESCOS.

FIG. 2.

BRULL.

D R A W I N G OF F R E S C O S .

F I G . 1.

BARBARA.

MAIN APSE.

FIG. 2.

BARBARA.

N A T I V I T Y AND A D O R A T I O N .

FIG. 1.

BARBARA.

WASHING THE INFANT JESUS.

FIG. 2.

BARBARA.

CRUCIFIXION OF S T . P E T E R .

F I G . 1.

BARBARA.

T H E HOLY CROSS.

FIG. 2.

POLINYÄ.

NATIVITY.

FIG. 1.

POLINYÄ.

SOUTH W A L L .

F I G . 2.

POLINYÄ.

CHRIST BEFORE PILATE.

FIG. 1.

A N D O R R A LA V E L L A .

WASHING PETER'S FEET.

F I G . 2.

A N D O R R A LA V E L L A .

A R R E S T OF J E S U S .

F I G . 1.

A N D O R R A LA V E L L A .

FLAGELLATION.

F I G . 1.

U R G E L , CATHEDRAL.

MINOR APSE.

F I G . 2.

URGEL, CATHEDRAL.

LAST SUPPER, DETAIL.

FIG. 1.

S . P A B L O DE C A S E R R A S .

LAST JUDGMENT.

F I G . 2.

S . P A B L O DE C A S E R R A S .

ANGELS.

FIG. 3.

F O S S A , S T A . M A R I A AD C R Y P T A S .

C H R I S T IN M A J E S T Y .

FIG. 1.

AGER.

F I G . 2.

BOADA.

CHRIST, DETAIL.

FIG. 3.

BOADA.

A N N U N C I A T I O N TO T H E S H E P H E R D S ( ? ) .

LV.

FIG. 1.

BOADA.

D R A W I N G OF F R E S C O S .

LVI.

FIG. 1.

CANIGOU.

FIG. 2.

S . P E D R O DE C A S E R R A S .

FIG. 3.

S . P E D R O DE E S T E R R I D E A N E O .

FIG. 1.

GRANERA.

V I E W OF A P S E .

FIG. 2.

GRANERA.

ANGELS.

LVII.

MAIN APSE.

F R E S C O OF T O W E R . H E A D OF A S A I N T .

[ xvi ]

SAINT.

LIST OF PLATES LVIIL

LIX.

LX.

LXI.

LXIL

LXIII.

FIG. 1 .

ISABARRE.

FIG. 2 .

MARMELLA.

VIRGIN AND APOSTLES.

FIG. 3 .

AGLIATE.

FIG. 1.

MONTRAL.

CRUCIFIXION.

FIG. 2 .

MONTRAL.

ST. JOHN.

FIG. 3 .

PUIGPALTER.

FIG. 1.

STA. COLOMA DE ANDORRA.

FIG. 2 .

SERRABONNE.

FIG. 1.

SOREDE.

FIG. 2 .

SORPE.

FIG. 1.

S . PEDRO DE TARRASA.

FRESCOED SCREEN.

FIG. 2 .

S . PEDRO DE TARRASA.

ANGEL.

FIG. 1.

TERMENO.

FIG. 2 .

OLEGGIO, S . MICHELE.

FIG. 3 .

BRINDISI, S . CASALE.

FRESCO.

REPAINTED FRESCO.

LAST SUPPER. FEMALE SAINT.

CHRIST IN LIMBO.

CRUCIFIXION. FEMALE SAINT.

APOSTLES. LAST JUDGMENT. LAST JUDGMENT.

PART I CHRONOLOGY

CHAPTER I MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY D U R I N G the Roman domination of the Iberian Peninsula, classical traditions of mural decoration were firmly planted on Spanish soil. The museums of Catalonia, Valencia, and Aragon are rich in small fragments of frescos dating from Roman times and clearly derived from and based on classic models. At the same time, workers in mosaic were carrying on the antique traditions and, because the medium is more durable than fresco, splendid large examples have come down to us. They are to be seen in the Provincial Museum of Tarragona, the Episcopal Museum of Barcelona, at Tossa, Sagunto, Empurias, Puig de Cebolla, and so on.1 With the introduction of Christianity in the fourth century, we may easily believe that the Spanish tradition of decorating walls still followed that of Italy. Such examples of Early Christian mosaics as have come to light bear out this theory. The decorations at Elx and Centcelles have been convincingly compared to the mosaics in the Palace of Theoderic at Ravenna 2 and those of Santa Costanza at Rome.3 The recent excavations carried on at Tarragona by Don Juan Serra i Vilaro have unearthed some interesting examples which show that, as in the Italian catacombs, the classic traditions were adapted to funerary art.4 Although many Christian burial grounds are known, no true examples of catacombs have been found in Spain. In spite of this, however, we can be reasonably sure that fresco painting was practiced in Early Christian times.

Two important series of frescos have come to light at Merida (Badajoz). The first was discovered in the apse of what Don Jose Ramon Melida considers to be a Roman house later converted into a Christian basilica.5 The mural decorations appear to have been executed in the usual Pompeian manner with architectural elements, putti, birds, and so on. Between the windows were full-length figures standing on pedestals (only the lower parts of which are preserved). When these paintings were first published by Ramon Melida he hinted that they might be the work of Christian artists. 1 2 Puig i Cadafalch, op. ext., Vol. I, pp. 221 ff. Rovira i Virgili, op. ext., Vol. II, pp. 235 ff. » Gaseta de les Arts (May, 1926), Vol. I l l , No. 48. 4 Josi Tulla and others, "Excavaciones en la necropolis romano-cristiana de Tarragona," in Junta superior de excavaciones y anliguedades (Madrid, 1926), No. 6; also Adolfo Alegret, "La necropolis romano-cristiana de Tarragona," in Butlleti arqueologic (Tarragona, Sept.-Oct., 1924), No. 21, pp. 268-270. * Jos6 Bamön Melida, "Excavaciones de Merida," in Junta superior de excavaciones y antigiiedades (Madrid, 1917), No. 4, Pis. VI-VIII.

[3]

MONUMENTS E A R L I E R THAN T H E T W E L F T H C E N T U R Y Later he definitely considered them as such.1 The second series of frescos, so far as I am aware, has never been published. It is obviously of the same period as the basilican paintings and proves, as we shall see, that both cycles are of Roman, not Christian, workmanship. The frescos now adorn a small, square chamber standing far to the east of the amphitheater and at considerable distance from the site of the ancient city. In three of the walls of the chamber are shallow, rectangular niches in which are painted full-length standing portraits. Opposite the entrance wall are a male and a female figure, probably man and wife, while in the niches in the walls at the left and right are a bearded man holding a scroll and a woman with a wreath in her hands. All of the figures wear sandals, are standing on pedestals exactly like those in the fresco cycle of the basilica, and are painted in precisely the same style. Below each figure and set into the base of its niche is an urn containing human ashes. The figures, therefore, are funerary portraits and, since the chamber is well beyond the walls of the ancient city, it can definitely be considered as a tomb. In Rome in early Republican times, cremation was almost exclusively practiced. Continuing during the Empire, it finally fell out of fashion in the third and fourth centuries of our era.2 That the Roman Christians buried their dead is amply attested by the catacombs. In Spain the Italian customs were closely followed, for in the Christian cemeteries at Tarragona, Empurias, and Denia the bodies are invariably inhumed.3 The necropolis at Carmona (Sevilla) is a great burial ground consisting of rock-cut tombs closely resembling the Roman columbaria. These contain great numbers of cinerary urns, but in three of the tombs instances of inhumation are found. In each case, however, the graves show evidence of being later additions to the original Roman construction and so must be Christian. It can hardly be doubted, then, that the ashes at M6rida are the human remains of Romans, not Christians. It follows that the frescoed portraits are pagan, for they are obviously part of the original design of the monument. Since, on stylistic grounds, the basilica cycle at Merida belongs to the same period as the series of frescos in the tomb, it, too, must have been executed by pagan painters. It is possible that the very fragmentary fresco in the Tumba de Quinto Postumio at Carmona is by a Christian painter. The tomb contains a Roman and a Christian grave, the latter being a sarcophagus cut out of the living rock. The ceiling above it is decorated with a fresco of floral ornament dividing the surface into compartments resembling classic coffers. In two of 1 Jose Ram6n M£lida, "Excursi6n a M£rida y Caseres," in Boletln de la sociedad espanola de excursiones (Madrid, 1922), Vol. X X X , p. 41. 1 George Dennis, The Cities and Cemeteries of Etruria (London, 1907), Everyman's edition, Vol. I, pp. 112-18. 3 Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit.. Vol. I, pp. 264-272 and 296.

[4]

M O N U M E N T S E A R L I E R THAN T H E T W E L F T H C E N T U R Y these compartments doves are depicted. Similarly, doves in compartments are represented on a Visigothic relief in the Museo Arqueologico of Merida. The archeological society of Lugo has recently discovered some early frescos in a building which is now being excavated in the village of Santa Eulalia de Boveda, fourteen kilometers west of that capital. The structure is almost square in plan and has a single nave, barrel vaulted, and a columned portico. The facade faces east, and the whole is constructed of beautifully cut ashlar. Apparently it was later used as the crypt of a church and was reorientated. A few fragmentary bits of rubble wall and a horseshoe arch leading into the crypt are all that remain of the later building. The crypt certainly dates back to classic times but the frescos may be Early Christian. Although they contain nothing in the way of Christian iconography, they are rather unlike true Roman work and resemble more the Roman style as it was adopted by Christian painters. The vault surface was painted to represent classic coffers as at Carmona, and in each compartment is a bird, a pair of birds, or a bunch of grapes. On the end walls chickens are depicted in a seminaturalistic setting of plants. The theory has been advanced that the coming of the Visigoths snuffed out classic traditions of figure representation. There can be no doubt that these Aryans had iconoclastic tendencies as expressed in the Council of Eliberri, where it was forbidden to have paintings upon the walls of the churches.1 Visigothic manuscripts and carvings were nearly always in pure ornament but no surely dated frescos have come down to us, so that we do not know how closely the ruling at Eliberri was adhered to, or if it was followed at all. It is difficult to believe that the great figure decorations of Byzantine art had no effect on Catalonia with the troops of Justinian occupying a large portion of the east coast of the peninsula. Constantinople was held in such high esteem that John of Biclara, bishop of Gerona in A.D. 581, went there to receive his education.2 Near Oviedo, the two ninth-century churches of San Julian de los Prados and San Miguel de Linio (A.D. 842-850) are adorned with frescos, possibly by the same hand.3 Figure representation has been avoided except at Linio, where a seated and a standing man are depicted. The artist has used only architectural and geometric forms in a purely decorative way, and in design is strongly reminiscent of Pompeii. The frescos of San Salvador de Val de Dios at Villaviciosa are described by Professor Post as being in the same style. 4 If there was a feeling of iconoclasm in Spain, the bright light of the CarloManuel G6mez-Moreno, Iglesias Hozdrabes (Madrid, 1919), p. 323. Rovira i Virgili, op. cit.. Vol. II, p. 301. • Fortunato de Seigas, La Baaüica de San Julidn de loa Prados en Oviedo (Madrid, 1916). 4 C. R. Post, of. cit., Vol. I, p. 28.

1 2

[5]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY vingian Renaissance in the ninth century north of the Pyrenees must have done much to dispel the shadow. It had certainly disappeared by the end of the ninth century, when the great cycle of pictures in the Commentary of Beatus in the Morgan Library was painted (A.D. 894). It is highly possible that the Beatus manuscripts are all derived from an original of the early eighth century written at Liebena by Beatus himself. If the miniatures of the Ashburnham Pentateuch actually are of Spanish manufacture, as has sometimes been claimed, the whole argument concerning an iconoclastic period is somewhat dubious.1 Professor Porter has brilliantly demonstrated that a continuous tradition in sculpture existed in Spain from classic times to the dawn of the Romanesque era.2 It is not unreasonable, then, to expect the same to be true of monumental painting. In Catalonia we have the record of a fresco that is very surely in the Visigothic style, but whether it actually dates from Visigothic times or not is a difficult problem. The fresco once adorned the wall of the little church near Campdevanol (Gerona), four kilometers north of Ripoll.3 It has completely disappeared but a water-color copy of the painting was made before its destruction and is now in the possession of Don Ramon d'Abada i Vinyals, of Barcelona. The church has a single nave, semi-circular apse, and wooden roof, and has usually been dated in the ninth century, although it may well be earlier. In the twelfth century it underwent extensive restorations during the process of which the fresco on the south side was covered by a masonry wall. The painting was discovered and recorded in the studies and excavations carried on in 1908-09 by Sr. Abada i Vinyals. The painting completely disappeared about a month after it was exposed to the air and light. The scenes depicted have been interpreted as the story of Creation (PI. I, Fig. 1). At the extreme right is the tree of knowledge flanked to left and right by Adam and Eve. Above are inscriptions in rustic capitals which have been read as P V M O and C O M E D I T HOMO. Adam is reaching up to pluck the forbidden fruit and over his head hovers an angel. At the left are two partially preserved figures in profile, presumably Adam and an angel of the Expulsion from Eden. The decorative border at the top of the composition is made of simple geometric elements of rectangles divided into triangles by diagonal lines which have small spots or circles at the points of intersection. The background appears 1 Oscar von Gebhardt, The Miniatures of the Ashbwrnham Pentateuch (London, 1883); Wilhelm Neuss, Die Katalanische Bibelillustration (Bonn, 1922), pp. 59-62; and Die Kunst der alten Christen (Augsburg, 1926), pp. 119-120. 2 A. Kingsley Porter, Spanish Romanes/pie Sculpture (Florence, 1928), Vol. I, pp. 26-40 and 51. 3 Bibliography: Ram0n d'Abada i Vinyals, Revista de la Asoeiaci6n Artlstico-Arqueol6gica Barcelonesa (Barcelona, 1909), Vol. VII, p. 203. The article originally appeared in the Gazeta Montanyesa of Vich. Photographs, plans, and elevations of the church are reproduced in Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit., Vol. II, Figs. 17-20. A brief notice is published in the Anuari of the Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1909-10), p. 715.

[6]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY to have been undecorated except for a curious filling ornament composed of concentric circles. In judging the style of the paintings it must be kept in mind that one is at the mercy of the copyist, who may have misinterpreted the scant remains. However, a detailed analysis of the water color reveals nothing that could not perfectly well appear in any original work of the ninth century. In fact, many of the elements are characteristic of a much earlier art. The peculiar pearshaped heads of Adam and the angel of the Expulsion and the trick of drawing the circular eyes and noses by a continuous unbroken line, in the faces of the angels, are typical of Merovingian sculpture of the Rhine valley and of Lombard carving of the eighth century. Examples taken almost at random are the large stone head from the church of St. Goar, the Merovingian tombs of Boppard and Niederdollendorf,1 the bronze buckle from Waldgesheim now in the Provincial Museum of Bonn, and a small gold placque in the L. Seligman collection of Cologne which has been published as a work of southern Italy of the fifth century but which may well be of Frankish origin.2 In Lombardy the same characteristics are found in the famous altar of A.D. 744-749 in San Martino at Cividale, in the gold cross from Rodeano in the Cividale Museum, in the Evangelist Matthew of the stone slab in the Cividale Collegiata, and in the carving which is now at Tarensenna.3 The Tarensenna slab contains a circular filling ornament which is somewhat similar in spirit to that used at Campdevanol. This filling ornament may have its origin in classic art. It is common in archaic Greek vases and finds its way into Etruscan mural decoration.4 In Roman mosaics the motive is also found, as witness the gladiatorial mosaic in the Museo Nazionale at Rome and the example in the Museo Arqueologico of Merida. In paintings of the eighth century the analogies with Campdevanol are just as striking. The manuscript of Canons in the Brussels Library dated ca. 780 contains a face drawn very much like that of the angel of the Expulsion, with a single curving line for the eyebrows and nose and a small straight line for the mouth, the eyes in the case of both manuscript and fresco being rendered separately.5 The St. Gall manuscript of Leges Barbarorum of the end of the eighth century contains a figure which has hands with stiff, elongated fingers and drapery on the arms in a series of small, curved, parallel folds exactly like those of the hovering angel above Adam at Campdevanol.6 1 Reproduced in Hans Lehner, Das Provinzialmuseum in Bonn. Abbildungen seiner wichtigsten Denkmäler (Bonn, 1917), Vol. II, Die Römischen und Frankischen Skulpturen, Pis. XXXIV, No. 4, and XXXVI, Nos. 1-4. 8 Karl Schaefer and others, Mittelalterliche Kunst aus Kölner Privatbesitz (Cologne, 1927), No. 187 of the exhibition held by the Kölnischer Kunstverein in October-November, 1927. 3 Reproduced in Pietro Toesca, Storia dell'arte Italiana (Turin, 1927), Vol. I, Figs. 166-v, 168, 170, and 171. 4 Dennis, op. cit., Vol. I, p. 124. 6 Ε. H. Zimmermann, Vorkarolingische Miniaturen (Berlin, 1916), PI. 121-D. s Ibid., PI. 150-A.

[7]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY Another page from the same manuscript contains a head drawn like that of the angel of the Expulsion.1 This facial type is used again in an eighthcentury Anglo-Saxon ivory in the Bargello in Florence.2 The Irish manuscripts and manuscripts executed under Irish influence show rather more sophistication than the fresco in facial rendition. The faces in the Cadmag Gospels now in Fulda somewhat recall for me the curious stylization of the countenance of Adam with its unbroken line which defines the eyebrows, nose, and mouth.3 The faces in the ninth-century psalter in St. John's College, Cambridge, are rather closer to Campdevanol than is usual in this class of manuscripts.4 In Spain there is a paucity of monuments of this early period and in Catalonia I know of no authentically dated monument of the ninth century with which to compare the frescos. In Visigothic coins from the reign of Leovigild (A.D. 573-582) down to the Moorish invasion the faces of the kings are portrayed with the same mannerisms which we have noticed at Campdevanol.5 The drawing of Adam is rather more like the faces in Frankish coins of the Merovingian period, where stylization was carried to such an extent that the features often take on the aspect of a cross.6 The faces of the figures in the canon tables of a Bible in the Real Academia de la Historia of Madrid, which has been dated in the seventh century, are very similar to those of the fresco.7 The resemblance of the Campdevanol facial type to the head on a Visigothic grave relief in the Granada Museum is striking (PI. I, Fig. 2). In the same institution is another very much battered relief which may represent Adam reaching up to pluck the fruit of the tree of knowledge (PL I, Fig. 3). If this interpretation is correct it proves that the Campdevanol iconography was not unknown in Visigothic Spain. Professor Cook has pointed out a number of instances of its use in Early Christian sarcophagi in Spain and in manuscript illumination during the Mozarabic period.8 The Adam and Eve relief on the west portal of the church of St. Zeno at Reichenhall in Germany shows its use in the Rhineland at an early period.9 After the Moorish invasion in Spain, the Visigothic face as portrayed in the coin types and manuscripts appears to have been occasionally adopted by Mozarabic miniaturists. It appears in a commentary of Gregory on Job written by the scribe Gomez at San Pedro de Cardena and now in the Rylands Library at Manchester (No. 82).10 Here 1

Ε. H. Zimmermann, op. cit., PI. 152-B. 3 Phot. Alinari. « Zimmermann, op. cit., PI. 205-C. * Ibid., PI. «13. Arthur Engel and Raymond Serrure, Traiti Numismatique du Moyen Age (Paris, 1891), Vol. I, pp. 42-53. • Gustave de Ponton, Recherche des Monnaies MSroidngiennes du Cenomannicum (Paris, 1883), p. 23, No. 29. ' No. 2620 of the Exposici6n Internacional de Barcelona, 1929-30. » Walter W. S. Cook, "The Earliest Painted Panels of Catalonia," in Art Bulletin, Vol. X , No. 2, pp. 153-107. 8 Richard Wiebel, Das Schottentor (Augsburg, 1928). 10 M. R. James, A Descriptive Catalogue of the Latin Manuscripts in the John Rylands Library at Manchester (London, 1921), PI. 111. A manuscript by the same scribe written in A.D. 919 is now in the British Museum (Add. 25600) (Pal. Soc. Ser. I, No. 95). 5

[8]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY not only the Visigothic manner of rendering the features but also the trick of drawing the hair is adopted by the illuminator. It thus appears that such faces as are found at Campdevanol were characteristic of the Visigothic portraiture in Spain and that they linger on in manuscript illumination as late as the early tenth century. The curious fat figures of Adam and Eve flanking a highly stylized tree of knowledge are commonplaces in Mozarabic manuscripts of the tenth and later centuries, appearing, for example, in the Codex Albendensis and the Codex Emilianensis of the Escorial Library and regularly in the Beatus manuscripts. The frontal position at Campdevanol resembles the earliest examples of this group, but the rather elaborate handling of the arms does not appear in Mozarabic art.1 The border of Campdevanol is used on an impost block above a Visigothic capital at the Mosque of Cordova,2 on a stone fragment of the same period in the Museum of Merida, and on the famous Visigothic crown of Guarrazar.3 From the above comparisons we have seen that all of the elements which compose the fresco are characteristic of art of a very early date and that some of them linger on in Spain until the tenth century or later. It is logical to conclude, therefore, that the lost paintings were contemporary with the architecture at Campdevanol and date from a period no later than the ninth century. The earliest extant remains of Catalonia mural decorations are those in the vaulting of the apse of San Miguel de Tarrasa.4 The building is Visigothic and Sr. Puig i Cadafalch thinks that it once may have been the baptistery of the cathedral of Egara which was the seat of an episcopate from A.D. 450 to 711.6 It is of the central type with an eastern apse which is polygonal on the exterior and horseshoe on the interior and which probably dates from Mozarabic times. In the crown of the vault was once afigureof the Lord but only the cruciferous nimbus is extant. The decorations surrounding this have been completely destroyed except for a kneeling saint with a circular halo, clad in flowing tunic and mantle.6 On the springing of the vault is a row of twelve kneeling figures, similar to the one above except that they have no mantles or halos. Behind each figure is a pair of parted curtains and the background is composed of an all-over decoration of circles connected by straight lines and sprinkled liber1

2 Cook, op. ext. Phot. Mas, No. C. 41663. Pedro de Madrazo, "Coronas y Crucea del Tesoro de Guarrazar," in Monumentos Arquiiectinicos, Prorincia de Toledo (Madrid, 1879), Vol. II. 4 1 have discussed these frescos at length in Art Studies (1928), Vol. VI, pp. 123-125, and so shall only recapitulate here. 4 Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit.. Vol. I, pp. 323 ff. • During the course of the recent restoration of the building, the figure of the saint has been almost completely obliterated. 3

[9]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY ally with dots (PI. II, Fig. 1). The composition ends in a simple zigzag border at the base of the vault. The figures are drawn in outline style in red-orange and orange-yellow pigments. The iconography is a curious combination of the Apocalyptic Vision and the Vision of Ezekiel. The fact that the twelve figures are in the kneeling position and have no beards or halos shows that they are Elders rather than Apostles, so that the scene must be a vision. The kneeling figure of a saint may be John the Evangelist and the four wheels in the center of the composition clearly indicate that the artist had the Vision of Ezekiel in mind. In theological writings the identification of Ezekiel's vision of God with the Apocalypse is as old as the Church Fathers.1 Its earliest use in art that in any way resembles the Tarrasa composition is in the famous seventeenth chapel at Bawit in Egypt. 2 A composition even closer to Tarrasa is used in the Beatus manuscripts.3 Here the Lord is seated above, surrounded by the four symbols of the Evangelists and the four wheels of Ezekiel. Below, the kneeling Elders are depicted, and at the foot of the page is a prostrate John the Evangelist with an angel. The chief differences between the Beatus Vision and that of Tarrasa are the omission of the angel and the number of the Elders portrayed. All of the Beatus manuscripts depict more than twelve Elders, but only the Beatus of S. Sever has the full number of twenty-four. In spite of these differences the two compositions are essentially the same. The style of the frescos is strongly Anglo-Irish. The kneeling Elders with one hand raised to the mouth are in exactly the same position as the Evangelist Matthew in the Cutbrecht Gospels in Vienna and the Codex Millenarius from Kermsmünster.4 Professor Adolph Goldschmidt has pointed out that this type of figure is derived from an oriental source, as it is used in the Armenian manuscript of the Gospels of Queen Mike of A.D. 900, now in the monastery of San Lazaro, near Venice.6 In the museum of the necropolis at Carmona is a crude standing figure whose arms are in much the same position as those of the Tarrasa Elders (PI. II, Fig. 2). This figure, although of late Roman workmanship, is doubtless related to a long line of representations of St. John the Evangelist that stand at the side of the Crucifixion in later medieval representations. He is always holding his head in his hand in a sorrowing position. A similar figure, but probably not a St. John, appears in the tenth-century frescos in the Badia of San Quintino, near Spigno in Lombardy. The drawing of the faces and draperies at Tarrasa is not unlike that of the ninth-century Coptic manuscript from El Hamouly now in the Morgan 1

s Wilhelm Neuss, Das Buch, Ezechiel in Theologie und Kunst (Münster i. W., 1912). Ibid., Fig. 28. Wilhelm Neuss, Die Katalanische Bibelülustration (Bonn, 1922), PI. 13, Figs. 35-37. * George Swarzenski, Die Salzburger Malerei (Leipzig, 1913), PI. I. 5 Harvard Lectures, 1927-28. The manuscript has been reproduced by the monastery, but I have been unable to obtain a copy of the publication. a

[10]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY Library.1 In the light of other stylistic analogies, however, it is more likely that the Tarrasa figures are taken from a European original than from an oriental one. The orange and yellow color-scheme strongly suggests the Cutbrecht Gospels. The short, parallel, curving folds of the draperies at Tarrasa are exactly like those of the Evangelists of the Lindisfarne Gospels.2 The parted cm-tains behind the Elders are found continually in English manuscripts. The circles of the background recall for me the background of the miniatures of the Cassiodorus manuscript in the Durham cathedral and the dot motive is a commonplace in insular illumination.3 The large staring almond-shaped eyes with the pupils in the corners appear again and again in Irish and English manuscripts but it is within the range of possibility that they are derived from Mozarabic miniatures where they are equally common. It is difficult to determine from whence this English style entered Catalonia. It may have come directly from England or it may have found its way from some Irish foundation on the Continent such as Bobbio or St. Gall. The date of the frescos is equally puzzling. Although all of the stylistic elements are found in manuscripts of the eighth or ninth centuries, the sporadic tenacity of the English style makes a ninth-century dating far from certain. A somewhat similar insular style has been found in the frescos of San Procolo at Naturno, in the Italian Tyrol, which has been placed in the ninth century,4 but some of the sculpture of the north portal of St. Jakob at Regensburg is quite analogous in spite of the fact that the monument can be no earlier than the late twelfth century.5 In Catalonia itself the style lingers on at least as late as the eleventh century. In the fourth volume of the Bible of Roda the Apostle Andrew is strongly Irish or English in character and not unlike the Tarrasa frescos themselves.6 In view of these facts, the frescos can date anywhere from the early ninth to the second half of the tenth century. Considering the later development of Catalonian mural decoration, they can hardly have been painted after the close of the tenth century. Only a few fragments of what must have been a very wonderful series of frescos in the church of Santa Maria de Ripoll were in existence at the time of the restorations of the monastery which were carried on from 1863 to 1887. These fragments are now lost but they were reported by Elias Rogent, the 1

Manuscripts Coptes de la Bibliothiquc du Couvent de El-Hamouly (Paris, 1911), PI. XIV. George Millar, The Lindesfarne Gospels (London, 1923), Pis. X X and XXIV. • Zimmermann, op. cit., Vol. Ill, Pis. 247-248. 4 Giuseppe Gerola, "Gli affreschi di Naturno," in Dedalo (December, 1925), pp. 415-40. 5 Reproduced in Hans Karlinger, Die romanische Steinplastik in Altbayern und Salzburg (Augsburg, 1924), Pis. 18-27. « Paris, Bibl. Nat., Lai. 6, fol. 8V 2

[11]

MONUMENTS EARLIER T H A N T H E TWELFTH CENTURY architect in charge of the work.1 With them disappeared what was an extremely valuable and significant step in the development of Catalonian painting. The monastery played a highly important r61e in things political, ecclesiastical, and artistic in Catalonia during the Middle Ages. By the first half of the twelfth century it had become an important pilgrimage shrine, its possessions were rich and far flung, its library equalled by no other in Catalonia. Its location in the Ter valley was a great aid in augmenting its importance. Anyone traveling to Barcelona, say from Urgel or even Carcassonne or Narbonne, would not have to go far out of his way to worship at the sacred shrine of Our Lady of Ripoll. From a modest beginning, the institution becomes a nerve center from which lines of influence flow in all directions. The history of the monastery shows its influence as a net spreading all over Catalonia. A church dedicated to the Virgin was founded at Ripoll in Visigothic times, supposedly by Reccared.2 In 721 it was completely destroyed by the Moors, but during the reign of Wilfred the Shaggy another building was erected on the spot and dedicated in 888. During the ninth century, Benedictine monks from Spain crossed the mountains and founded many churches in Roussillon, chief among them being St.-Michel-de-Cuxa, St.-Andre-de-Sorede, St.Martin-de-Fenouillar, Arles-sur-Tech, and Vallespir.3 It is not difficult to believe that these monks were from the monastery of Ripoll which was the nearest important Benedictine foundation in Spain. In 928 Count Suner, brother of Wilfred II, donated the churches and lands of Montserrat to the monastery of Ripoll. By 935 the monastery had become so important that it had to be enlarged. A rededication was held in that year and the counts of Urgel and Cerdagne attended the ceremonies. It was during the time of the Abbot Arnulf (948-970) that Ripoll advanced in power and culture by great strides. He introduced the Cluniac order and organized a scriptorium. In 951 he made a journey to Rome and Montecassino accompanied by several monks who made copies of Italian manuscripts, one of which, a copy of a manuscript of Eugippius, was written in 954. 4 In the later years of his life, Arnulf was made bishop of Urgel, thus closely uniting Ripoll with that diocese. He started a third rebuilding of the church which was completed by his successor Witisclus (970-979) and dedicated in 977. The third dedication was attended by the counts of Barcelona, Urgel, Roussillon, and Cerdagne, and the bishops of Urgel, Vich, and Eine. Witis1

Elias Rogent, Santa Maria de Ripoll — Informe sobre las obras realizadas en la Basilica y lasfuentes de la reslaurar ci6n (Barcelona, 1887), pp. 36 ff. s Unless otherwise indicated, I have drawn the material for the history of Ripoll from Jos£ M. Pellicer y Pages, Santa Maria del Monasterio de Ripoll (Matarö, 1888). 1 J. Calmette and P. Vidal, Bisioire de Roussillon (Paris, 1923), pp. 44 and 65. * Rovira i Virgili, op. cit.. Vol. Ill, p. 389.

[ 12 ]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY clus also carried on the work started by Arnulf in the scriptorium and at his death the inventory of the library mentions sixty-six codices. During the rule of Senofred (979-1008) the number of books increased to a hundred and twenty-one. In 982 this abbot made a journey to France and in 1004 he attended a tribunal at Vich to decide certain questions pertaining to the ownership of lands. At the council was an impressive gathering which included Ramon Borell III of Barcelona, Count Armengal of Urgel, and the bishops of Narbonne, Urgel, Barcelona, and Vich. In 1008 Oliva, son of Oliva Cabreta, count of Besalu and Cerdagne and founder of the abbey of St.-Michel-de-Cuxa, became abbot of Ripoll. With his rule began the golden age for the monastery. At the death of Borell, he was made bishop of Ausona and later, bishop of Vich in 1018, and abbot of St.-Michel-de-Cuxa. In 1020 plans were begun at Ripoll for a great fiveaisled basilica and twelve years later it was completed and dedicated. The ceremony was attended by all of the great dignitaries of the land — the bishops of Albi, Barcelona, Carcassonne, and Eine; Count Berenguer Ramon I of Barcelona; Count Wilfred of Cerdagne, brother of Oliva; William of Besalu, his cousin; and Armengal II of Urgel. After the ceremony, a council was held in which the privilege of Benedict VII was read and rich donations were bestowed. The building of 1032, in a restored condition, is still standing to-day. Villanueva saw it before 1806, long before the restorations, and he gives us some idea of its former splendor.1 A golden, jeweled altar glowed in the main apse. The floor was covered by an elaborate mosaic of animals and sea monsters. Tombs and altars adorned the aisles. On the walls were painted verses from the Bible alternating with a rich profusion of mural paintings. In the treasury were prized relics of Saints Narciso of Gerona, Eulalia of Barcelona, Marcial of Limoges, and Martin of Tours. The scriptorium flourished under the wise rule of Oliva. In 1047 an inventory of the archives was drawn up, which survives in a twelfth-century copy. Among the two hundred and twenty-eight books listed, special mention is made for their magnificence of three Bibles and two collections of canons. We have notices of a scribe Guifredus who wrote four books on the life of Gregory the Great; of Segonius who wrote of the translation of the body of St. Stephen to Constantinople; of the mathematician Oliva who was the author of the Propiciatorium of St.-Michel-de-Cuxa and who visited the monasteries of Arlanza, Cardena, and Silos to gather material; of the artist Arnold who designed the great mosaic pavement; of Senderedus and Suniardus who went to Naples to obtain manuscripts to copy.2 1 1

Jaime Villanueva, Viaje Literario ά las Iglinaa de Espaüa (Madrid, 1806), Vol. VIII, pp. 40 ff. Joseph Pijoan, "Oliba de Ripoll," in Art Studies (1928), Vol. VI, pp. 81 ff.

[ 13]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY As bishop of Ausona and Vich and abbot of Ripoll and Cuxa, ecclesiastical duties took Oliva on many journeys. We are told that he made a short visit to Rome in 1012 and brought back with him privileges from Sergius IV and Benedict VII. He attended the dedications of the churches of San Lorenzo de Baga (983), Saint Martin de Canigou (1009), Santa Maria de la Pina (1022), Saint Paul de Pine in the Conflent (1022), San Martin de Ogasa (1024), San Miguel de la Roqueta (1043), and San Miguel de Fluvia (1045). Oliva died on October 30, 1046, at St.-Michel-de-Cuxa, after having knitted the ties which so irrevocably made Ripoll the heart of Catalonia. During the rest of the eleventh century and under the rule of a line of Provengal abbots in the twelfth, the power of Ripoll remained great. Even under the Aragonese domination of Catalonia, the monastery still continued to be an important political factor, for in 1210 Alfonso VIII issued a decree at Lerida confirming all of its ancient rights and privileges. Perhaps it is something more than pure chance that CampdevanoI, the earliest Catalonian mural about which we have any notice, comes from within four kilometers of Ripoll. Hopelessly little is known about the frescos of Ripoll. Before 1806, Villanueva was able to discern verses and scenes from the Bible. In 1863 only enough remained to cause Elias Rogent to declare that the basilica of Oliva surely contained mural decorations. There can be little doubt that these frescos had a certain amount, probably a great deal, of influence in Catalonia. It is natural, when seeking for evidence of this influence, to turn to Vieh. Oliva consecrated the cathedral of that city in 1038 and he remained its bishop until his death.1 It was only a few days' journey from Ripoll and was his second home. Unfortunately the Romanesque cathedral of Vich no longer exists, but there is a whole series of churches near at hand; San Martin de Sescorts, San Martin de Brüll, San Sadurnino de Osormort; all of which contain frescos portraying the same scenes from the story of the Creation. Nothing is more likely than that they are inspired by a common prototype, and what is more natural than that this prototype was on the walls of Ripoll? Perhaps the 'biblical verses' seen by Villanueva were nothing more than iconographic inscriptions such as appear at Osormort. We have another hint about the decorations of Ripoll. We know that before the year 1040, the apse of St.-Michel-de-Cuxa was decorated with a representation of the Virgin between the archangels Michael and Gabriel. The artist certainly must have known the frescos of Ripoll which, as we have seen, was in close connection with Cuxa during the reign of Oliva. In fact, the altar of Cuxa is said to have been manufactured by monks from Ripoll.2 The church of Ripoll was dedicated to the Virgin so that it is natural to sup1 Enrique F16rez, EapaUa Sagrada (Madrid, 1774), Vol. XXVIII, Appendix XIII. ' Pijoan, op. cii.

[14]

MONUMENTS EARLIER T H A N T H E TWELFTH CENTURY pose that her image would be painted on the walls behind her altar as in the case of Esterri de Aneo, Santa Maria de Tahull, and Valencia de Aneo. It may well have been a representation of the Virgin between Michael and Gabriel that the Cuxa artist saw and copied. The subject is a common one in Byzantine art and could have been introduced into Catalonia from Italy by the monks who accompanied Oliva Cabreta on his two journeys to Rome, or by Oliva of Ripoll, himself. The frescos from the little church of San Quirce de Pedret (Barcelona) not far from the town of Berga, now in the Museum of Barcelona, were first reported in the article of Francisco Muns in 1887.1 The earliest mention of Pedret is in a document of 983, but the name of the church itself does not appear until 1180.2 The building dates back to the tenth century and originally had three unvaulted aisles, a rectangular central, and two horseshoe lateral apses.3 An extensive remodelling took place in the twelfth century, when the walls were reinforced, a door pierced in the apse, and the south aisle destroyed. From this time on, the southern of the lateral apses may have been used as a baptistery. 4 Some scholars believe that this restoration took place in the first half of the twelfth century but Puig i Cadafalch places it ca. 1180.6 In the eighteenth century further changes were made. From the northern of the lateral apses only slight fragments of the polychromy are extant. A series of haloed figures are seated at a table but only the head of one is preserved. It has a beardless face and Folch takes it to be a female figure.® If he is correct, the scene is probably the Marriage Feast at Cana (symbolic of the Eucharist) rather than the Last Supper. The figure is inscribed... REAS. The entrance of the southern apse is adorned with a fret ornament and on the intrados of the arch is a seated personage writing, possibly an evangelist. In the crown of the vault of the apse is a poorly preserved half-figure of the Virgin and Child in a circular mandorla, inscribed SCA HARIA. On the cylindrical portion of the apse the parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins is represented. At the left are the wise virgins seated at a table, holding lighted torches or lamps, and beside them stands a figure with 1 Bibliography: Francisco Muns, "Sant Quirse de Pedret," in Certamen Catalaniata de la Joventui Catolica (Barcelona, 1887), pp. 805-327; Joseph Puiggari, "Pinturas Murals de Pedret," in I'Avenc (Barcelona, July 25, 1889), Vol. I, No. 7, pp. 105-110; J. Gudiol, Notions d'Arqueologica Sagrada Catalana (Vich, 1902), pp. 248-249; C. A. Torras, El Bergadd (Barcelona, 1905); B. Ribera, El cim d'Estela (Berga, 1907); J. Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. I; J. Pijoan, Gaseta de les Arts (Barcelona, April 15, 1925), Vol. II, No. 2$; J. Pijoan, Burlington Magazine, Vol. XIX, pp. 72-73; J. Pijoan, Atti del Congreso, etc. (report of the Congris International de Historia del Arte), p. 144; Doris C. Miller, "The Romanesque Mural Paintings of Pedret," in Parnassus (New York, March 15, 1929), Vol. I, No. 3. 2 8 Gaseta de les Arts (Barcelona, October 1, 1924). G6mez-Moreno, Iglesias Mozdrabes, pp. 59-68. 4 6 Pijoan, Burlington Magazine, Vol. XIX, pp. 72-78. Puig i Cadafalch, op. tit.. Vol. I, p. 869. • Joaquin Folch i Torres, Museo de la Ciudadela, Catdlogo de la Sectiön de Arte Romdnico (Barcelona, 1926), p. 126.

[15]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY a cruciferous nimbus whom Professor Pijoan has identified as Christ as bridegroom (PI. III, Fig. 1). The scene is inscribed QVIQVE PHVTETES. At the right stand the foolish virgins (only four being preserved) holding extinguished torches and inscribed QVIQVE FATVE (PI. Ill, Fig. 2). Finally, there is a female figure holding a palm or lily and seated on a building (PI. II, Fig. 3). She has been identified as an allegorical personification of the church and bears the inscription ECREXIA. The window of the apse and the arch of the entrance are decorated in pure ornament. Below the figures is a zone of a frescoed representation of curtains, a motive common to Catalonian apses. Puiggiari reported seeing an Annunciation which may have been in the doorway of the right-hand apse which connected it with the main apse but which is no longer in existence. Scholars have dated the frescos of Pedret from the tenth to the twelfth centuries. The truth, I believe, lies somewhere between the two extremes. Professor Post has carefully investigated the evidence presented by the architecture of the building and comes to the conclusion that the reasons for believing that the paintings were executed before and after the restoration of the twelfth century are about equal.1 In determining the date of the frescos, then, we must depend largely on the style of the paintings themselves. The architecture of the building is typically Mozarabic with horseshoe arches both in plan and elevation. If the polychromy is contemporary with the architecture, that is, of the tenth century, it is reasonable to expect some Mozarabic elements to appear. Such is not the case, however, for the style is without the slightest hint of Moorish influence. The tall, graceful figures are carefully modelled and symmetrically arranged. The richness of costume and accessories suggests the East-Christian love of adornment. The iconography was popular with Greek and Italo-Byzantine artists. The motive of the Wise and Foolish Virgins was used in very early times and the allegorical figure of the Church, Professor Post has pointed out, finds its origin in southern Italy, probably in the second half of the tenth century.2 Miss Doris C. Miller believes that the presence of the motive at Pedret is due to the influence of the Mozarabic liturgy. The thin, elongated figures, with their high waists, are more suggestive of the Second than the First Golden Age of Byzantine art. To put the frescos in the twelfth century is equally unreasonable. We have definitely dated Catalonian mural decoration of the first quarter of the twelfth century at Santa Maria and San demente de Tahull, which are so unlike the Pedret paintings that it is impossible to think of them as contemporary monuments. As the century advances, the stylistic differences between Pedret and the other Catalan frescos increase. By a process of elimi1

C. E. Post, op. cit., pp. 133-135. • Ibid., p. 135.

[ 16 ]

MONUMENTS EARLIER T H A N T H E TWELFTH CENTURY nation, then, since Pedret is neither of the tenth nor the twelfth century, it must be eleventh. A comparison with the monuments of the period will bear out this theory. The Wise and Foolish Virgins of the Bible of Ripoll, the Byzantine character of which was first noticed by Millet, 1 wear the same costumes and hold the same kind of lamps as their sisters at Pedret. 2 The mannerism of rendering the standing figures, with their long, thin proportions and close-hanging drapery revealing the straight, formless legs beneath, is found in the figure of the Virgin in the Crucifixion on the book cover from Jaca (Huesca) in the Metropolitan Museum, an ivory surely dated before 1085.3 Similarly, it appears in the Area of San Millan de Cogolla (ca. 1070), where the wide sleeves and pointed shoes, both decorated with dot ornament, also recall Pedret. 4 A similar convention of figure drawing is used in the portable altar of the cathedral of Namur, 5 in the Virgin of the Ascension of the famous ivory antependium from Salerno,6 and in the Virgin from a south-Italian triptych now in the Louvre,7 all of the eleventh century. In monumental sculpture a close analogy is seen in the tombs of the abbesses at Quedlinburg. These tombs were all by the same sculptor, possibly an Italian, and date ca. 1095. They were restored after the fire of 1129 but still retain eleventh-century characteristics.8 In them we find the same straight-hanging costume revealing the cylindrical legs beneath, the same wide sleeves decorated with dots, the same tall, thin proportions, and even the same method of indicating the small folds of drapery. Professor Post has demonstrated the possibility of a south-Italian influence on the Pedret frescos as seen in the iconography of the personification of the Church. The motive first appears in the Exultet Roll of Benevento now in the Vatican Library {Lot. 9820), which has been dated 981-984 by Miss Myrtilla Avery. 9 The Mater Ecclesia seems to have been especially popular in southern Italy, for it is found, although in a totally different form, on the pulpits of Ravello and Scala, the latter being now in the Kaiser Friedrich Museum in Berlin. A comparison with south-Italian frescos shows that there was a stylistic as well as an iconographic connection with Pedret. The typical 1

Gabriel Millet, Recherches sur l'Iconographie de l'Evangüe (Paris, 1916), pp. 606 ff. Neuss, Katalanische Bibelillustration, PI. 52, Fig. 148. 3 A. Kingsley Porter, Romanesque Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads (Boston, 1923), 111. 519. 4 Ibid., 111. 644. This was first called to my attention by Professor Porter. 5 Adolph Goldschmidt, Die Elfenbeinshdpturen aus der Zeit der karolingischen und sächsischer Kaiser (Berlin, 1914-18), Vol. II, PI. X X , Fig. c. • Ibid., Vol. IV, PI. XLVII, No. 43. ' Ibid., PI. L. 8 Adolph Goldschmidt, "Die Stilentwickelung der Romanischen Skulptur in Sachsen," in the Berlin Jahrbuch (1900), Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 225 ff. * This was first noticed by Emile Bertaux, "La peinture du X I e au XIV e siecle en Espagne," in Histoire de I'Art, edited by Andre Michel (Paris, 1906), Vol. II, Part 1, p. 414. 2

[ 17]

MONUMENTS EARLIER THAN THE TWELFTH CENTURY Pedret figure drawing is used in the angels flanking the Virgin in the apse of the church of Santa Maria de Foro Claudio of the end of the eleventh century,1 and in the Exultet of Bari.2 The headdress of the Foolish Virgins, bound up with strings of white beads, finds a parallel at San Angelo in Formis in the female saints of the southern of the minor apses. At Rome the Pedret figure drawing appears in the eleventh-century frescos in Santa Pudenziana 3 and to a less marked degree at San Sebastiano in Pallora on the Palatine. The caps on the figures at Santa Pudenziana vaguely recall the curious pointed crowns of the seated Virgins of Pedret, but closer analogies are seen in the codex of Lombard laws in the Library of Cava (No. 22), a southItalian manuscript of A.D. 1004-14, and in the eleventh-century Lombard frescos above the vaulting of San Orso of Aosta, a work which Van Marie believes to have been executed under Benedictine influence.4 The ornament of the Catalan church is common to much of Romanesque art, the only unusual motive being the border of alternating hearts in the window embrasure. This, too, is found in the Bari Exultet although it also appears on a pottery jar in the Museo Arqueologico of Seville (No. 323) which purports to be Visigothic.6 The epigraphy is in no way antagonistic to an eleventh-century dating. The letters are fairly monumental capitals and the A's have the straight crossbar. Professor Porter has called my attention to the curious mannerism of drawing the tails of the Q's backwards, which also turns up at San Angelo in Formis. To sum up, the frescos of Pedret contain stylistic characteristics typical of sculpture and painting of the last quarter of the eleventh century and they were probably executed at that time. Some of these characteristics are peculiarly south Italian so that it is reasonable to suppose that a strong influence from lower Italy was exerted on the work.6 This supposition adds weight to the theory advanced by Francisco Muns that the church of Pedret originally belonged to a Benedictine monastery.7 1 Emile Bertaux, L'Ärt dans I'ltalie Meridionale (Paris, 1904), PL XIII. 2 Ibid., PL IX, No. 2. 8 Raimond van Marie, La Peinture Romaine au Moyen-Age (Strassburg, 1921), Ρ1. XXXIV, Fig. 67. 4 Raimond van Marie, Italian Schools of Painting (The Hague, 1923), Vol. I, p. 176. 6 Bertaux, op. cit., PL IX, No. 1. β The similarity of the fresco of the Wise Virgin at Civate to Pedret has often been pointed out. The statement, I suspect, is based largely on the fact that she holds a torch like those in the Catalonian painting. These torches have been fairly common in art since their first appearance in the Rabula Gospels, however, so that the analogy can hardly be called a significant one. Moreover, the Civate Virgin is hopelessly repainted. 7 Francisco Muns, "Sant Quirse de Pedret," in Certamen Catalanista de la Jonentut Catolica (Barcelona, 1887), pp. 305 ff.

CHAPTER I I THE TWELFTH CENTURY T H E great wealth of mural decoration dates from the twelfth century, the golden age for fresco painting in Catalonia. The preceding hundred years was a formative period, a period of transition, but this was one of achievement. I t was the time of Ramon Berenguer the Great, of Ramon Berenguer the Holy, of Alfonso of Aragon. I t was the time of alliances with Italian republics, of the rise of military orders and crusades, of valiant victories over the Moors. By the middle of the century Catalonia had been freed from the infidel, Catalonian troops were making their triumphant entry into Narbonne, the kings of Valencia and Murcia were paying tribute into her coffers. By the end of the century all of Catalonia, Aragon, Roussillon, Carcassonne, Beses, and Montpellier were ruled by one hand. From the early part of the twelfth century three fresco cycles belonging to a group of churches in the Bohi valley have come down to us and are now in the Municipal Museum of Barcelona. Both the churches and the paintings which they contained are closely related to each other, so that we can safely lump them together and treat them as the Bohi valley group. The first of these which we shall consider is the church of San d e m e n t e de Tahull, whose date of consecration, December 10,1123, has come down to us.1 The building has three unvaulted aisles separated by colonnades and three semicircular apses decorated on the exterior with arched corbel tables supported on pilasters and engaged columns. A portico or narthex precedes the church. 2 The frescos in the main apses are fairly well preserved and illustrate the typical Catalonian apse composition of the twelfth century (PI. IV, Fig.l). In the semidome is a figure of the Lord in an aureole, seated on an arch and His feet resting on a semicircle (PI. V, Fig. 1). His right hand is raised in benediction and in His left He holds an open book inscribed with the words EGO SVM L V X M V N D I written in capitals with a few ligatures. He is flanked by two angels, one symbolic of Matthew and one holding the eagle of St. John in his arms (PI. V, Fig. 2). Below are two medallions containing the symbols of Luke and Mark held by two half-figures of angels, also in medallions (PI. IV, Fig. 2). The composition ends, right and left, with a pair of cherubim 1 Barcelona Museum, Nos. 77-86. Bibliography: Joseph Pijoan, Les Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. I l l , pp. 27-30. 2 J. Puig i Cadafalch, "Les Iglesies Romänicas ab Coberts de Fusta de les Vails de Bohi i d'Arau," in Anuari de 1'Institut itEstudis Catalans (Barcelona, 1907), pp. 119 ff.

[ 19]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY with six wings covered with eyes. In the cylindrical portion of the apse are the Apostles Thomas, Bartholomew, James, John, and Philip (?), very badly preserved. In their midst stands the Virgin holding a cup, probably the Holy Grail (PI. IV, Fig. 3; PI. VI, Fig. 1). There have been critics who suggest that the cup held by the Virgin, a motive very common in Catalonian mural painting, has its origin in early medieval crucifixions where the Virgin is frequently depicted holding a vessel. This, I think, is an unsound explanation, for in some of the frescos red lines of light are radiating from the cup, showing definitely that it was considered as a representation of the Holy Grail. The Apostles of Tahull are inscribed with fairly monumental letters although some uncials are used, and the crossbars of the A's are broken. The arcade under which they stand is interesting. The shafts of the columns are decorated with a simple wave pattern similar to that used on the stucco antependium from Planes.1 The capitals consist of a curious bud-like motive set on a block. It seems as if the artist has seen or heard about the Byzantine stilt-block but, not understanding its function, has reversed the order. The spandrels of the arch are painted to represent brick or tile. The background of the frescos, both in the cylindrical portion and the semidome of the apse, is decorated with broad horizontal bands of color, a motive very common to medieval wall painting. Some of the decoration from the triumphal arch has also been preserved. On the crown of the arch were the hand of God and the Holy Lamb of the Apocalypse. The rest was decorated with a series of compartments containing figures and biblical scenes, but only two are extant, illustrating, as Professor Post has shown, the parable of the rich man and the beggar Lazarus2 (PI. VI, Fig. 2). This same scene turns up in the frescos of Vicq (Indre-et-Loir).3 The fragment from another compartment may be a representation of the angels carrying the souls to Abraham's bosom. A series of fragmentary angels is all that remains of the decorations of the subordinate apses (PI. VI, Fig. 3). The motive of the angel choir is a common Byzantine one 4 and is used frequently in Italian art as seen in the frescos of San Angelo in Formis, San Vincenzo al Volturno, and the parish church of Romeno (Bolzano) in the Tyrol. The columns of the church were probably all frescoed, and from one of them an important inscription has come down to us, fixing the date of the paintings. It was damaged during the transferring of the frescos and is now repainted, 1

Walter w . S. Cook, "The Stucco Altar-Frontals of Catalonia." in Art Studies (Princeton, 1924), Vol. II, Fig. 30. C. R. Post, op. cit., p. 97. 3 Louis Horticq, "L'Exposition des Peintures Murales de France du X I e au X V I I P siecle," in Gazette des Beaux Arts (Paris, 1918), p. 173. 4 Oskar Wulff, "Die Koimensiskirche," in Nicäa und ihre Mosaiken (Strassburg, 1903), pp. 202 ff. and PI. II. 2

[ 20 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY but fortunately it was photographed before the destruction took place so that we know that the restoration is accurate. It reads: ANNO AB INCARNACIONE D O M I N I MILLESIMO C E N T E S I M O VIGESTIMO T E R T I O QVATRO I D V S D E C E M B R I S VENIT RAIMVNDVS EPISCOPVS BARBASTRE N S I S E T CONSACRAVIT H A N G ECCLECIAM I N HONORE SANCTI CLEMENTIS MARTYRIS ET P O N E V S RELIQVA8 I N ALTARE SANCTI CORNELII EPISCOPO ET MARTYRIS.

There are clearly two hands at work on the decoration of San demente. The frescos of the main apse are highly stylized, brilliantly colored, carefully and knowingly drawn, and show a fine feeling for pattern and symmetry. M. Lauer points out the similarity of the head of Christ to the miniatures of the Sacramentary of Limoges in the Bibliotheque Nationale (Lat. 9438), a manuscript of the first half of the twelfth century.1 A striking analogy is also afforded by Catalonian painting in the altar frontal from Montgrony now in the Episcopal Museum of Vich, which is about contemporary with Tahull.2 The frescos of the triumphal arch and lateral apses of the church are cruder, less sophisticated, and somewhat monotonous. The artist has confined himself almost entirely to yellows and blues, while the colors of the main apse are numerous and varied. The quality of ultramarine used in the main apse is far superior to that used in the rest of the paintings. The cruder color-scheme is used on the column which contains the inscription so that it appears that this is by the same hand as the frescos of the lateral apses. Moreover, the man who painted the fine bold majuscules of the main apse would be incapable of designing the childish scrawl of the inscription. The master of the inscription was also at work in Santa Maria de Tahull. This church is contemporary with San Clemente, as it was also consecrated in 1123. The coincidence of the same style appearing in two contemporary buildings is too great to allow the theory advanced by Richert and supported by Cook that the frescos are later than the date of consecration.3 Since the style of the master of the apse of San Clemente is similar to Catalonian panel painting of the first quarter of the twelfth century, it too can be assigned the date ca. 1123. 1 Ph. Lauer, Les Enluminures Romanes des Manwcrils de la Bibliotheque Nationale (Paris, 1927), p. 114 and PI. XVI. 2 Walter W. S. Cook, " The Earliest Painted Panels of Catalonia," in The Art Bulletin (June, 1923), Vol. V, No. 4, Fig. 1. * Gertrud Richert, Mittelalterliche Malerei in Spanien (Berlin, 1925), p. 14.

[ 21 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY The second of the group of the Bohi valley churches is that of Santa Maria de Tahull, which was consecrated on December 11,1123. 1 The original building had three aisles and three semicircular apses. At a later date the side aisles were cut up into chapels and the original wooden ceiling was replaced by a vault. The frescos from the main apse and the walls of the building have been removed and are now in the Barcelona Museum. In the dome of the apse the Epiphany is represented. A frontal Virgin and Child seated on a throne are in the center and are flanked by the three Magi inscribed MELHOIH, CASPAR, and BALDASAR (Pis. VII-VIII, Fig. 1 ) . The cylindrical portion of the apse is decorated with a zone of Apostles under an arcade, among whom Andrew carrying the cross, Peter, Paul, and John the Evangelist can be identified.2 The columns of the arcade have twisted shafts and a semicircular floral design used for capitals similar to those used in the Friedhofkirche of Maria Wort in Germany (PL VIII, Figs. 2-3). 3 Below the zone of Apostles is a row of medallions containing grotesque animals and separated by double palmettes (PL IX, Fig. 1), which motive Professor Cook has shown was derived from Hispano-Moresque textiles.4 The composition ends at the bottom with a painted representation of curtains. The border surrounding the arch of the apse is identical with one used on the portal of the parish church of Folgaroles (Barcelona), being an Arabic inscription used decoratively (PL IX, Fig. 2). Over the keystone of the arch is the Lamb of God in a medallion and at the right, a figure of Abel making his offering. Opposite may have been Cain or even Melchizedec as at San Vitale at Ravenna. The figures on the jambs are very poorly preserved but may have been Apostles. Fragments from around the triumphal arch on the east wall at the top show a row of figures representing the symbols of the Evangelists Luke and John, a seraph, and the archangel Gabriel (PL IX, Fig. 3). The evangelists have the heads of beasts and the bodies of men. Gudiol makes the interesting observation that on the opposite side of the apse, Matthew, Mark, a seraph, and St. Michael may have been depicted.5 A somewhat similar arrangement is used on the vaulting of the church at Maderuelo, in the province of Segovia (PL X, Fig. 1). Below this row of figures is a badly damaged series of saints. The composition ends with a zone of animals in medallions and painted drapery as in the main apse. Over the portal on the west wall is a Last Judgment occupying the same position as it does in Byzantine churches. 1 Bibliography: Puig i Cadafalch, Anuari (1907), op. cit.; Joseph Pijoan, Pinturea Murals Catalans, Vol. Ill, pp. 30-32. 2 Mr. Mayer Schapiro has called my attention to a capital at Moissac of about A.D. 1100 which he believes to be the earliest extant example of the St. Andrew carrying the cross. 3 R. Borrmann, Η. Kolb, and O. Vorlaender, Wand- und Decbnalerein in Deutschland (Berlin, N.D.), Vol. II. * Art Studies (1924), Vol. II, pp. 46-47. ' J. Gudiol i Cunill, Els Primitius (Barcelona, 1928), p. 216.

[ 22 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY The scene contained Christ as Judge (now destroyed) accompanied by saints and angels, while below are the Weighing of Souls and a Resurrection of the Dead (PL X, Fig. 2).1 The sufferings of the damned are portrayed on the north wall, where fantastic demons of every description are attacking the lost souls (PL XII, Fig. 3). Somewhat similar is the representation of Hell in the twelfth-century fresco of St.-Jacques-de-Guerets, in France.2 In the tympanum of the portal is a half-figure holding two cups which has not surely been identified. On the west wall opposite the minor apses, just under the ceiling on one side, are two heraldic peacocks flanking a chalice, and on the other side, two dogs leaping over stools and chasing birds. The background of the latter scene is sprinkled with stars and circles. The heraldic birds are oriental in origin, appearing in the West in the catacomb of Vigna Cassia at Syracuse and in the frescos of San Michele, near Oleggio in Lombardy. In the oratory of St. Gregory of the Lateran at Rome, a work of the end of the eleventh century, animals are painted against a background sprinkled with circles and stars in a manner strongly recalling Tahull.3 The dogs themselves may be due to Benedictine influence. They are first used in a Montecassino manuscript of the early eleventh century.4 In the Benedictine monastery of Ripoll, dogs were seen by Villanueva in the mosaic of the eleventh century.6 Below the scene at Tahull is an elaborate portrayal of the story of David and Goliath (PL XII, Fig. 2). At the left is a fragmentary David holding a sling, while above him Goliath, armed cap-a-pie, is lying senseless on the ground. He is clad in chain armor, the skirts falling below his knees, and carries a round shield, a motive more characteristic of the eleventh than the twelfth century. Immediately in front of the first David is a second David cutting off the head of the fallen warrior, while a bird is already fluttering down to eat of his flesh.6 The lower part of the fresco has been destroyed, only the wings and head of an angel being left. Somewhat similar portrayals of David and Goliath appear in the Hortus Deliciarum,7 at St. Aubin of Angers, and on a capital at Moissac.8 The decorations of the north wall are fairly complete and with their full, barbaric oranges and blues, give a striking idea of the richness which the 1

Professor Post first correctly identified this scene, p. 87. Paul Clemen, Die Romanische Monumentalmalerei der Rheinlande (Düsseldorf, 1916), Fig. 174; also fimile MÄle, " L a Peinture Murale en France," in Andri Michel (ed.), Histoire de l'Art (Paris, 1905), Vol. I, Pt. 2, pp. 772-778. •Joseph Wilpert, Die Römischen Mosaiken und Malereien der Kirchlichen Bauten von IV-XIII Jahrhundert (Freiburg i. B., 1917), Vol. IV, PI. 237. 6 * Cod. 109.25. Viaje Literario, Vol. VIII, p. 25. • The motive of birds eating the flesh of the dead is used in the Beatus manuscripts, illustrating the passage in the Book of Revelation, xix, w . 17-20. It is interesting to see it appearing in the twelfth century on a capital at Chauvigny in the Poitou. 7 G. Kellar, Hortus Deliciarum (Strassburg, 1901), PI. XVI, fol. 54 v . 8 A. Kingsley Porter, Romanesque Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads, Ills. 283 and 1069. 2

[ 23 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY interiors of these Catalonian churches must have had. The upper zone of figures is seriously injured so that the scenes are difficult to interpret (PI. XI). In the first compartment are two men standing before a body of water on which floats a boat. The formula recalls scenes of the Calling of Peter and Andrew,1 but this can hardly be the subject. Since the story of Elijah and Elisha is surely depicted in one of the compartments of this row, the scene here may be the two men standing on the banks of the Jordan (Second Book of Kings, xi, 7-8). The next compartment which contains an animal and a human figure may conceivably illustrate the horses and chariot of fire carrying off Elijah (xi, 11). A somewhat similar arrangement appears in the twelfth-century manuscript from Prüfingen now in Munich (Clm 13002), the Cronica Sancti Sophiae of Benevento (Cod. Vat. Lat. 4939) and the frescos in the crypt of the cathedral of Anagni. Next is a portrayal of a figure holding a cloth and this must be Elisha holding the mantle of Elijah (Second Kings, xi, 14). The last compartment contains three winged angels holding spears and kite-shaped shields. They are not unlike the figures in the contemporary fresco at Tubilla del Agua (Burgos) but as the central portion of the composition is gone, its interpretation is not certain. It may be the battle with the apocalyptic dragon as portrayed at Civate and so be connected with the Last Judgment, near which it is located.2 The lower zone is less problematic. At the left are Herod, the three Magi, and the Virgin and Child. There is an unexpected intrusion of an angel over the Virgin's shoulder which, as far as I know, is quite unprecedented. The next two figures, according to Gudiol, are Zacharias and the scribe about to write the name "John" before the former recovers his speech (PI. XII, Fig. 1). Other instances of the use of this subject in mural painting are found in the late twelfth-century fresco in the chapel of St. Gabriel in the cathedral of Canterbury 3 and in the frescos of the middle of the eleventh century in the crypt of St. Maria im Kapital at Cologne. It is fairly common in Byzantine works.4 The last scene on the other side of the arched doorway Gudiol has identified as the angel appearing to Zacharias to announce the birth of his son John the Baptist.6 The lower part of the wall is painted to represent curtains. A few other fragments from Santa Maria are now in the Barcelona Museum. There are figures of saints or prophets from the intradoses of the nave arcade, two of which can be identified as Isaiah and Jeremiah from their inscriptions (which are written in reverse), a lamb in a medallion, the ornament from a column, and so on. 1

As in the Bible of Ripoll (Neuss, Katalanische Buchmalerei, PI. 49, Fig. 148). Pietro Toesca, La Pittura e la Miniatura nella Lombardia (Milan, 1912), Fig. 78. ' Tancred Borenius and E. W. Tristram, English Mural Painting (Paris, 1927), PI. 4. 4 6 Clemen, op. cit., pp. 228 ff. Eh Primitius, pp. 225-226. s

[ 24 J

THE TWELFTH CENTURY The apse of Santa Maria de Tahull is similar to that of San demente but the two are certainly not by the same artist. The San Clemente master is far superior. He makes greater use of pattern, has a finer sense of symmetry and design, and is much more of a stylist. In comparison, the Santa Maria artist seems crude. Richert may be correct in seeing more than one hand at work on the frescos of the walls of the church,1 but certainly they all belong to the same atelier, the very atelier that was at work on the lateral apses of San Clemente. This being so, the frescos must date from ca. 1123. The last of the Bohi valley group of churches which contained polychromy is that of San Juan de Bohi.2 Its early history is not known but it probably dates from the first quarter of the twelfth century, for, architecturally, it is similar to the Tahull churches.3 Originally the building had three aisles separated from each other by columns, three semicircular apses, and a wooden roof. Extensive changes were made in Renaissance and later times, when the aisles were divided off and converted into a series of chapels, the central apse was completely destroyed to make a door and, in the eighteenth century, a vault was built. The fragmentary frescos which survive these alterations are now in the Museum of Barcelona. Around the portal of the west fagade the frescos have been badly damaged but four angels supporting a medallion and two flanking figures still remain.4 Ornamental borders of the "double axe" 5 and geometric motives are also present (PL XIII, Fig. 2). In the tympanum on the interior a cock is painted, possibly referring to Peter's denial of Christ (PL XIII, Fig. 1). The Fragmentary frescos from the south wall of the church are difficult to interpret (PL XIV, Fig. 1, PL XV). The juggling figures from between the windows, Gudiol first identified as illustrating the scene of the adoration of the statue of Nebuchadnezzar as told in the Prophecy of Daniel.6 Its similarity to the same scene in the Bible of Roda in Paris (Lot. 6) is striking.7 Professor Post suggests that the other figures from this wall may also belong to the story of Nebuchadnezzar.8 From the north wall the most important scene is the Stoning of St. Stephen which contains the inscription SS Stefanus and the Greek name " Theodoras " (PL XIII, Fig. 4). It has been suggested that this is the signature of a Greek artist. Pijoan pointed out, however, that in the Menologium of Basil II, a 1

Op. cit., pp. 14-15. In several publications the church has been referred to as Santa Maria de Bohi. Folch i Torres (Cat&ogo, p. 70) calls attention to the fact that the church was dedicated to St. John. a Bibliography: Joseph Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. Ill, pp. 32-34; J. Puig i Cadafalch, Anuari (1907), pp. 117 ff. 1 Richert suggests that these figures are Saints Peter and Paul. Gudiol calls them evangelists. 6 See page 85. · Els Primitius, p. 238, note 1. 8 ' Neuss, Katalanische Buchmalerei, PI. 32, Fig. 98. C. R. Post, op. cit., p. 99. s

[25]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY Byzantine manuscript of the tenth or eleventh century, figures of Theodore follow the scene of the Martyrdom of St. Stephen, a fact that suggests that the name Theodore at Bohi is the result of Byzantine influence from some similar manuscript. The composition of the scene is somewhat like the Stoning of Stephen in the ninth-century frescos of San Vincenzo al Volturno in southern Italy. Since, however, the same arrangement is used in Carlovingian manuscripts, a direct connection with Italy seems far from sure.1 Other fragments from the north wall contain animals and grotesque monsters and one depicts a nude figure in the clutches of a demon, possibly representing the tortures of the damned or one of the woes of the Apocalypse. Finally comes a scene of three figures in a boat. In composition it is very like a capital of the cathedral cloister of Tarragona on which the story of Noah is carved. This seems a likely explanation of the theme of Bohi when we consider that on the west wall is afigureholding a bird which probably illustrates Noah sending forth the dove from the ark (PI. XIV, Figs. 3-4). In general spirit, the style of Bohi is similar to that of the lateral walls of Santa Maria de Tahull. There is the same elongation of figures, the same warm red and orange tonality, and the same rather barbaric crudity suggesting certain tendencies in Mozarabic illumination. The facial drawing with the double line of the nose and the staring eyes also recalls Mozarabic miniatures and is found, for example, in the Beatus of the tenth century in the Archivo Historico of Madrid (Cod. 33). The curious stool on which the lyre player stands is represented again and again in the Codex Emilianensis of the Escorial Library (PI. XVI, Fig. I).2 Mozarabic influence in the frescos of the west portal has been suggested by Don Marcario Golferichs.3 There are at least two hands discernible at work on the interior of Bohi, one on the north and one on the south wall. The difference in the two styles is the difference between a frescoist on the one hand, and a miniaturist on the other. The artist of the south wall has great freedom and dash. He conceives his compositions with barbaric vigor and on a large scale. The artist of the north wall must have received his training as an illuminator of manuscripts. His acquaintanceship with Byzantine illumination has been indicated in the scene of the Stoning of Stephen. Still further proof lies in the striking similarity of his style with that appearing in a miniature in a twelfthcentury manuscript from San Cugat de Valles now in the Archives of the Crown of Aragon in Barcelona.4 The facial drawing and the rendition of posture and drapery are identical (PI. XIII, Fig. 3). This manuscript is 1 Amidie Boinet, La Miniature Carolingienne (Paris, 1913), PI. L X X X V I I I - D . * Cod. J. D. 1, folios 79,80,95,101 v , 105,108, and 128 v . * La Vanguardia (Barcelona, July 18, 1981). 4 Cod. 21, the Homilies of Augustine on the Gospel of John, folio 146T.

[ 26 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY under strong French influence and is not unlike certain miniatures executed at Fleury in the twelfth and early thirteenth centuries.1 We shall see that, at least during the reign of Oliva of Ripoll, the abbey of St.-Benoit-sur-Loire was in close connection with Catalonia.2 A third hand was at work on the frescos of the portal of Bohi in a manner that is akin to that of the fresco in the church of San Miguel at Tubilla del Agua (PI. XVI, Fig. 2). The style is very similar to that of the lateral walls of Santa Maria de Tahull and the minor apse of San demente. All of the artists may have belonged to the same atelier and they are related stylistically to the antependium of the early twelfth century from near-by Durro, now in the Barcelona Museum.3 The mural decoration of Bohi is contemporary with the architecture and can certainly be dated in the first quarter of the twelfth century. Don Rafel Maso i Valenti was the first to notice the stylistic connection of Bohi with the frescos of Vicq (Indre-et-Loire).4 The church now known as San Miguel at the Seo de Urgel (Lerida) may once have been the cathedral of that see, founded in 839.6 By 993, however, it no longer was the seat of the episcopate for in that year Count Borrel II made separate bequests to the church, then dedicated to St. Peter, and to the cathedral. In 1033 it was rededicated to St. Michael. The present building, dating from the end of the eleventh century, has a single nave, transepts, and three semicircular apses. The vaulting of the nave is later than the rest of the architecture. The only frescos which have survived are the badly damaged ones from the main apse, now in the Barcelona Museum (PI. XVII, Fig. 1). In the vaulting of the apse is a figure of the Saviour surrounded by the four symbols of the evangelists. The composition is separated from the lower zone of decoration by a fret border and an inscription which reads... DO QVAE SVMPSI MEMBRA V E H E N D O a n d . . . N D E KECRE . . . I V D E X S A N ... The walls of the apse are pierced by three windows which separate pairs of apostles and the Virgin in gesticulating attitudes (PI. XVI, Figs. 1-2). John the Evangelist, Peter, Paul, Andrew, and Jacob can be identified. Around the central window is a debased anthemion similar to that used in the Gospels of Perpignan.6 1 A. Jacob, "Alphabet Majuscule du ΧΠΙ β Siecle," in Mimoirea de la Sociiti Archiologique de I'OrUans (1858), Vol. II, pp. 487 ff. 2 See page 92. * No. 5 (Catdlogo, Fig. 49). * Rafel Mas6 i Valenti, "Les Pintures Murals de Buada," in Pagina Artistica de la Veu de Catalunya (Barcelona, October 1ft, 1919), No. 495. 6 Bibliography: Pascual Sanz Barrera, "Monografia y restaurackm de la Catedral de la Seo de Urgel," in Anuario de la Asociaciön de Arquitectos de Cataluna (Barcelona, 1907), pp. 39 ff.; Joseph Pijoan, Burlington Magazine (May, 1911), p. 71; Joseph Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. II, pp. 21-28; J. A. Brutails, L'Art Religiös en el Rosello (Barcelona, 1901), p. 34; Puig i Cadafalch, L'Arquitectura Romänica a Catalunya, Vol. II, pp. 248 ff. and Figs. 165166; Puig i Cadafalch, Santa Maria de la Seu d'Urgell (Barcelona, 1918), pp. 22-28. «Art Bulletin. Vol. V, No. 4, PI. XXXVI, Fig. 16.

[ 27 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY In style, the Urgel frescos fall midway between the Bohi valley group and the paintings at Santa Maria de Mur which dates from ca. 1168. The elongated figures with their staring eyes recall the paintings on the walls of Santa Maria de Tahull, but the stylistic vocabulary resembles Mur without having the suavity and sophistication of the latter. The apostles in gesticulating attitudes are also found at Mur.1 Two altar frontals from the Seo de Urgel, now Nos. 15 and 16 of the Barcelona Museum, have a striking relationship to the paintings of San Miguel. Folch i Torres believes the panels to be the products of the same hand.2 The treatment of the drapery in the frontal No. 16 is almost identical with the fresco. Particularly striking are the zigzag folds in the front and the fluttering bottoms of the garments. The knees and high-lights in the fresco are strongly emphasized and stylized while those of the panel are merely suggested. Moreover, there is a tendency towards a Mozarabic spiral over the shoulders of the panel figures that does not appear in the mural painting. The still erect position of the figures of the fresco is closer to panel No. 15. The facial types of all three works are very much alike and are close, as we have seen, to the Bohi valley group of paintings. This manner of rendering the faces may eventually go back to the scriptorium, of Ripoll. The figure drawing in the fresco and panels is so close to the twelfthcentury sculpture of Languedoc that we are justified in seeing a strong French influence at Urgel. If we compare the Virgin and St. John of San Miguel to the Annunciation or the Visitation at Moissac which are dated 1122-31, we find the same elongated proportions, the same fluttering edges of draperies, the same mannerisms of articulating the knees, and even the same positions of the hands.3 In the tympanum of the Cathedral of Cahors, dated before 1150, we find similar grouping of pairs of gesticulating apostles below a standing figure of the Lord in the same position as the Christ at Urgel.4 In view of these analogies and in view of its relation to the dated frescos of Catalonia, the Urgel decoration can be assigned to the middle of the twelfth century. In the valley of the Cardos (Lerida), a few kilometers south of the village of Ginestarre, is the little parish church of Esterri de Cardos (now known as Ribera).6 It is a typical building of the first Romanesque period with a single nave, unvaulted, and semicircular apse decorated with corbel tables in the Lombard manner. Esterri is mentioned in documents dating between 1095 and 1122. The apse fresco, all that is left of the mural decoration of the church, has been removed and is now in the Barcelona Museum (PI. XXXIII). 1

2 Reproduced in Folch, Catdlogo, Figs. 65-66. Ibid., p. 63 and Figs. 65-66. 4 ' Porter, Romanesque Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads, 111. 376-377. Ibid., 111. 422 and 427. 6 Bibliography: Joseph Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. IV, pp. 53-55; Gaseta de les Arts, Vol. I, No. 10.

[ 28 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY In the center of the semidome is the usual figure of Christ in majesty surrounded by the four symbols of the evangelists. The group is flanked by two seraphim with six wings covered with eyes, and two archangels. Of the latter, only Gabriel is well preserved. He holds a staff or banner and in his left hand is a scroll inscribed with the word P O S T L A C I V S . This word should probably read P O S T V L A T I V S , for so it appears in a similar composition in the apse of San Vincenzo at Galliano, in Lombardy.1 In the Italian fresco St. Michael also holds a scroll with the word P E T I C I O , but at Esterri de Cardos this has been lost. The costumes of the angels are very similar to those worn by Michael and Gabriel flanking Christ in the apse of SS. Giovanni e Paolo at Rome, a work of the late eleventh or early twelfth century.2 The composition of the dome ends in a floral border which Sr. Folch i Torres believes to have been derived from iron works 3 but which is rather close to a border used in a Coptic manuscript of El-Hamouly.4 Professor Post's suggestion that it was originally used as a ground line is quite convincing, for a similar border is actually used as the ground in the Epiphany at Aneo. From the border at Esterri de Cardos, vases, chalices, and horns are suspended. Gudiol believes that these may be representations of votive offerings, but they recall rather strongly the vessels suspended from arches in the ninth-century Carolingian Bible of Charles the Bald and the Gospels of Lothair.5 Similarly, vessels are depicted in mosaic on the vault of Santa Costanza at Rome and Sig. Adolfo Yenturi derives them from cult utensils sacred to Bacchus.6 Of the Apostles on the cylindrical portion of the apse, only Paul, John the Evangelist, Bartholomew, Thomas, and Barnabus are preserved (PI. XXXIV, Fig. 2). Paul holds a vessel in his hands, a fact which led Pijoan to think that he was confused with John, but Professor Post believes that it is merely taken from the description in Acts (ii, 15) where the Lord likens Paul unto a vessel.7 The iconography of Esterri does not help us with dating the frescos. We have spoken of the striking analogy with Galliano, but angels holding these mysterious scrolls are found in Italian art at a much earlier date.8 Moreover, the composition of Christ flanked by seraphim and archangels is used as early as the tenth century in Spain in the Codex Albendensis and the Codex Emilianensis of the Escorial Library. Therefore, in dating the frescos, we are entirely dependent on stylistic evidence. Aside from the composition there are Italo-Byzantine suggestions in the rich costumes of the Apostles and in the stoles of the archangels. The facial drawing of the latter, along with that of 1

Toesca, Pittura e Miniatura nella Lombardia, p. 45, Fig. 29. 3 Wilpert, op. cit.. Vol. IV, PI. 243. Catdlogo, p. 100. * Manuscrits Coptes de la Bibliotheque du Convent de El-Hamouly (Paris, 1911), No. 13, PI. XIV. 6 Boinet, op. cit., PI. XXXV. ' Adolfo Venturi, A Short History of Italian Art (London, 1926), p. 12. 7 8 G. R. Post, op. cit., p. 112. See page 81. 2

[ 29 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY the seraphim, is vaguely reminiscent of the figures in antependium from Valltarga in the Barcelona Museum.1 The frontal seems to form an intermediate step to the frescos from such a painting as the head of Ariberto from Galliano, dated 10Ö7 and now in the Ambrosiana in Milan.2 Chronologically, the analogy does not hold, as the Valltarga panel dates from the thirteenth century. It does show, however, that in spite of a strong iconographic connection with an eleventh-century Lombard monument, the Cardos fresco does not necessarily date from an early period. The elongated figure of Christ and the peculiar rendering of the faces of Christ and the Apostles come out of the same tradition as the Bohi valley school, but whereas the style at Tahull and Bohi is living and vital, at Esterri de Cardos it has become hard and monotonous. The stiff, puppet-like figures seem to indicate that the artist was repeating an old formula and was not especially interested or inspired in his work. Even the stiff monumental figures of San Miguel de la Seo are more in the spirit of Tahull than Cardos. It is highly probable, therefore, that the paintings were executed in the third quarter of the twelfth century, and are slightly later than the frescos of Urgel. Only a short distance from Esterri and related to it in style, is the church of Ginestarre de Cardos (Lerida).3 The building, which may date from the time of Bishop Odon of Urgel (1095-1122), has a single nave and semicircular apse. The apse frescos now form a unit of the collection of the Barcelona Museum (PI. XIX, Fig. 2). In the vaulting are very badly damaged fragments revealing a Christ in majesty surrounded by the symbols of the Evangelists and below is a row of Apostles with the Virgin in their midst (PI. XIX, Fig. 3). The Apostles represented are Saints Paul, John the Evangelist, Peter, John the Baptist, Matthew, and Andrew. The remaining figure has not been identified. In style the frescos vaguely recall Urgel, but the tight, hard outline indicates a later date. The closest analogy is with the paintings at Esterri de Cardos. In fact, we can say with reasonable conviction that the two artists were trained in the same school. The master of Ginestarre, however, is more skillful than the one of Esterri and may have antedated him by a few years. The two frescos, however, belong essentially to the same period of stylistic development. The frescos from the Andorran church of St. Michael at Angulasters (now No. 10 of the Barcelona Museum) are similar in general conception to the usual Catalonian scheme for apse decoration, but in certain details they are 1 8

2 No. ti, Caidlogo, Fig. 74. Toesca, op. cit.. Fig. 32. Bibliography: Joseph Pijoan, Piniures Murals Catalanes, Vol. IV, pp. 51-53.

[30]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY 1

not true to type. The church, a structure with a single nave and semicircular apse, is not documented but it has been stylistically dated in the twelfth century.2 In the semidome of the apse is the usual Christ in a mandorla but He is surrounded by only three of the usual four symbols of the Evangelists (PI. XX, Fig. 1). Matthew is omitted and in his place is a standing figure of the archangel Michael holding a banner and inscribed scs M. .. CH... L. The symbols of Mark and Luke are in medallions held by angels. The banded background is sprinkled with the word repeated several times, recalling the angel choirs of Byzantine art. In the lower zone is the normal row of Apostles which originally consisted of six figures but only four have survived the ravages of time and of these, Andrew, Peter, and John alone can be surely identified (PI. XX, Fig. 3). Gudiol thinks that Paul and Matthew were included in the list. On the soffit of the chancel arch is an Agnus Dei in a medallion supported by two angels and below them are halffigures of saints in square compartments. On the jambs of this arch columns are painted and on the wall around the arch of the apse is a double-axe border. The motive of half-figures in compartments is used in one other Catalonian church, that of Boada. It is a commonplace in Italian mural decoration, however, and has its origin in the Near East. The substitution of Michael for Matthew is unique, as far as I know, and was certainly done because the church was dedicated to that archangel. In style, the works are similar enough to Ginestarre and Esterri de Cardos to permit a dating in the third quarter of the twelfth century. Another Andorran church from which frescos have come down to us is that of Argolell.3 Aside from the fact that the town was mentioned in A.D. 839 in the act of consecration of the cathedral of Urgel, nothing is known of the history of the building.4 The exquisitely delicate paintings from the lower portion of the apse are now in the collection of Don Luis Plandiura of Barcelona (Pis. XXI-XXII). They consist of the usual Catalonian apostolado and a bit of foliate ornament from a window. There are five Apostles, Paul, John, and Philip being so inscribed, and the Virgin holding the Grail. The book held by Paul is inscribed VAX . . . ST . . . MIHI which Professor Post rightly interprets as the passage from the ninth chapter of Acts reading, Vas electionis est mihi.5 The graceful ornament from the window finds many analogies 1

Bibliography: Joseph Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. II, p. 24; Joaquin Folch i Torres, Gaseta de lea Arts, Vol. I, No. 4. 8 Folch i Torres, Catdlogo, p. 59, Fig. 58. ' Bibliography: Walter W. S. Cook, "A Romanesque Fresco in the Plandiura Collection," in Art Bulletin (March 1928), Vol. X, No. 8, pp. 266 ff. Professor Cook dates the fresco in the thirteenth century. 4 Rovira i Virgili, op. cit., Vol. Ill, pp. 101 ff. 6 C. R. Post, op. cit., p. 108.

[31]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY in the altar frontals, chief among them being the panels from Valltarga, Encamp, and Faneras. The curious method of drawing the goiter-like necks of the figures with two bands of circles on them is exactly repeated in the fresco of Christ flanked by Peter and Paul at San Pietro di Civate in Lombardy, even to the angular termination of the drapery at the bases.1 Toesca places the frescos in the twelfth century but Professor Porter has advanced strong arguments in favor of a dating in the third quarter of the eleventh.2 Professor Post has noted many similarities between Argolell and Ginestarre de Cardos and has pointed out a resemblance to the Christ Child at Santa Maria de Tahull.3 It seems probable, therefore, that the paintings were done earlier than Ginestarre and date from about the middle of the century. The curious sort of stylized realism, the gentle aloofness, the sensitive linear quality, and the cool blond tonality make these paintings among the most agreeable in Catalonia. The church of Santa Maria de Mur (Lerida), situated on the rocky heights above the village of Guardia, once formed part of an ancient Augustinian monastery.4 The building was endowed by Raymond, count of Pallars, and consecrated in 1069 by William, bishop of Urgel. Architecturally, it belongs to the first Romanesque period with its three unvaulted aisles ending in semicircular apses. The central apse was dedicated to the Virgin and the subordinate ones to Saints Peter and Stephen. Only the central and southern apses are still in existence. The polychromy of the main apse has been removed and is now in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston (PI. XXIII). The frescos of the minor apse, in a very fragmentary state, are still in situ. In the semidome of the main apse is a Christ surrounded by the four evangelic beasts, the seven stars, and the seven lamps of the Apocalyptic Vision.5 His right hand is raised in benediction and in His left He holds an open book which has the inscription in mixed majuscules, EGO SVM VIA VERITAS ET VITA NEMO VENIT AD PARTEM NISI PER ME. A similar quotation appears in a thirteenth-century baldacchino in the Barcelona Museum.6 The four symbols of the Evangelists are inscribed with verses from Sedulius in a majuscule hand containing many ligatures. The verses are numbers 355359 of Book III of the Paschalis Carminis and are fairly common in art from 1

2 3 Toesca, op. cit., Fig. 69. Harvard Lectures, 1927-28. C. R. Post, op. cit., pp. 108-110. Bibliography: Botetin de la Real Academia de Buenos Leteras de Barcelona, Vol. VI, pp. 112ff.;Pleyan de Porta, Album Historich, Pintoresch y Monumental de Heyda, pp. 807 ff.; Puig i Cadafalch, Arquilectura Romanica a Catalunya, Vol. II, pp. 200 ff.; J. Goday, "Una Iglesia Romanica Policramada," in Museum, IV, pp. 45 ff.; J. Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. IV, pp. 61-68; J. Pijoan, "A Catalonian Fresco for Boston," in Burlington Magazine, July, 1922; Boston Museum of Fine Arts Bulletin, Vol. X X I , No. 125. 6 For a discussion of the lamps, see page 78. · Folch i Torres, Catdlogo, p. 40. 4

[ 32 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY the Carlovingian periods.1 In Catalonia they are found on the silver altar frontal from Gerona and in the frescos of Fenouillar. The middle register of the fresco of Mur contains the twelve Apostles, this and Osormort being the only Catalonian frescos where the complete number is represented (PL XXIV, Fig. 1). There are groups of four at the ends of the zone, the others being paired off and placed between the windows. The division into groups and the lively gesticulating attitudes of the figures belong to a hoary tradition which, as we shall see, finds its origin in Palestine at a very early date.2 In the recesses of two of the windows the story of Cain and Abel is depicted (PI. XXIV, Fig. 2), and those of the third are decorated with two graceful little figures with upraised hands touching the painted canopy in the arch. These figures have been the center of much speculation. In an article in the Museum of Fine Arts Bulletin it is suggested that they may have originated in some manuscript of Genesis as upholders of the universe, for it appears that similar canopies are found in the windows of the eleventh-century Coptic church of St. Simeon at Assouan. Richert thinks the figures may be personifications of day and night and Professor Post points out that they are similar to the figures of Day and Night in the Roda Bible. Professor C. R. Morey suggests the possibility of the canopy at Mur being an imitation of the liturgical fan, but thinks that it more likely originates in the conchshell motive common to Early Christian manuscripts.3 Somewhat similar and equally puzzling figures are used in the late twelfth-century frescos of Tavant.4 The lowest zone of Mur contains scenes from the Life of Christ inscribed with more verses from Sedulius. Reading from left to right the scenes are, the Visitation, the Nativity, the Annunciation to the Shepherds, and Adoration of the Magi (PI. XXV, Fig. 1). I know the fragments of frescos in the south apse only from a water-color copy, but from this I judge them to be by the same hand as the central composition.6 Flanking the window are figures of a youthful male and a female saint, perhaps the Virgin and John the Evangelist. In the recesses of the window are two haloed figures, one of them holding a book (PI. XXV, Fig. 2). In some ways, the style of the Christ and Apostles at Mur suggests Catalonian panel painting. The stiff, angular folds with the high-lights carefully emphasized are similar to the figures on the ciborium in the Vich Museum (No. 352). The elaborate iconography tends to show a date in the second 1

Anuari de VInstitut d'Estudis Catalans (1911-12), p. 686. See page 74. · Harvard Lectures, 1923-24. 4 Melville Webber, "The Frescos of Tavant," in Art Studies (1925), Vol. III, Pis. VII and VIII. • I made the steep ascent to Mur twice to see these frescos, only to find the church locked, the priest away, and the key in the possession of an over-zealous servant. By inserting a mirror in the apse window, I was able to ascertain that the frescos are still actually in situ. J

[33]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY half of the century. In the earlier apses, the dogmatic lesson was kept free from irrelevant details, but here the awe which should be inspired by the Last Judgment is diluted with Old and New Testament scenes, which, however instructive, can have no symbolic relationship with the main feature of the iconographic scheme. This multiplication of details, we shall see, is characteristic of Catalonian iconography of the end of the twelfth and the thirteenth centuries. On the other hand, the Mur paintings completely lack the strong Byzantine influence which constantly appears in the later frescos. The first marked sign of this Byzantine influence is in the fresco of Estahon, which must date some years later than 1165. It is certain, therefore, that the Mur paintings are later than 1150 (the approximate date of Urgel) and earlier than those of Estahon. It is possible that they were executed about 1168, when a donation was given to the church by Arnaldo Miron, count of Pallars.1 The church of Santa Eulalia at Estahon (Lerida) is mentioned in A.D. 839 in the act of consecration of the cathedral of Urgel. The name next appears in a document of 1062, but the present building probably dates from the twelfth century.2 It has a single nave and semicircular apse, the frescos of which have been removed to the Barcelona Museum.3 The composition of the central dome was obviously inspired by some painting similar to Esterri de Cardos. We find the same Christ and four symbols of the Evangelists flanked by seraphim, and the archangels Michael and Gabriel holding the scrolls PECICIVS and POSTVLACIVS (PL XXVI, Figs. 1-2). Since these scrolls repeat the same mistake as that which appears at Esterri, they either are copied from a common prototype or one is copied from the other. The lower zone of Estahon is quite different, however. In place of Apostles we find Saints Eulalia, Mary, Anna, and Lucy and a fifth figure which Pijoan described as the Magdalen before the removal of the fresco. Since the fiesta mayor of Estahon comes on February twelfth, the St. Eulalia must be the Eulalia of Barcelona, who was martyred there in the third century.4 The female saints all carry chalices and are crowned, but the Virgin wears a veil and carries the Holy Grail in her hand. At the right is a bearded figure inscribed SECO PER which Gudiol interprets as SANCTVS EGO PRESBITER and which must refer to St. Eneco or Inigo, who was abbot of Ona from A.D. 1035 to 1068.6 In the center of the zone is a Baptism of Christ 1

Villanueva, Viaje Literario, Vol. XII, p. 74. Bibliography: Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. IV, pp. 56-38; Pijoan, Anuari de l'Institut d'Estudii Catalans (1911-12), pp. 686-689; Gaseta de les Arts, Vol. I, No. 10 (Oct. 1, 1924). 3 Nos. 31 and 45. For plan, see Catdlogo, Fig. 128. 4 Rovira i Virgili, op. eit.. Vol. II, p. 203. 5 Enrique Herrera y Oria, "Autenticidad de las reliquias de San Ifiigo, Abad de Ofia," in Revista de Archivos, Bibliotecas y Museos (Madrid, 1918), Vol. X X X V I I I , p. 360. 2

[34]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY carefully explained by means of inscriptions (PI. XXVI, Fig. 3). The river is labeled I O R D A N V S ; St. John bears the legend I O N N I S B A P T I S T E ; and below appears the word ERX which refers to Christ and should read REX. The composition is terminated below by a border of curtains with figures of animals and men in a poor state of preservation. On the arch of the apse is an Arabic inscription similar to that at Santa Maria de Tahull and the portal of Folgaroles. The fragments from the lateral walls of Estahon contain parts of two figures. One is that of a female saint clad in a blue robe and veil and holding a book. She may be the Virgin of the Annunciation. The other figure has the arms raised in the position of an orante. The changing of iconographic ideals which we noted at Mur is carried further at Estahon, where the row of Apostles is omitted altogether. The composition of the semidome, we have seen, appears at Galliano in Lombardy and is probably Italian in origin. The scene of the Baptism of Christ is purely Byzantine in character and the suggestion of modeling in the female figures also shows Greek influence. For the figure of Christ, the artist used traditional Catalonian model, so that the Byzantine character is less noticeable. The style here is so like monuments of the earlier part of the century that the paintings cannot be later than the third quarter, and represent a transitional moment when Eastern influence first began to supplant the old Catalonian style on the south slope of the Pyrenees. Professor Post has pointed out that St. Eneco was not canonized until 1165, so that the frescos must be later than that date. As they represent a stage in stylistic development later than Mur, they can be dated after 1168 and before ca. 1175. Our knowledge of the history of the abbey church of Marcevol (PyreneesOrientales), which lies about two kilometers north of the railway station of Vinga, is fairly complete.1 In 1129 the village and the parish church of Our Lady of "Las Gradas " was given to the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. The priory itself was founded by the order before 1142 and reached the height of its power in the 'eighties of the twelfth century under the rule of the prior Bonet, who obtained rich gifts from the abbot of Canigou and Alfonso of Aragon. The present church was probably built at this time. It was abandoned in the middle of the fifteenth century and the crumbling structures are now used by an enterprising farmer to house his family and cattle. The nave of the church is covered with a pointed barrel and the aisles with half barrel-vaults. Three pairs of heavy piers divide the nave and aisles, the easternmost pair being T-shaped on plan and supporting a transverse rib. 1 Bibliography: Pierre Vidal, £tude Historique sur le PrieurS de Marcevol de l'Ordre des Ckanoines du Saint Sepulcre (Perpignan, 1888); Pierre Vidal, Guide Historique et Pittoresque des PyrMes-Orientales (Perpignan, 1899), p. 240; Anuari de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1915-20), p. 774; J. A. Brutails, Art Religiös en el Rosello, p. 51.

[ 35 ]

T H E TWELFTH CENTURY In section, the church resembles St. Trophime at Aries. Some of the small churches of Catalonia such as Culera and Montmell have half barrel-vaults in the aisles, but in these buildings the nave vault is not pointed. Architecturally, then, the church is Provengal. The few fragments of frescos which still exist are in the southern of the lateral apses (PL XXVII). An extremely elongated figure of Christ is seated in a diamond-shaped mandorla supported by four angels. The upper two hold censers and are divided from the lower pair by an ornamental border. The composition, possibly the upper part of an Ascension of Christ, terminates below in a simple border of diamond motives. The style of Marcevol is decidedly eclectic. The diamond-shaped mandorla is used as early as the ninth century in the Bamberg Bible. In the tenth century in Spain it appears in the Codex Albendensis (folio 13v) of the Escorial Library and again in 1806 in the Beatus manuscript in the cathedral archives of Burgo de Osma (Soria). In the Catalonian murals its use is confined to Marcevol and Fenouillar. The lower pair of angels is extremely like those supporting the glory on the lintel of St.-Genis-des-Fontaines which is dated 1020, the treatment of the wings and the faces being almost identical.1 The fragmentary angel from the west wall of Santa Maria de Tahull is also very close to these. The triangular spots of color on the cheeks of Christ are probably derived from Italy. The earliest example I am able to mention is found in the mosaic of the baptistery of San Giovanni in Laterno at Rome (A.D. 642-649). 2 Curiously, they appear again in the Anglo-Irish Gospels of the cathedral of Trier.3 The great elongated figure of Christ shows a relationship with the frescos of the Cardos valley of the third quarter of the twelfth century, a fact which tends to discount the early elements we have seen in the painting. The frescos, therefore, must date from the second half of the twelfth century and are probably contemporary with the architecture of the church, which we have seen was built in the 'eighties. The decoration of the church of St.-Martin-de-Fenouillar (PyreneesOrientales), known as Fenollar in Catalan, is among the most complete of the Catalonian churches and gives a good impression of the rich emotional effect that the interiors of these buildings once had. 4 The church is mentioned 1

2 Porter, op. ext., 111. 513. R. Van Marie, op. cit., Vol. I, Figs. 27-28. Ε. H. Zimmermann, Vorkarolingische Miniaturen, Vol. IV, Pis. 274-275. 4 Louis de Bonnefoy, " Epigraphie Roussillonnaise," in SocUti Agricole Scientifique et Littiraire des PyriniesOrientales (Perpignan, 1860), Vol. XII, pp. 41-44; J. A. Brutails, "L'ßglise de Saint-Martin de Fenouillar," in Bulletin Archeologique du Comite des Travaux Historiques et Scientifiques (Paris, 1886), No. 4, pp. 443-449; J. A. Brutails, Notes SUT I'Art Religieux du Roussillon (French edition), pp. 341-342; Tachard, "Oratorie de Saint-Martin de Fenouillar," in Communication du 28 Janvier, 1908, of the SocitU ArcMologique de Toulouse; J. Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. II, pp. 11-16; J. Pijoan, Anuari de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1911-12), pp. 686 ff.; Emile Male, Peinture' Murale en France, p. 780; Pierre Vidal, Guide Pittoresque, etc., p. 151. 3

[36]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY in documents of A.D. 844, 869, and 879 and was apparently founded in the ninth century by Benedictine monks from Spain.1 Its present name dates from the twelfth century. The building originally had a single nave with a portal on the north side and a square apse at the west. The transverse arches are horseshoe. Later the portal was blocked up, a new door pierced in the apse, and the church was reorientated. The frescos are in the ancient apse and were painted before the alterations took place, as they are damaged where the door was cut through. On the barrel vault of the apse is a splendid figure of Christ surrounded by four graceful angels, three of them holding symbols of the Evangelists in their arms, the fourth actually being the symbol of Matthew (PI. XXVIII). Inscriptions are between the angels, and surrounding the composition, verses from the Paschalis Carminis of Sedulius are written. Immediately below the Majestas Domini are the Elders of the Apocalyptic Vision, holding chalices and musical instruments. Above these, on the entrance wall, is a curious half-figure of the Virgin in the position of an orante, in a lozenge mandorla flanked by two angels. The lowest register contains scenes from the infancy of Jesus. On the south wall are the Annunciation, the Nativity, and a badly damaged Annunciation to the Shepherds somewhat similar to that scene at Barbara (PI. XXIX, Fig. 2). The interesting manger in which the Virgin of the Nativity lies is like an architectural niche with curtains hung from the arch. There is a suggestion of columns at either end, for bases and capitals are represented but the shafts are omitted. The checker pattern recalls masonry and the general effect is like the Nativity in the fresco at Brinay (Berry).2 Joseph is seated at the head of the bed, and behind him the Child lies on an altar which is raised on short columns in the manner of a much older period.3 On the opposite wall is the story of the Magi (PI. XXX). At the right the three Kings, clad in short tunics and capes, are mounted and ride toward the East. At the left they are presenting their gifts to the Virgin and Child. The Holy Pair were on the end wall but the piercing of the door has destroyed them. In the corner is an inscription which reads STELLA O R I E N ET V E CVM M V B U S and which has been interpreted as Vidimus stellam eius in Oriente et venimus cum muneribus adorare Dominum,.* In the style of Fenouillar we find the same eclecticism that we noticed at Marcevol. Professor Neuss compares the Nativity with that on folio 366v of the Bible of Roda.6 It is also similar to the scene in the Sacramentary of 1

J. Calmette and P. Vidal, Histoire de Roussillon, p. 44. Andre Humbert, "Lea Fresques Romanes de Brinay," in Gazette des Beaux Arts (1914), pp. 217 ff. A similar altar appears in the English psalter of A.D. 989-1008 in the Library of Boulogne {Pal. Soc., Vol. I, PI. 97). 4 Bonnefoy, op. cit. e Neuss, Katalanische Bibelillustrationen, p. I l l , Fig. 142. 2

s

[37]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY Limoges, a manuscript of the first half of the twelfth century.1 Even the Majestas Domini of this manuscript is not unlike the Fenouillar Christ.2 The mannerism of drawing fine straight lines on the necks of the figures in the miniatures finds a parallel in the frescos (PL XXXI, Fig. 1). Neuss also calls attention to the similarity of the Epiphany to that of the Beatus of St. Sever which was executed in Gascony in 1028-75.3 Hourticq hints at influence of enamels in the drawing of the drapery.4 The convention of drawing concentric circles on the rumps of the horse probably comes from the school of the Poitou, for the only instances of its use that I know are found in the frescos of St. Jean at Poitiers and at St. Savin (PI. XXI, Figs. 2-3). The intense bearded faces are a diluted Byzantinism and are not unlike German and Italian manuscripts and ivories of the late twelfth century.6 They are also found in the frescos of the church of St. Nicholas at Tavant, in the Touraine, where the staring eyes, triangular spots of color on the cheeks, the dynamic energy of the figures, and the method of drawing the folds of the drapery with light lines on a dark ground all strongly recall Fenouillar. Mr. Melville Webber has dated these frescos in the second half of the twelfth century.6 Pijoan recognized the strong analogy between the figure style of Fenouillar and that of certain miniatures of the late twelfth century in the Libro Feudorurn now in the Archives of the Crown of Aragon in Barcelona. These comparisons and the elaborate iconography indicate that the frescos are of the last quarter of the twelfth century. The church of Our Saviour at L'Escluse (known as La Clusa and Esclusa in Catalan) is of great antiquity, since its name appears in a Visigothic document of A.D. 672 and again in A.D. 839 in the act of the consecration of the cathedral of Urgel.7 It is only seven kilometers from Fenouillar, both buildings being on a branch of the old Roman road, the Via Domitia, which connected Narbonne with Gerona and Tarragona. At the period of the construction of the present building in the twelfth century, this branch of the road was known as the Strada de Perpignan. It is not surprising that we find a decided relationship between the mural decorations of the two establishments. The interior of the little church is divided into nave and aisles by four 1

s 3 Paris Bibl. Nat., Lat. 9438, folio 19 v . Folio 58 v . Neuss, op. cit, p. 113. Louis Horticq, " L'fixposition des peintures murales de France du X I au XVIII siecle," in Gazette des Beaux Arts (1918), p. 181. 5 Goldschmidt, op. cit., Vol. IV, No. 41, PI. XI. • Melville Webber, Art Studies (1925), Vol. I l l , pp. 92 ff. ' Bibliography: J. A. Brutails, Art Religieux de Roussillon, p. 152; Jacques Frexie," La Vole Romaine de Roussillon et ses Embranchements," in Congris Archidlogique de France (1906), pp. 485-508; Pierre Vidal, Guide Pittoresque, etc., p. 152; Calmette and Vidal, Histoire de Roussillon, p. 35; J. Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. II; Puig i Cadafalch, Arquitectura Romiinica a Catalunya, Vol. II, p. 135. 4

[ 3 8 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY heavy piers which support the barrel vaults. The three apses at the east end are built into the thickness of the wall and few fragments of fresco still cling to the central one (PI. XXXIII). In the middle is a figure of the Lord in a mandorla which is composed of the double-axe motive. To the right of His head, enclosed in a circle, is a cross from which the alpha and omega are suspended. Hanging from the mandorla on each side are painted strands or cords which may once have supported lamps or incense burners. These, however, have been destroyed. To the right of Christ is a splendid angel holding a standard. There seems to be two distinct styles, or, at any rate, two different sources, of inspiration at L'Escluse, although it is likely that the same hand painted all of the frescos. The figure of Christ with his heavy, arched eyebrows and symmetrical stylization of features seems to fit in with the group of monuments we have seen on the south slope of the Pyrenees, notably in the Bohi valley. The angel and the two Magi clearly belong to the same artistic tradition as Fenouillar. We find the same triangular spots of color on their cheeks, the same costumes, and the same high crown of the head. The wings of the angel are exactly like those of the Fenouillar angels, while the figure itself in position and treatment is strikingly similar to the Apostle from a lunette of the cathedral of Angouleme.1 This is not surprising, since we have already noted influence of the Poitou, at Fenouillar. It is sure, therefore, that the Escluse frescos belong essentially to the same period as those of St. Martin. Two kilometers from the village of Escalo, in the valley of the Rio Noguera de Pallares, lies the ruined church of San Pedro de Burgal (Lerida).2 The monastery to which the building belonged was in existence in A.D. 865. In 945 the Benedictine Order was introduced and five years later it became a dependency of Ste.-Marie-de-Grasse, near Carcassone, and remained under that French institution until at least as late as 1311. The church has three aisles separated from one another by heavy rectangular piers. At both ends of the nave, making a somewhat Germanic plan, are two semicircular apses, that to the east being flanked by two lateral apses. The exteriors are decorated with arched corbel tables supported on flat pilasters. Aside from the massiveness of the piers of the nave, there is no evidence that the building was ever vaulted. At the time I visited the church all of the frescos were still in their original positions.3 In the southern of the minor apses were, and I believe still are, 1

Porter, oj>. cil., ΠΙ. 937. Bibliography: Villanueva, Viaje Literario, Vol. XII, p. 41; J. Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalans, Vol. I l l , pp. 43-47. » July, 1927. 2

[ 39 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY a few fragments of fret pattern and painted drapery. In the main apse only the frescos of the cylindrical portion were visible, the decorations of the semidome being hidden by a coat of whitewash and plaster. This has since been cleared away and the frescos have been removed to the Plandiura collection in Barcelona, where they have been extensively and unskillfully repainted. I am indebted to Professor Post for photographs and a description of the upper zone of the frescos, which I have not seen. In the center is a fragmentary Pantocrator flanked by angels bearing the Peticius and Postulacius inscriptions and by adoring figures, probably prophets, as at San Yincenzo at Galliano (PL XXXIII, Fig. 1). Only the figures from one side have survived. On the wall below, the apostolado containing the Virgin is portrayed (PL XXXIV). The figures are seated, however, and in their positions and in the rendering of the folds of the drapery on their legs with two horizontal lines ending in a curl, they strongly recall the allegorical figure of the Mother Church at Pedret. The Apostles include Peter, John the Baptist, Paul, and perhaps John the Evangelist. One of the figures recently brought to light is that of a woman, apparently a donatrice, inscribed Comitissa. The zone of figures is interrupted by three windows, below each of which drapery is painted. The composition is bounded above and below by fret borders, that below containing compartments with crowns in them. The decorations of the apse are completed at the bottom by a row of curtains adorned with medallions which once may have contained grotesque animals but which are now badly damaged. The most striking element in the style of Burgal was the full, vigorous modeling of the faces, which gave a forceful strength to the figures rarely found in Catalonia and which has the moving quality of a Byzantine ikon. This has been completely lost during the process of restoration (PL XXXIII, Fig. 2). The order in which the Apostles are arranged and the individual mannerisms of rendering the features are very close to Ginestarre de Cardos and must have been inspired by that or a similar apse. Iconographically the cycle is related to Esterri de Cardos or Esterri de Aneo. These monuments, we must remember, belong essentially to the same region. Burgal, however, represents a later stage in the development of painting than Ginestarre. The tendency to create real figures (through the agency of modeling) rather than conceiving the Apostles as flat spots in a general decorative scheme, as at Ginestarre, shows the comparatively late date of Burgal. The frescos were probably painted in the last decade of the twelfth century and Professor Post suggests that they were executed with funds provided by the donation of Counts William and Bernard of Pallars in 1196 and that the donatrice who is depicted may be Guillerma, the wife of the latter.1 1

C. R. Post, op. ext., p. 142.

[ 40 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY The earliest cycle of frescos in the church of Santa Maria de Tarrasa which have come down to us date from the closing years of the twelfth century or perhaps even from the early thirteenth.1 The original building has been variously dated from the fourth to the tenth century but an extensive reconstruction took place in 1112.2 As the church now stands it has a nave, transepts, and an apse, square on the exterior. Over the crossing is an octagonal dome on squinches, the rest of the structure being barrel vaulted. In a niche or minor apse in the east wall of the south transept are the frescos with which we are about to deal. Sr. Puig i Cadafalch considers the lower part of the nave to be of the tenth or eleventh century and the vaulting of the twelfth.3 The frescoed niche is probably of this latter period (PL XXXV, Fig. 1). In the summer of 1927 the frescos were removed from the apse, the apse was repaired, and the paintings were then replaced. I saw them both before and after the operation and can testify to the rather ruthless repainting. As they now stand, they are false documents, at least as far as the color is concerned. In this dome is a figure of the Lord flanked by the seven candlesticks of the Apocalypse. In his upraised hands he holds books which he places on the heads of St. Thomas ä Becket and Edward Grim, who stand at either side (PL XXXV, Fig. 2). A somewhat similar arrangement of figures appears in the fragment of an Exultet in the Vatican which Miss Avery proved belonged to the tenth-century roll from Benevento, also in the Vatican (Lai. 9820). In the lower zone are three scenes from the life of Thomas of Canterbury. At the left the murders mock the saint, in the center they attack him, and at the right is his burial and the apotheosis of his soul (Pis. XXXVIXXXVII). Between this zone and the painted curtains below are two fragmentary inscriptions which read... THOMAS BON . . . NVS S ANCTA PLVS VALET ΑΕΤΕ SVA, and below... AS QVE SEMP AMA ... On the triumphal arch is a decorative border of alternating large and small circles similar to that used at Sta. Constanza in Rome.4 Over the crown of the arch are two angels holding a cloth on which rests a medallion which once may have contained a representation of the Virgin or the soul of St. Thomas. The iconography of the frescos give some aid in dating them. Thomas k Becket died in 1170 and was canonized in 1173. A few years later Benedict, 1 Bibliography: J. Gudiod i Cunill, Nocions de Arqueologia Sagrada (Vich, 1912), pp. 248-249; Jose Soler y Palet, "Describimento de pintures murales romanicas en Santa Maria de Tarrasa," in Museum. (1917), Vol. V, No. 8, pp. 295-298; Soler y Palet, La Vanguardia (September, 1917); Soler y Palet, " D e les Pintures Murals Romäniques i Especialment de les recentment descobertes a Sta. Maria de Terrassa," in Butlleti del Centre Excursionista de Catalunya (1918), pp. 24-36 and 45-52; Puig i Cadafalch, Anuari de Γ Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1915-20), p. 773. The writings of Soler y Palet have been gathered in one volume and printed under the title Egara Terrassa (Tarrasa, 1927). 2 3

Manuel Risco, Espaila Sagrada (Madrid, 1801), Vol. X X X X I I , Appendix X I . Op. eit., Vol. I, pp. 829 ff. ' Wilpert, op. cit., Vol. III, PI. 6. [ 4 1 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY abbot of Peterborough (1177-93), wrote a life of the saint which enjoyed great popularity. It is unlikely that the paintings were executed before this. By 1186 an altar in the cathedral of Barcelona was dedicated to him but his cult did not become popular in Catalonia until the closing years of the twelfth century.1 In this connection it is interesting to note that a chapel was dedicated to St. Thomas at Anagni before 1181, but at Bari his cult was not established until 1196. The chapel at Anagni contains frescos with his image but the life of the saint does not appear. The earliest example that I know in frescos of the martyrdom of Thomas a Becket is the painting of ca. 1187, by Alberto Sotio in the church of SS. Giovanni e Paolo at Spoleto.2 The miter worn by St. Thomas at Tarrasa is typical of the late twelfth and thirteenth century, but aside from that, the costume gives us no help in dating. The crozier with crockets and ending in a serpent's head is like those held by the abbots on the stucco frontal from Planes in the Barcelona Museum. Professor Cook points out that similar croziers were made at Limoges in the thirteenth century and imported to Spain.3 The mandorla of Christ is composed of a four-leafed flower motive which is typical of Gothic art. It is interesting to see an outline style appearing here at this late date. We have seen it before at Tarrasa in the frescos of San Miguel, which are at least as early as the tenth century. In manuscripts the outline style is regularly and normally employed in Catalonia during the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Is it possible that the tradition was continuous in monumental painting as well? It is a question that must remain unanswered, for no other examples have survived the ravages of time unless the paintings at Granera can be considered as outline drawings. A striking analogy to the Tarrasa style is found in an antependium in the Episcopal Museum of Vich (No. 7). The same linear treatment is used, the same stiff, puppet-like figures, and the same empty, expressionless faces appear in both (PI. XXXVII, Figs. 1-2). The head of the first Magus in the Epiphany of the panel is so startlingly like the head of the left-hand figure in the scene of the Burial of St. Thomas, even down to the smallest detail, that one is tempted to see the same hand at work on both monuments. If the artist at Tarrasa was trained as a panel painter, it would explain the lack of monumentality in the frescos, although the somewhat unusual colorscheme which is dominated by reds and blue-greens makes a pleasant decoration. A similar color arrangement is used in the thirteenth-century altar frontal from Navarre now in the Gualino collection of Turin.4 The minia1

Anuari de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1915-20), pp. 772 ff. R. van Marie, op. cit., Vol. I, p. 189 and Fig. 88. 3 Walter W. S. Cook, Art Studies, 1927, Vol. II, p. 66. 4 Lionello Venturi, Alcune Opere della Collezione Gualino Esposte nella R. Pinacoteca di Torino (Milan, 1929), PI. 9. a

[ 42 ]

THE TWELFTH CENTURY tures of the Martyrology of Adone in the cathedral archives of Cremona, a Lombard manuscript of 1180, also are rather similar in style to the Tarrasa frescos.1 In the main apse of Santa Maria de Tarrasa are some Gothic frescos which apparently have been painted over a layer of earlier paintings. Where the upper layer has chipped away, a few of these fragments show through. So little is to be seen, however, that it is difficult to pass judgment on them, especially since they, too, have undergone a rigorous restoration. Professor Post has called my attention to the fact that the ornament which can be distinguished strongly resembles that in the fresco of San Miguel at Tarrasa. The frescos from the chapel of the baronial castle of Orcau (Lerida), now in the Plandiura collection of Barcelona, I know only through photographs and the description which Professor Post has published.2 The castle, eight kilometers east of Tremp, was first mentioned in a document of 1045. The lords attained some little importance in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and their chapel contained an image of the Virgin of local fame. 3 The frescos, part of the decoration of the apse below the semidome, consist of three figures, of which St. Paul (holding a book as at Argolell) and St. Thomas can be identified (PI. LXI). Professor Post describes the style as being like Argolell but finer in quality, and dates the paintings at the end of the twelfth century. My own impulse is to place them somewhat later. The sharp-pointed forms of the drapery recall a style, transitional to Gothic, which is seen in an extreme and mannered form in Westphalian painting from about 1230 to 1250.4 The fact that the figures actually stand on the ground, indicated by a wave motive sprinkled with plant forms, shows a late date, as it is used most often in Catalonian frescos of the thirteenth century. 1 3 4

2 Toesea, op. oil., pp. 77-78 and Fig. 56. Post, op. cit., p. 122. Cefri Rocafort, Geografla General de Catlunya, Provincia de Lleyda (Barcelona, N. D.), pp. 821-823. Wolfgang van der Briele, Westfälische Malerei (Dortmund, 1926), Pia. 10-13.

CHAPTER III LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS ε have seen that in the second half of the twelfth century the simple iconographic scheme of apse decoration in Catalonia began to give place to a multiplication of scenes. In the thirteenth and later centuries this tendency to elaborate becomes so marked that only the faintest hints of the old composition of Majestas Domini and apostolado remain. In style, as well, changes take place. A marked realism creeps in, a realism which eventually undermines the whole aesthetic structure upon which Romanesque art is built, and finally develops into the Gothic style. Catalonia's importance as a separate political entity ends with the rule of Alfonso I. From the league with Pisa in 1114 until the reign of Alfonso the Magnanimous when half of the Italian peninsula was under Spanish rule and Catalans controlled a goodly portion of Greece, Italy and the East play an increasingly important part in Catalonian painting. Commercial and political connection with France, especially with the Midi, also have their effect on the art. The parish church of San Martin de Sescorts (Barcelona), known as Ceg Corts in Catalan, is the first of a series of buildings near Vich which contain frescos showing the influence of Ripoll.1 The structure is of the eleventh century and was consecrated in 1068 by William, bishop of Ausona. It has a nave with a ribbed barrel vault, transepts, a main apse which is semicircular on the exterior and scalloped or niched on the interior, and two lateral apses.2 The frescos are in the niches of the main apse but only the two on the outer edges are visible, as the others have been walled up. The apse has been blocked by a modern retable so that it is extremely difficult to see the frescos and almost impossible to photograph them (PI. X X X I X , Figs. 1-2). In the niche at the left is a scene of the Lord instructing Adam and Eve, inscribed... NVS ADAM VBI ES. Only the hand of the Lord is preserved but the tree of knowledge and the nude figures of Adam and Eve are fairly intact. The background is composed of three bands, representing the land, the waters, and the firmament.3 The Expulsion in the niche to the right is somewhat more fragmentary. At the left the angel, holding a sword, is gently 1 Bibliography: J. Gudiol i Cunill, Nocions d'Arqueologla Sagrada Catalana, p. 209; Anuaride Catalans (1909-10), pp. 714-715. 2 Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit.. Vol. II, pp. 251-253 and Figs. 158 and 173-175. 8 Gudiol, Els Primitius, p. 161.

[ 44 ]

1'Institut

i'Esludis

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS urging Adam and Eve to leave the Garden of Eden. The background has the same division into bands and above is an inscription which reads... D A M . . . DISSO.

Although the iconography may have been inspired by the eleventh-century frescos of Ripoll, the style is essentially later. The stiff, hard drawing shows a decadent art, although there is an interest shown in the tree, which is somewhat Gothic in character. The nudes are highly stylized, the high-lights and muscles being reduced to geometric patterns. The strange method of rendering the feet is a conventionalization of sandals such as those worn by the Evangelists in the Lorch Gospels and the Evangelistary of St.-Medard-deSoissons, both manuscripts of the ninth century. In the Bible of St. Aubin of Angers of the tenth century, the bare feet of the seated Christ of the Majestas Domini are already rendered like those of the Sescorts fresco.1 In the Sacramentary of Limoges of the twelfth century the stylization of the body of Christ somewhat recalls Sescorts but the miniaturist does not go to the extremes that are seen in the fresco. In the church of San Paolo, near Spoleto, the paintings of the end of the twelfth century contain nudes which are done in a manner very like those of Sescorts, and the method of rendering the draperies also recalls the rigid stylized folds of the angel of the Expulsion.2 Similar conventions appear in southern Italy in the Crucifixion of the tenth century in the Grotta dei Santi, near Calvi, and in the martyrdom of a saint of some hundred years later in the Badia, near Majori.3 In Spain the style again appears in the late twelfth or early thirteenth century in the Beatus in Paris (PI. X X X I X , Fig. 3).4 The Adam and Eve in the fresco of Christ in Limbo at St.-Jacques-des-Guerets in France are startlingly like the figures of Sescorts, while at Maderuelo, in Castile, the fresco of the east wall, a work of the late twelfth or early thirteenth century, also contains many points of similarity in figure drawing if not in composition (PI. XL). Before considering the other monuments connected with Sescorts we must treat the frescos from the church of Our Lady at Esterri de Aneo which are now in the Barcelona Museum (No. 54).5 The building, which once belonged to a Benedictine monastery, is first mentioned in the act of consecration of the cathedral of Urgel and again in documents of 1085 and 1088. The interior is divided into nave and aisles by six pairs of piers, cruciform in section, and the east end terminates in three semicircular apses, the central one of which was decorated with frescos (Pis. XLI-XLII). 1

2 Boinet, op. cit., Pis. XVII, XXI, and CLII. R. van Marie, op. cit., Vol. I, Figs. 91-92. 1 ' Bertaux, op. cit., pp. 244 and 248. Paris Bibl. Nat. Nouv. Acq. Lot. 2290, folios 13v, 14, 99, and 159v. 5 Bibliography: J. Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. Ill, pp. 37-43; J. Pijoan, Anuari de l'Instiiui d'Esiudin Catalans (1911-12), pp. 668 ff. (the summary of the report made at the tenth Congress of Art at Rome in 1912).

[ 45 ]

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS The Adoration of the Magi in the center of the vaulting of the apse is in very poor state of preservation. The great frontal Madonna is almost completely obliterated and of the three small figures of the Magi in oriental dress, only one is intact. These are rendered with a grace and delicacy that is seldom surpassed even in the Quattrocento. To the right and left of this central group are the archangels Michael and Gabriel holding banners and scrolls with the inscription P E T I C I V S and P O S T V L A T I V S , a motive which we have already noticed at Galliano. The banners held by the angels in the Lombard painting are exactly like those at Aneo. Flanking the central window of the lower zones are two six-winged seraphim and in their hands they hold live coals with tongs which they place in the mouths of two crouching figures. This scene illustrates the tenth chapter of the Book of Ezekiel, the two figures being Isaias and Elias, and the wheels are those of Ezekiel. The position of the prophets recalls the Jeremiah and Ezekiel at Galliano as well as the stucco figures of the ciboria of Civate and San Ambrogio at Milan. 1 At the left of the lower zone of Aneo are two tonsured figures which Pijoan believes to be Saints Benedict and Bernard, the founder and reformer of the order. Gudiol points out that one of them may be a portrait of a local deacon on account of the startling realism in the face of the figure. The same reason leads Richert to the conclusion that it is a donor. In supporting the Richert theory, Professor Post calls attention to the presence of a similar donor at Burgal.2 At the right of the zone is an angel holding a banner which Pijoan identified as Raphael before the fresco was transferred to the Barcelona Museum. The Aneo frescos make a complete break with the normal Catalonian iconographic scheme. It is true that the Virgin of an Adoration flanked by archangels appears in several earlier monuments, but the lower zone is unique and is quite unrelated to the upper part of the apse decoration. Byzantine influence is strong in the style of the frescos. The resemblance of the seraphim to those in the crypt of the cathedral of Anagni, near Rome, has been noted by Pijoan, and Neuss has pointed out their Byzantine character.3 In view of the Italian analogies, a more or less direct connection with Italy can hardly be denied. In addition to the Byzantine character there are many touches of pure realism. It is seen in the feeling for form throughout the composition and in such details as the unshaven face of the figure at the left of the lower register and the thin, wan, deeply wrinkled countenance of the Magus. It may, therefore, be assumed that the paintings were executed in the opening years of the thirteenth century at a time when the old Romanesque formulae were breaking down and Gothic art was on its way to be realized. 1

2 Toesea, op. cit.. Fig. 81. C. R. Post, op. cit., p. 138. ' Neuss, Kaialanische Bibelillustratkmen, p. 85.

[ 46 ]

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS The old Catalonian iconographic scheme still lingers on in the apse of San Sadurnino de Osormort (Barcelona).1 The history of the building is unknown but it is placed in the eleventh century on stylistic grounds. It has a single barrel-vaulted nave and semicircular apse decorated on the exterior with arched corbel tables in the Lombard manner. Of the Majestas Domini in the vaulting of the apse, only faint traces remain. Gudiol thinks that the Virgin and Child and not the Lord may have been depicted there. The register below this contains the twelve Apostles portrayed in lively attitudes and conversing with one another (Pis. XLIIIXLIV). The increased realism of the period is seen by the fact that these figures are actually standing on the ground, which is enlivened with tufts of grass. A similar ground line is used in the Johanneskirche at Priigg, in Germany, a fresco of the early thirteenth century.2 Between this register and the lowest zone is a border with inscriptions referring to the scenes from the opening chapters of Genesis depicted below. At the extreme left is the Creation of Adam which is inscribed . . . AVIT DOMINVS HOINEM D E . . . and LIMO T E E R E E T INSPIRAVIT I N FACIEM EIVS. Above the next scene which represents the Lord instructing Adam and Eve is the legend VBI D N S MISIT ADAM I N PARADISO. Neighboring this is the Creator pointing out the tree of knowledge to Adam. The final scenes are the Temptation, Fall, and Expulsion from Eden. The inscriptions above read: V B I DIABOLVS TEMTAVIT ADAM a n d

VBIE...

We have noted the possibility before that the iconographic cycle from the Creation story and the accompanying inscriptions may have been the result of the influence exerted by the lost decorations of Santa Maria de Ripoll. Although the Osormort frescos are much later than those of Ripoll there is always the possibility that they preserve an earlier design which perhaps was directly derived from that monastery or indirectly through the lost cathedral of Vich with which it was so closely bound in the time of Oliva. If Gudiol is correct in believing that the Virgin and not the Pantocrator was depicted in the apse of Osormort, the derivation from Ripoll seems all the more convincing, since that monastery was dedicated to Our Lady. The gesticulating attitudes of the conversing Apostles and the fact that twelve of them were represented suggest that there is some, certainly quite remote, relationship with Santa Maria de Mur. The very presence of a row of Apostles at this late date indicates an early tradition behind the composition. 1 Bibliography: Puigner6, Gazeta de Vich (June 15, 1915), Any II, No. 103; Puig i Cadafalch, Anuari del'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1915-20), p. 771, a resume of the Puignero article; J. Gudiol i Cunill, "La Decoracio Pictorica del Absis de Sant Sadurni d'Osormort," in Butlleti del Centre Excursionista de Vich, Vol. II, pp. 23-26; short notices appear in La Veu de Catalunya, Nos. 306 and 569. 2 R. Borrmann, H. Kolb, and O. Vorlaender, Wand- und Deckmalerein in Deutschland (Berlin, N.D.), Vol. II.

[47]

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS Certain details of facial drawing and drapery forcibly recall the illuminated manuscript of the Life of St. Radegonde in the Municipal Library of Poitiers.1 If we compare the head of Adam in the Creation with the head of the seated pauper in the scene of the saint washing the feet of the beggars, we can see at once that the two are almost identical (PI. XLIV, Figs. 2-3). 2 There are the same mannerisms in the treatment of the nose and of the eyes with their slightly upward curve at the corners, the same line from nose to mouth, the same full lip, and rounded chin. Even the handling of the hair in a "pompadour" coiffure with regular strokes, straight at the top of the head and curving down toward the nape of the neck, is the same in both the fresco and the miniature. The sharp irregular folds of the draperies are similar as well. There can be little doubt that the Osormort artist was influenced by some similar French manuscript, although the frescos were painted at a time when the fully developed Gothic style was flourishing in France. The question arises, how did this influence reach remote Osormort? The manuscript of the Life of St. Radegond was written at Poitiers, possibly in the monastery of the Holy Cross, in the middle of the eleventh century.3 It is one of a series of books, apparently copied from an earlier original for the purpose of exportation to other monasteries as well as for use in Poitiers itself. There is a notice of one having been written in the twelfth century, and two of the later copies are still to be seen in the library of Poitiers.4 It appears that these manuscripts exerted some influence on French mural painting and stained glass. There are a number of ways to account for the style appearing almost two hundred years later at Osormort. The Catalonian artist may have seen some French frescos and formed his style from them. The Poitiers style may have been in earlier frescos at Osormort and repeated in the later decoration of the building. The French style may have been at Ripoll and Vich in the eleventh century and was repeated later at Osormort. The most likely theory is that the artist had seen an earlier manuscript and was influenced by it in his Osormort compositions. The copying of an older manuscript style in Spain is not an unusual occurrence. There can be little doubt that the Osormort frescos are relatively late works, possibly executed in the second quarter of the thirteenth century. The successful attempt at realism clearly points to this. To illustrate, we need only mention, in addition to the grassy ground on which the Apostles stand, the tense look of expectancy on the face of Eve in the scene of the Temptation or the extreme anguish portrayed on the countenances of Adam and Eve in the Expulsion. 1

MS. 250. Emile Ginot, "Le Manuscrit de Sainte Radegonde de Poitiers et aes Peintures du XI e Steele," in Bulletin de la Society Franqaise de Reproductions de Manuscrits a Peintures, 4 e Annee, No. 1 (Paris, 1914-20), PI. VI, folio 29v. ' Ibid., pp. 8 ff. * MSS. 252 and 253. s

[48]

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS The frescos in the church of San Martin de Brull (Barcelona), lying eighteen kilometers south of Vich, near the village of Seva, belong to the same late tradition as those of Osormort.1 The building, which was consecrated between 1047 and 1062, is said to have had a trefoil east end like the early Coptic churches. The main altar was dedicated to St. Martin of Tours and the other two to Sts. John and Michael.2 As the building now stands, it has a single nave, the barrel vault of which is covered with eighteenth-century stucco decoration. The central apse, the only one which still exists, is decorated with Lombard corbel tables on the exterior and the interior has fivearched niches separated from one another by engaged columns. The paintings here were discovered beneath a coat of plaster and whitewash by Don Jaume Vilaro in 1909. Since this coat was removed, they have been rapidly disintegrating until at the present only a few heads and fragments of figures are to be distinguished. Several drawings and water-color copies were made before the decay had advanced very far and it is on these and on the early literary accounts that we must base our analysis (PL XLV). In the vaulting of the apse a Majestas Domini was once reported but no trace of it remains. Immediately below, but above the row of arched niches, were scenes from the infancy of Christ. This consisted of the usual cycle of the Nativity, the Annunciation to the Shepherds, the Adoration of the Magi, and the Presentation of Christ in the Temple. These scenes are clear in the drawings but from the few heads which actually remain in the church it is almost impossible to make out the iconography. In the niches we find the story of Creation, a fact which tends to link the cycle with Ripoll, Sescorts, and Osormort. These scenes have been described as the Creation of Adam, the Fall, the Lord accusing Adam and Eve, the Expulsion, and the Labor of Adam and Eve. In the latter scene, the door of Eden with an angel guarding it was seen. The angel is the only figure now visible. The whole iconographic scheme of Brull is a complete break with the twelfth-century system of church decoration. Judging from the drawings and the scant remains, the style is very similar to Osormort. The treatment of the individual figures is so alike in both monuments that they must belong to the same period and are possibly by the same school of frescoists. Another atelier of mural decorators was at work at the same time in the district between Vich and Barcelona where they have left their creations at Barbara and Polinya. The church of Santa Maria de Barbara, Sr. Puig i 1 Bibliography: J. Gudiol i Cunill, "L'Esglesia del Brull i les seves pintures," in Estvdis Universitaris Catalans (July—August, 1909), Vol. I l l , pp. 325-380; this article has been summarized in the Anuari de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1909-10), p. 714; see also Boletin de la Asociaciön Artistica-Arqueologica Barceltmesa (May-August, 1909), Vol. II, p. 142. Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit.. Vol. II, pp. 280-285.

[ 49 ]

LATE-ROMANESQUE M O N U M E N T S Cadafalch considers to be of the eleventh century, since it is similar in plan to several other buildings of that period.1 It has a single nave, transepts, and three semicircular apses. The pointed barrel vault of the nave was built at a later date and the frescos may belong to this reconstruction.2 The chief frescoed remains come from the three apses of the church, but the few fragments that still cling to the vault of the nave tell us that Christ, surrounded by the four and twenty Elders of the Apocalypse, was there depicted. The presence of an angel with a sword suggests to Professor Post that the archangels may have been included in the scene. In the main apse, the vaulting was decorated with the usual Pantocrator (or possibly the Virgin) and the four beasts. In the cylindrical portion of the apse are scenes from the Life of Christ in two zones (PL XLVI-XLVII). In the upper zone are the Visitation, the Nativity, and the Annunciation to the Shepherds, the latter being inscribed QVI R E G N A . . . V B I Q V E . . . H L E E M . . . PASTORES B E T H L E E M V E N E R V N T . . . F E R R E . . . The Nativity is somewhat unusual. Mary lies in a bed in a relatively realistic manger, pointing to Joseph, who is at her feet. The Child in swaddling clothes and the ox and ass are placed above, while the incident of the handmaid washing the Infant is represented as a separate scene to the right of the window which interrupts the composition. In the lower register are the Epiphany and the Entry into Jerusalem. The Adoration is bounded on the left by Herod and on the right by the Virgin and Child as at Santa Maria de Tahull. The throne upon which Herod sits is similar to one portrayed in the Liber Feudorum of the Barcelona Archivo de la Corona de Aragon.3 The frescos of the soffit and piers of the chancel arch are somewhat enigmatic in certain details. On the crown of the arch is the dove flanked by figures of Cain and Abel, so inscribed. Below, at the right, are Adam and Eve standing to either side of a realistic tree of knowledge. Trens has identified the rest of the fragments as the Siege of Jerusalem and, on the left, the Judgment of Solomon.4 The northern of the lateral apses is devoted to Peter and Paul (PL XLVII, Fig. 2). The four dim shapes in the dome Gudiol identifies as the two witnesses and the two trees mentioned in the Book of Revelation (chap, ii), who, he believes, symbolize Peter and Paul. This is somewhat doubtful, for the witnesses are usually identified with Enoch and Elijah. Examples of this are found in the Beatus manuscripts, in the sculpture of Cremona and Modena in 1

Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit., Vol. II, pp. 250-251. Bibliography: Manuel Trens, "Les Pintures Murals Romäniques de Barbarä," in Gaseta de lea Arts (July 15, 1925), Vol. II, No. 29; Trens, Veil i Nou (December, 1920), Vol. I, No. 9, pp. 328 ff.; Puig i Cadafalch, Αηματΐ de 1'Institut d'Estvdis Catalans (1915-20), p. 772; Notices in Nostra Comarca, Vol. I l l , No. 2 {Butlleti del Centre Excursionista del Velles de Sabadell); and La Veu de Catalunya (Feb. 17, 1919), No. 469. • Folio 159. 4 Veil i Nou, op. cit. 2

[ 50 ]

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS Lombardy, and in the mosaic pavement at Cruas in the Rhone valley.1 In the manuscript of Christian Topography by Cosmos Indicopleastes, a work which goes back to a sixth-century Coptic original, Enoch and Elijah are regarded as types of Christ. In the cylindrical portion of the apse, at the right, is the Martyrdom of St. Peter being watched by a male and two female figures, the former having been identified by Professor Post as a bishop. At the left are the Delivery of the Keys to St. Peter, the Beheading of Paul, and a scene which Trens believes to be Peter Walking on the Water. Trens was the first to solve the iconography of the minor apse at the right as the Exaltation and Invention of the Holy Cross.2 In the semidome is the cross held by two angels and flanked by Constantine and Helena (PI. XLVIII, Fig. 1). At the feet of the king and queen are groups of adoring figures and behind them, Saints Marcarius and Cyriacus. Below, the miracle of the testing of the True Cross is portrayed, and on the wall is what may be the death of St. Cyriacus. The Byzantine iconography of the apse is obvious. In fact, the whole cycle at Barbara is shot through with Byzantine influence. The sophistication of rendition and the elaboration of subject matter place the frescos in the thirteenth century, probably in the first third. The polychromy at San Salvador de Polinya is somewhat less fine than that of Barbara but the two monuments are enough alike in style and iconography to justify the assumption that they are works of the same school of frescoists.3 The church has a single nave and semicircular apse decorated on the exterior with arched corbel tables. The barrel vault of the nave is slightly horseshoe in section and rests on transverse ribs. The horseshoe shape may be due to the outward pressure at the springing of the vault rather than to the original design of the architect. The building has been assigned to the eleventh century. The decoration of the vaulting of the apse has completely disappeared, but on the walls, as at Barbara, are scenes from the Life of Christ. The repertoire is composed of the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Nativity, and the Annunciation to the Shepherds. The Nativity is rendered in the conventional manner as opposed to Barbara, where the artist was forced, through lack of space, to divide the episode into separate scenes (PL XLVIII, Fig. 2). Professor Post has noticed the realism in the Annunciation to the Shepherds. On the vault of the nave are traces of a Majestas Domini, but on the south wall the decoration is more intact (PL XLIX). The scenes are taken from 1

R. de Lasteyrie, L'Architecture religieuse en France a I'ipoque romane (Paris, 1912), p. 566. Trens, Gaseta de les Arts, op. cit. 8 Bibliography: Puig i Cadafalch, Anuari de l'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1915-20), pp. 773-774; Gudiol, Pdgina Artistica de la Veu de Catalunya (Sept. 15, 1919), No. 492. 2

[51]

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS the New Testament and are arranged in three zones, contrary to the usual method in Catalonia of composing in two registers on the lateral walls of the church. The composition is topped by the Lamb with seven eyes, in the midst of seven candlesticks, inscribed S E P T E M C A N D E L A B R A . The Lamb bears the inscription: AGNVS D E I . . . I P S I M O . . . ATVS PRO SALV... which Sr. Puig i Cadafalch interprets as Agnus dei est immolatus pro salute. The inscription takes the form of the book with seven seals. Flanking the Lamb are two of the riders of the Apocalypse holding a sword and scales. The seven churches of Asia are also portrayed, this and the Panteon at Leon being the only instances of their use in Spanish mural decoration. Below the apocalyptic subjects is a well-composed scene of Christ before Pilate and, on a neighboring pilaster, a bishop saint. The iconography of the south wall certainly must have been suggested by a Beatus manuscript although it is not possible to connect it with any definite miniature. The style is not unlike the thirteenth-century Beatus from Las Huelgas now in Paris.1 It belongs to the same artistic tradition as Osormort and Brull, which, we have seen, were inspired by French models. The frescos of the church of Sant Estebe at Andorra la Vella have been removed to the collection of Don Romulo Bosch i Catarineu of Barcelona. The building has a barrel-vaulted nave, a central and minor apse at the east. The semidome of the main apse contained a Majestas Domini, only a few fragments of which are preserved, but the frescos from the lower zone are fairly intact. The scenes portrayed are Christ Washing the Feet of the Disciples, the Arrest of Jesus, and the Flagellation (Pis. L-LI). In the minor apse is the story of St. John the Baptist and on the wall at the side is a figure holding a vase from which three streams flow. The figures are pictured against elaborate architectural settings and are rendered with an animation and expressiveness rarely found in monumental painting of the period. The style, one of great charm, is strongly Byzantine and of such sophistication that the monument can hardly have been executed before the middle or third quarter of the thirteenth century. It is somewhat similar, although far superior in quality, to the contemporary antependium of San Sadurnino in the Vich Museum (No. 362). The flowing draperies and rather tense faces (especially that of the Pantocrator of the altar frontal) with well-defined ridges over the eyebrows and a deep notch where they join over the nose appear in both the fresco and the panel. The cathedral of Urgel is a cruciform building with a semicircular apse flanked on either side by three minor apses or niches built in the thickness 1

Paris, Bibl. Nat., Nouv. Acq. Lai. 2290.

[52]

LATE-ROMANESQUE MONUMENTS of the wall. The original building was consecrated in A.D. 839 but the present structure is of the twelfth century. One of the apses of the south transept contains polychromy, but it is hidden from view by a retable so that I know the paintings only from photographs (PI. LII). There are two zones of decoration on the cylindrical portion of the apse, the upper one containing a series of saints, one being Catherine of Alexandria on the wheel of torture. Below is a representation of the Last Supper. The frescos have been dated in the middle or third quarter of the thirteenth century. They are painted directly on the masonry like the frescos of the seventh century in the Parthenon at Athens.1 Near the village of Caserras (Barcelona), north of Manresa, is the monastic church of San Pablo, which contains some late-Romanesque frescos (PL LIII). The building has a single nave covered with a pointed barrel vault, a semicircular apse lacking the usual corbel tables, and transepts which were added later, as the masonry differs from that of the rest of the church. The frescos are on the south wall of the nave in and around a rectangular niche with a pointed arch. Under the arch in a sort of tympanum is a half-figure of Christ, partially draped, and showing the wounds as in French Gothic art. To either side of him are figures of the Resurrection of the Dead. On the soffit of the arch is the Agnus Dei between pairs of angels sounding trumpets, and below the Christ are traces of a St. Michael, another archangel, and the sevenheaded beast of the Apocalypse portrayed against a background sprinkled with stars. On the wall around the niche are two more trumpeting angels and a series of figures under arches, possibly Elders or Apostles. The whole composition was probably inspired by a Gothic portal and the style of the figure of Christ is strongly Gothic. The other figures, however, are in the Romanesque tradition so that the paintings may be termed transitional and probably date from the latter part of the thirteenth century. They have the stiff and angular style found in late-Romanesque painting in remote regions throughout Europe, a typical example of which is seen in the frescos of Santa Maria ad Cryptas at Fossa, in the Abruzzi (PL LIII, Fig. 3). 1

Ο. M. Dalton, Byzantine Art and Archeology, p. 292.

CHAPTER IV MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE large number of Catalonian frescos have come down to us which, due to the poorness of the state of preservation or for some other reason, have almost no significance for the history of Catalonian painting. These I have grouped together in this chapter, along with those churches from which the frescos have entirely vanished, and have arranged them in alphabetical order regardless of chronology. RATHER

A church must have existed at a very early period on the site of the present ruins of San Pedro in the village of Ager (Lerida), for fragments of Mozarabic carvings have been found there and are now in the local museum.1 The extant collegiate church was founded by Arnau Mir de Tost and his wife, Arsendis, in 1056 and was consecrated four years later. It had three vaulted aisles separated by heavy rectangular piers, and three semicircular apses decorated on the exterior with arched corbel tables. The central apse contains niches separated from one another by engaged columns.2 The building was greatly damaged in the Napoleonic and civil wars and the frescos suffered extensively. A few fragments of the mural decorations still cling to the crumbling walls of the northern and main apses. In the former, the vague remains of a seated figure are to be seen. In the central apse the frescos are more extensive. Two of the columns separating the niches are frescoed, one with a geometric design of triangles and squares and one with the double-axe motive (PI. LIV, Fig. 1). In the niche at the left are two saints, fairly intact, with the inscriptions scs TADEVS and scs JACOBVS. The niche next to this also contains two figures but they are too badly damaged to be identified. Below these figures is a fragmentary fret border. The style of the paintings of Ager is very similar to that of Ginestarre de Cardos and they surely belong to the same period. The church of San Pedro de Bigas (known as Bigues in Catalan), nine kilometers west of La Garriga (Barcelona), was consecrated in 1156, the act of 1 Bibliography: Jaime Villanueva, Viaje Literario (Madrid, 1806), Vol. IX, pp. 107-150; J. Pijoan, Pintures Murals Catalanes, Vol. IV; Anuari de 1'Institut d'Estudis Catalans (1911-12), p. 690. s Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit., Vol. I, p. 83; Vol. I l l , pp. 436-440 and 861. The testament of Arnau (A.D. 1071) is published in the Revista de Catalunya, Vol. Ill, No. 1, p. 37.

[ 54 ]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE consecration still being in the archives of the parish. During a rebuilding in the eighteenth century, only the south wall of the nave of the original structure was retained. This still contains a walled-up Romanesque portal, the tympanum of which is decorated with a poorly preserved fresco. The subject depicted is a tree flanked by two animals. Thirteen kilometers east of La Bisbal, near the village of San Feliu de Boada (Gerona), is the little Mozarabic church of San Julian de Boada.1 The church is first mentioned in a papal decree of 1017 which gives it to the monastery of San Esteban of Banolas, but its style shows it to be of the tenth century. It has a single nave, square east end, and transverse arches which are horseshoe. Originally it had a wooden ceiling but in Romanesque times a barrel vault was added. A small fragment of fresco is on the wall of the nave, showing that it once had mural decorations, but the chief remains are in the apse (Pis. LIV, Fig. 2-LV). In the center of the vault are fragments of a Majestas Domini in an almond-shaped mandorla with only one evangelistic symbol extant. To the left and right were twelve seated figures, probably Apostles, but only those on the right side are now visible. Below these the two kneeling figures flanking an angel Gudiol takes to be an Annunciation to the Shepherds. In the remaining vague silhouettes he sees an Annunciation to the Virgin and a Nativity. 2 The question of the date of the frescos is difficult and with such scant remains, speculation is rather unprofitable. Maso i Valenti considers them to be works of the late eleventh century, while Gudiol places them a hundred years later. The kneeling figure to the right of the angel still preserves faint traces of lines of drapery, the treatment of which resembles that in the scene of the Stoning of Stephen at Bohi. Below the coat of plaster on the nave vault is a thin layer of cement roughened into a herring-bone pattern in order to hold the plaster. A similar construction is employed on the vault of the old church of San Miguel de Montmell, which was built in the early twelfth century. For these reasons, the Boada frescos may date from the first half of the twelfth century, although the iconographic analogies to Fenouillar suggest a date at the end of the century. The heads in medallions on the arch leading into the apse are too badly damaged to throw light on the problem. The Roussillon monastery of Saint-Martin-de-Canigou near Vernet-lesBains was founded by Jeffery, count of Cerdagne, and Oliva Cabreta in 1001 1 Bibliography: Rafel Mas6 i Valenti, "Les Pintures Murals de Buada," in Pdgina Artistica de la Veu de Cata· lunya (Oct. 10, 1919), No. 459; Manuel Gomez-Moreno, Iglesias Mozdrabes (Madrid, 1919), pp. 67-70. 2 Els Primitius, pp. 405 ff.

[55]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE and was probably consecrated eight years later, although an old chronicle of the abbey places the date of consecration in 1026.1 In the early part of the present century it was completely and inaccurately rebuilt. Little was done to the square bell-tower at the northeast corner of the church, however, and on its walls are to be seen faint traces of frescos (PL LVI, Fig. 1). There are hints of zigzag borders and checker patterns in red, and on one wall are vague, blackened silhouettes of the lower part of one figure and the head and torso of another. The latter is veiled and may be a female saint. J. A. Brutails mentioned these frecos in an article in 1892 in which he gives the impression that they were fairly well preserved at the time. Perhaps they were injured in the rebuilding which took place subsequent to the appearance of the article. The ruined Cluniac monastery of San Pedro de Caserras (Barcelona) is romantically situated on a bend of the Rio Ter, four kilometers north of Vich, near the town of Roda.2 The church was consecrated in 1006, but the existence of a small fragment of Visigothic carving now lying in the cloister makes me believe that the original foundation may have been much earlier. The place is mentioned in a document of 798 and a church dedicated to St. Peter was there before 826. The monastery had considerable importance in the Middle Ages, as the size of the church and the extent of the surrounding monastic buildings show. The church has three aisles with ribbed barrel vaults, three semicircular apses, and a ruined cloister which lies to the south. It is largely of the late twelfth or early thirteenth century. On the south wall of the nave is a fragment of fresco containing a zigzag border in red and yellow pigments, and in a small barrel-vaulted room giving off the east gallery of the cloister are fragments of a frescoed checker and lozenge pattern. The chief remains were in the southern of the lateral apses but unfortunately the present tenant of the buildings uses this for his kitchen, with the result that the frescos are nothing but a charred black mass of plaster. Before the destruction of the paintings, however, a small fragment containing the head of a female saint was removed and placed in the museum at Vieh (PL LYI, Fig. 2). From the drawing published by Gudiol, I judge it to be late twelfth or early thirteenth century.3 Paintings were seen by Elias Rogent in the church of St.-Michel-de-Cuxa 1 Bibliography: Jeroni Pujades, Cr&niea Universal del Principado de Cataluna, Book XIV, chap, lxvii, Vol. II, p. 364; J. A. Brutails, Notes sur l'Art Religieux du Roussillon (Paris, 1892), pp. 341-342; Calmette and Vidal, Histoire de Roussillon, p. 65. 'Bibliography: Gudiol, Noeions d'Arqueologia Sagrada Catalana, pp. 248-249; Joseph Pericas, "Sant Pere de Casserres," in Butlleti del Centre Exeursionista de Catalunya (1904), Vol. XIV, pp. 229 ff. * Els Primitius, Fig. 98. At the time I visited the Vich Museum, the fragment was undergoing a restoration so that I was unable to see the original.

[56]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE in Roussillon before 1887.1 Five years later, Brutails reported the frescos as having disappeared. The city of Cuxa dates back to Visigothic times and the monastery itself was founded in 876 by Benedictine monks from Spain. A rebuilding of the tenth century was dedicated in 974. The frescos were in the building of the time of the Abbot Oliva of Ripoll. In view of his close connection with Cuxa, it is not improbable that the frescos were related to the mother monastery. The apse is described in a letter of A.D. 1040 written by the monk Gracia, in which he says that a figure of the Virgin between the archangels Michael and Gabriel was depicted.2 The few fragments which still cling to the walls of the aisles are probably of a period later than the eleventh century. Brutails reported traces of painting in a chapel leading from the cloister of the cathedral of Eine.3 They no longer exist. A fragment of an Apostle and the lower part of the figure of the Saviour from the apse of the parish church of Encamp (Andorra) are in the collection of Don Luis Plandiura of Barcelona. The paintings are said to have been ruined in the process of transferring and now are not exhibited. The frescos of the porch were destroyed five days before my arrival in the village. The church is being rebuilt and the paintings were pronounced not worth saving. The photographs taken by Arxiu Mas before the destruction show a series of nude figures drawn in the sophisticated outlines of the Renaissance. A fragmentary figure of a standing saint holding a sword or a candle from the church of San Pedro at Esterri de Aneo (Lerida) is now in the Plandiura collection in Barcelona (PI. LVI, Fig. 3). As it stands, the figure is much repainted, but as far as one can judge it is in the same style as the frescos from the church of Santa Maria in the same village. Especially striking is the similarity of treatment of the legs and feet to that of the Magi at Santa Maria. Professor Cook has published interesting photographs of the painting taken before and after restoration.4 The parish church of Folgarolas (Barcelona), five kilometers east of Vich, has a single nave and semicircular apse decorated with arched corbel tables. The barrel vault of the nave has been covered by seventeenth-century stucco designs. In the cylindrical portion of the apse, a few lines of a fragmentary fresco may be seen. It is possible that something of interest may be hidden beneath the coat of plaster and whitewash that covers the rest of the wall. 1 2 8

Bibliography: Elias Rogent, Santa Maria de Ripoll, p. 37; J. A. Brutails, L'Art Religiös en el Rosello, p. 60. The letter is published by Gudiol in Els Primitius, p. 134, note 2. Brutails, op. cit., p. 153. * Art Bulletin, Vol. X, No. 3.

[57]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE About nineteen kilometers west of Ripoll and extremely difficult of access is the interesting eleventh-century church of San Jaime de Frontanya (Barcelona). An earlier building on the site was dedicated in 905. Elias Rogent, who restored the church, saw traces of frescos there which have since disappeared.1 The building has a single nave with a ribbed barrel vault, transepts, and three semicircular apses, the central one being scalloped or niched on the interior. On the exterior, the apses have decorations similar to those of Ripoll. In the main apse, a free-standing wall of wood and plaster was erected and in its center was inset a wooden panel painted with scenes from the life of St. James, and the wall surface about it was frescoed. The panel is now in the Episcopal Museum of Solsona but the frescos are (or still were in the summer of 1927) in situ. They are badly damaged and difficult to see because of a modern altar which has been placed in front of the wall. The paintings are in the Gothic style and depict scenes from the Life of Christ. As far as I am aware, this arrangement of a free-standing wall with a painted panel in the center is unique. In the ninth-century frescos of the Ascension in the lower church of San demente, at Rome, there is a circular hole in the composition which may once have contained an inset panel or carving as at Frontanya. Nothing is known of the history of the little ruined church of Santa Cecilia at Granera (Barcelona), east of Manresa.2 The church had a single nave with a barrel vault and a semicircular apse, the exterior of which is decorated in a style characteristic of the twelfth century. The frescos, in very poor state of preservation, are in the vaulting of the apse and represent an Ascension of Christ (PI. LVII). Our Lord is depicted in a mandorla supported by four angels. The drapery of one of them forms a circle about the knees of the figure strongly suggestive of one of the angels in the main apse of San d e mente de Tahull. The fresco is painted in an outline style in red pigment, recalling a manuscript tradition such as the miniatures of the Bede now preserved in the archives of San Feliü, at Gerona. The paintings of Granera are crude provincial works, however, and are so lacking in skill that the assignment of a date is difficult. There is nothing in the composition and style, however, that makes a dating in the twelfth century unlikely. The Romanesque church of San Esteban, at Granollers de la Plana (Barcelona), five kilometers north of Vich, was built and consecrated on May 28, 1

Bibliography: Elias Rogent, Santa Maria de Ripoll, p. 36; Francisco de S. Maspons y Labr6s, "Excursid a Sant Jaume de Frontanya," in Butileti del Centre Excursionista de Catalunya (1895), pp. 149 ff. 1 Bibliography: J. Gudiol i Cunill, "Excusio a Granera," in Butileti del Centre Excursionista de Vich (Vich, 1913), Vol. I, Any, I, pp. 74-78.

[58]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE 1

1088. The site goes back to a tenth-century structure which was presented to Ripoll in 1080. The rebuilding was doubtless due to the activities of Ripoll and the decoration may have been in the Ripoll tradition as were many of the paintings in the Plana de Vieh. Originally it was a building with a single nave, barrel vaulted, and apses similar to Brull in disposition. In the apse of the present church, which survived the extensive alterations carried out in 1646, are small fragments of red and blue pigments which show nothing more than that the building once contained mural paintings. The frescos in the church of San Lorenzo, at Isabarre (Lerida), four kilometers east of Sorpe, are in a poor state of preservation (PI. LVIII, Fig. 1). They have so blackened, possibly due to the use of lead in the pigments, that no idea of the original color can be had. The building has a single nave and semicircular apse, on the exterior of which a series of crude carved medallions support the roof. The church underwent extensive restorations in 1926. In the vaulting of the apse are traces of a Pantocrator, and on the wall below, six Apostles standing under arches. In the center, above the window, is a fish with the letters sic, and flanking it are two grotesque animals, one of which is a monkey drawn with startling realism. The Apostle at the right of the window is St. Barnabus and is inscribed B E R N A B E in letters which are already assuming the pointed forms of Gothic. The style of Isabarre is not unlike that of the fresco in the cathedral of Urgel and so may be dated in the third quarter of the thirteenth century. Sr. S. Babra of Barcelona has informed me that at Madrona (Lerida), a small hamlet between Pinell and Perecamps, south of Solsona, is a ruined church with very slight fragments of mural painting. About two kilometers north of the village of Marmellä (Barcelona), on the top of a precipitous rock, is the ruined castle known as Castellot de Marmella.2 In the chapel near by are crude childish paintings in red, black, and yellow pigments (PI. LVIII, Fig. 2). The chapel has a single nave with a ribbed barrel vault and a semicircular apse decorated with paired arched corbel tables on the exterior. A barrel-vaulted chamber, rather like a transept, leading off the south side of the nave through a Romanesque portal, connects the church with the castle. In 1148 the establishment was given to the Augustinian church of San Rufo by William of Torroja. The following 1 Bofill i Boix, " Les lglesies Antiques del Terme del Castell de Gurb," in Butlleti del Centre Excuraionista de Vieh, Vol. IV, pp. 176-178. * J. Gudiol i Cunill, Els Trescentistes (Barcelona, N.D.), Vol. II, p. 93; Francisco de S. Maspons y Labros, "Les Pintures Murals de Marmellä," in Butlleti del Centre Excursionista de Catalunya (1895), pp. 165 ff.

[59]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE year the donation was confirmed by a certain Ramon Moxet, who had claims to the property. It was later given to Santa Maria de Tarrasa, whose prior, in 1241, turned it over to William of Cadireta. The frescos are in the apse and on the triumphal arch leading into it. They are so poorly drawn and so badly preserved that the interpretation of the subjects portrayed is highly uncertain. In the crown of the apse vault is a figure of the Virgin or the Lord in a circular mandorla. The four figures which surround it are probably Evangelists. In the cylindrical part of the apse are six standing figures and a crude checkerboard decoration and on the triumphal arch are two groups of four alternating large and small winged figures and two large figures flanking a tree. Gudiol thinks that these represent Adam and Eve, the Expulsion from Paradise, and female saints. He dates the frescos in the early fourteenth century. Professor Porter suggested to me that the childish quality of the drawing may be due to comparatively recent overpainting and that underneath it may be, or once have been, Romanesque frescos. The iconography is Romanesque and a similar example of rough over-painting may be seen in the Bede of Gerona, where some of the miniatures have been finished in a crude style by a later hand that follows earlier preparatory drawing on the page. In the Agliate Baptistery, a Lombard building of ca. A.D. 900 with twelfth-century alterations,1 there are three layers of superimposed frescos which throw some light on the Marmella problem. The lowest layer is Romanesque, probably of the twelfth century. Above it are paintings in the style of the school of Giotto, and the final covering is by a fifteenth-century artist. In one place the Romanesque frescos have been crudely repainted with a result strikingly like Marmella (PI. LVIII, Fig. 3). The date of this repainting is uncertain, but it surely must have been later than the last or fifteenth-century style. Therefore, it seems safe to conclude that the present childish scrawl at Marmella preserves a Romanesque composition but that it dates from a very late period. Near the village of Gurb (Barcelona), four kilometers north of Vich, is the little private chapel of Santa Ana de Montral.2 The present building has a single nave with a pointed barrel vault and a square east end, and transepts with semicircular barrel vaults much lower than that of the nave. These transepts may belong to the original building, which was constructed and consecrated in 1190 or 1195, but the nave is probably a later reconstruction of Gothic times. The end wall of the south transept is embellished with a 1 A. Kingsley Porter, Lombard Architecture (New Haven, 1917), Vol. II, pp. 80-81. ' Bibliography: J. Gudiol i Cunill, Arqueologia Sagrada Catalana, pp. 248-249; Gudiol, La Veu de Monaerrat (1900), Noa. 18, 20, and 21; Gudiol, "Un Calvari de finals del Sigle XII," in Revista de la Asociaci6n ArtUiicoArqueälogla Barcelonesa (1909), Vol. VII, pp. 202 ff.; Pere Bofill, "Les Iglesies Antigues del Terme de Gurb," in Butlleti del Centre ExcurHonüta de Vich (1923), pp. 181-182.

[60]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE badly damaged Crucifixion which, in style, falls in with the monuments which we have assigned to the third or last quarter of the thirteenth century (PL LIX, Figs. 1-2). The iconography is the usual medieval arrangement of Christ on the cross flanked by the Virgin and St. John, the sun and moon, and two figures, probably angels. St. John and the Virgin are both inscribed with their names and Bofill thought he saw the inscription ANNO Μ ... xcvi, which he took to be the date 1296. I can find no trace of this inscription now. J. A. Brutails saw fragmentary frescos in the cathedral of Saint-Jean-leVieux at Perpignan.1 The original building was consecrated on May 16,1025 by Berenguer, bishop of Eine. In the twelfth century a larger church of three aisles, transepts, and three apses was built, but only a small portion of the nave of this building has survived. The fresco has disappeared since the publication of the article by Brutails in 1901. The chapel of Ste.-Florentine below the castle of Perpignan is also said by Brutails to contain frescos. It is now used as an amunition magazine by the French colonial troops quartered there so that it is not possible thoroughly to examine its walls. It is interesting to see the Romanesque style living on into a very late period as it does in the frescos on the walls of the old granja of Puigpalter, north of Gerona, near Banolas. The scene represented is a Last Supper rendered in extremely crude outline style in a black pigment (PI. LIX, Fig. 3). The inscriptions in the halos of the Apostles are in Catalan. The interesting church of Santa Coloma (Andorra) lies two kilometers south of the city of Andorra la Vella. It is a small building with a single nave, wooden roofed, and a square apse, which is vaulted. Detached from the building is a beautiful round bell-tower, extremely Lombard in character. The tower and apse of the church are the only parts of the original structure which are extant. They probably date from the late tenth or early eleventh century, although the vaulting of the apse may be later. The building was mentioned in the act of the consecration of the cathedral of Urgel in A.D. 839. The frescos are on the vault of the apse which is now walled off from the rest of the nave and is used as a sacristy. They are almost completely covered by whitewash and plaster but enough can be seen to show that what is hidden is of great interest. The representation seems to be a series of female saints wearing crowns and standing under arches (PI. LX, Fig. 1). The only pigment which is preserved on the fragment which can be seen is red. The style is similar to that of the frescos at Angulasters, which probably belong to the same epoch. 1

Bibliography: Brutails, Art Religiös en el Rosello, pp. 152-153; Pierre Vidal, Perpignan (Paris, 1897), pp. 54 ff.

[61]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE The Augustinian priory of Serrabonne in Roussillon was founded in 1082 and consecrated by Artal II, bishop of Eine, in 1151.1 At present the church has a single nave with a pointed barrel-vault, a north aisle with a half barrelvault, and a porch to the south. In the nave, a graceful choir loft has been erected supported on columns and piers containing some splendid twelfthcentury sculpture. The original structure was probably one of three aisles. There are three semicircular apses, the main one extending beyond the transepts and the two lateral ones being built in the thickness of the wall. Two small fragments of fresco still cling to the south wall of the nave. One contains the bare feet and part of the robes of a standing figure, and below, a bit of double-axe border and painted curtains. The other fragment is more important. Portions of two nude figures and a third figure partially draped with a red robe can be seen (PI. LX, Fig. 2). One of the nudes wears a curious peaked hat similar to those frequently seen in Mozarabic manuscripts but also in the Bible of Ripoll.2 The iconography is undoubtedly Christ in Limbo, a subject not very common in Catalonian art but appearing, for example, in the Beatus of Gerona and the sculptures of the cloister of the cathedral of Gerona. The remains are so slight that dating is difficult, but the works probably were executed in the second half of the twelfth century. The monastery of St.-Andre-de-Sorede (known as Sureda in Catalan) was founded by Spanish Benedictine monks in the early ninth century under the name of St.-Martin-de-la-Vail (Pyrenees-Orientales).3 In A.D. 830 it was taken under the protection of the royal house of France. The present church was built between 1110 and 1120 and was consecrated by the Abbot Pons Arnau in 1121. Some years later it was given to the Provengal monastery of Ste.-Marie-de-Grasse. On the first pier of the nave is a fresco, square in composition, depicting the Crucifixion (PI. LXI, Fig. 1). Above the figure of Christ on the cross are two angels and busts of the Virgin and St. John the Evangelist, mourning. At the foot of the cross are two bishops in attitudes of adoration and surrounding the composition is a fret pattern. Brutails saw other fragments of frescos in the church but these no longer exist. The fresco is so completely covered with modern repaint that it is almost impossible to date it accurately. Indeed, one may have justifiable doubts as to the antiquity of the original. At any rate, the composition is venerable enough, and the design of the border is common in Romanesque painting. The miters worn by the bishops seem to be the usual horned affairs which 1

Pierre Vidal, Guide Bistorique et Pittoresque dans le Department des Pyrfoiles-Orientales, 2d ed., p. 227. Folio 352 (Neuss, Katalanische Bibelillustrationen, PI. 47, Fig. 135). * Brutails, Art Religieux en Roussillon, p. 65; Calmette and Vidal, Hisioire de Roussillon, p. 44; Rovira i Virgili, op. cit.. Vol. III, p. 62. 2

[62]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE were in use in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries. A similar one is seen on the tomb of Bishop Guillem Jordä (who died in 1186), now in the cloister of the cathedral of Eine.1 The history of the church of San Pedro at Sorpe (Lerida) is not known to me. The building as originally planned had a nave, transepts, a main, and two lateral apses. The nave at present is covered by Gothic vaulting and the church has been reorientated. The main apse now forms the entrance, the southern of the lateral apses has disappeared, and the northern one is used as a baptistery. The two remaining contain important frescos but they are almost completely covered by whitewash. An occasional decorative border shows through and on the north side of the chancel arch a head of a female saint can be seen (PI. LXI, Fig. 2). The style appears to be similar to that of near-by Isabarre. The church of San Pedro at Tarrasa (Barcelona) has been variously dated from the fourth to the tenth century.2 The original plan was one of three aisles and a triconch apse. In the late twelfth or early thirteenth century the building was converted into a structure with a single aisle and transepts. It may have been during this reconstruction that a stone screen was built, walling off the apse from the rest of the church. This contains a series of arcades or arched niches and is decorated with frescos, which, when I first saw them, were in so deplorable a condition that almost nothing could be seen. They since have been repainted so that, trusting to the accuracy of the restorer, our analysis is made from his results (PL LXII). In the uppermost niches are two saints and in the lower four, the symbols of the Evangelists. Below this row of niches is a composition of nine figures, one of them wearing a three-pointed hat or crown. Gudiol and Soler i Palet take this to be a scene of the Crossing of the Red Sea, the figure with the three-pointed hat being Moses. The style of the frescos is crude and unskillful. The three-pointed hat is the only detail that is reconcilable to a late twelfth or early thirteenth century dating, for similar hats are worn by the three Kings in an Adoration of the Magi painted on the side of an altar now in the Episcopal Museum of Solsona.3 The paintings vaguely recall the early frescos in the Tarrasa baptistery but this resemblance, I suspect, is due more to the hand of the restorer than to the original artist. 1

Brutails, Art en el Bosello, PI. 45. Bibliography: Arqueologia Sagrada Catalana, pp. 248-249; Juli Vintrö, " Pintures Murals a S. Pere de Tarrassa," in Butlletl del Centre Excursionista de Catalunya (1895), pp. 108-110; Puig i Cadafalch, Arquitectura Romanica a Catalunya, Vol. I, pp. 312 ff. 8 Phot. Mas, No. 5738-C. 2

[63]

MONUMENTS OF SLIGHT IMPORTANCE The church dedicated to the Virgin at Valencia de Aneo (Lerida) has a single nave and semicircular apse decorated with arched corbel tables in the Lombard manner. The nave vault was rebuilt in the Gothic period. Perhaps at the same time, fourteenth century or later, the frescos in the vault of the apse were painted. The composition consists of a large Virgin and Child and smaller representations of the three Magi. At the edges of the vault are two figures, probably archangels. The decoration is terminated by a double-axe border. On the cylindrical wall of the apse is a series of very fragmentary saints under arches, vaguely reminiscent of the Gothic frescos of angels at San Cugat del Valles. The scene on the vault so exactly reproduces a Romanesque composition that I believe there is, or was at one time, a similar painting of earlier date below it. As we have mentioned before, the Virgin between Saints Michael and Gabriel was painted at St.-Michel-de-Cuxa and probably at Ripoll.

CHAPTER V CONCERNING FALSE RUMORS A NUMBEB of groundless reports, both written and oral, have been circulating about certain churches in Catalonia which are said to contain frescos. I am saying a word about these so that future workers in the field of Catalonian Romanesque painting may be saved from taking useless, time-consuming, and sometimes difficult journeys. Frescos at Bolvir (Gerona), near Puigcerda, consisting of geometric designs were first noted in Pintures Murals Catalanes. There are no frescos in the parish church, but in the apse of a small chapel dedicated to the Virgin near by is a crude decoration consisting of straight lines crossing at right angles. In the crown of the vault is a badly damaged coat of arms. A Barcelona journal reported frescos in the church of Escalarre (Lerida), near Esterri de Aneo. These frescos, the article says, are similar to those of Burgal and Ginestarre.1 At present there are no frescos in the church and I am assured by the parish priest that there never were frescos there during the past decade. Gudiol has mentioned frescos in the apse of the church at Esclusa in Roussillon.2 This I take to be a confusion in nomenclature, for the village of L'Escluse, about which we have already spoken, is known both as La Clusa and Esclusa in Catalan. The church of Sant Roma in the village of Les Bons, in Andorra, is said to contain frescos.3 At present the church contains no mural decorations, but since it is in the same parish as the church of Encamp, a confusion probably arose between the two. The Encamp paintings, we have seen, are in part destroyed and in part in the Plandiura collection in Barcelona. A word of mouth rumor has been circulating about alleged frescos at Montmell. The fact that Castellot de Marmella is in the municipality of Montmell (Tarragona) may have given rise to this report. I visited the three churches connected with the name, all of them near La Juncosa de Montmell. The hermitage of San Marco de Montmell is a small eighteenth-century structure. The old church of San Miguel de Montmell, on a mountain ledge above La Juncosa, is a ruined building of three barrel-vaulted aisles and semicircular apses. Its style is similar to Catalonian building of the first half of the twelfth century. The new church of San Miguel is a late-Gothic structure. None of these buildings contain frescos. 1

La Veu de Catalunya (October 9, 1926).

» Els Primitius, p. 492.

[65]

' Ibid., pp. 492-493.

C O N C E R N I N G FALSE R U M O R S Notices of Romanesque frescos in the church of Sant Andreu del Terri were published in the Revista de Catalunya of June and July, 1928. Actually, the paintings are in the parish church of Rabos del Terri, a few kilometers north of Gerona, and are not Romanesque but early Gothic. The building contains a single aisle and semicircular apse decorated in the twelfth-century manner with arched corbel tables. A break in the masonry clearly shows that the pointed barrel-vault on transverse arches in the nave was added later. The frescos were probably painted at this time. They are on the semidome of the apse, in a poor state of preservation, and consist of a Majestas Domini in a trefoil mandorla, surrounded by the four Evangelists and supported by angels. The archeological society of Gerona is planning to undertake a restoration of the paintings. Through a misreading of an article by Elias Rogent, frescos have been reported at the monastery of Sant Llorens del Munt, north of Tarrasa.1 Rogent, who saw the building in 1900, definitely implies that there were no frescos there.2 At the present time, so I was told by Don Manuel Trens of the Barcelona University Museum, the church is equally bare of polychromy. The first mention of Vidra appears in Pintures Murals Catalanes, in which it is stated that fragmentary frescos exist in the apse of the monastery by that name in Roussillon. Subsequent writers have repeated the mistake. After much vain searching of maps, geographies, and guides, and after fruitless interviews with M . Marcel Robin, archivist of the department of the PyreneesOrientales, and with M . Pierre Vidal, former librarian of Perpignan and author of many works on Roussillon — two men who know the department as none others do — I am convinced that there is no Vidra in Roussillon. I visited two hermitages known as Vida, one near Argeles and one near Villefranch in the Conflent, in the hope that the additional r was a printer's error, but neither of them contains frescos. The only Vidra which I was able to find in Catalonia was the village of that name near Ripoll. The church there is Renaissance and frescoless. I have since been informed by the original publisher of the notice that he himself has never seen the paintings! 1 Els Primitius, p. 492. * Elias Rogent, Monasterio de Sant Llorens del Munt in Aaociaci6n de Arquitectoa de Catalufia (Barcelona, 1900), p. 61.

PART II ORIGINS

CHAPTER I FRESCO TECHNIQUE IN CATALONIA THE technical procedure of fresco painting in Catalonia does not seem to differ from that of the rest of Europe in the Romanesque period. In certain isolated examples, notably in the Bohi valley group of monuments, there is a richer, warmer tonality than is usual. It is possible that this may be due to the influence of Mozarabic painting with its fondness for brilliant barbaric colors, or it may be attributed to the hand of the restorer.1 Although there are no documents which definitely mention laymen at work on the monuments, so many buildings which were in no way connected with monastic orders contained polychromy, that it is natural to assume that many of the artists in Catalonia were lay painters.2 The fact that, in addition to the many parish churches, the edifices at Marmella, Orcau, and Montral, all private chapels, as well as the walls of Puigpalter, a private dwelling, were frescoed, adds force to the hypothesis. There can be no doubt that the churches of Catalonia were normally decorated with frescos on the interior and very often on the exterior as well.3 The very nature of the Catalonian church called for a final coat or covering. The buildings are usually constructed of a cheap rubble masonry which presents an extremely unpleasant surface to the eye unless it has some sort of polychromy.4 In the eastern sections of Spain the masonry was generally somewhat better, and therefore relatively few examples of frescoed buildings have come down to us. It seems, then, that the wealth of Catalonian monuments is due not only to the extreme remoteness and inaccessibility of the many rural churches but also, paradoxical as it may seem, to the poor quality of the building material. 1 The frescos are now in the Barcelona Museum and, in common with the other monuments in that institution, seem to have greatly suffered from extensive repainting. A comparison of photographs taken before and after the installation of the paintings will readily prove this (PL XXXIII, Fig. 2, and PI. XXXIV). The restorer is also responsible for the glaring green and the rather weak drawing at Santa Maria de Tarrasa, the entire head of the figure from San Pedro de Esterri de Aneo, the mutilation of the paintings from Burgal, and the almost complete loss of the figure of St. John in the baptistery of Tarrasa. 2 Gudiol (Els Primitius, chap. Ill) has published a long list of documents pertaining to painters but none of them can be connected with any extant monuments. Especially numerous are the notices of artists active in Perpignan. 9 Gudiol mentions a number of instances in which the exteriors of churches were painted. To these examples I can add: the doorways of Bohi and Bigas, and the south wall of Encamp (recently destroyed). The billet mouldings of the apse of San Lorenzo at Perazances (Palencia) were picked out in color and the fa$ade of Iguacel was frescoed in the eleventh century (A. K. Porter, Burlington Magazine, March, 1928). The practice was occasionally carried on in Italy and is found, for example, at Castel Apiano in the Italian Tyrol (Morassi, Bollettino d'Arte, April, 1927), at the Badi, near Majori in southern Italy, and at the parish church of Antrodoco in the Abruzzi. 4 This has been noted by Professor A. K. Porter (Burlington Magazine, March, 1928).

[ 69 ]

FRESCO TECHNIQUE I N CATALONIA The method employed in decorating these churches seems to have been first to cover the walls with a coat of heavy plaster, called intonaco by the Italians. 1 This, while still wet, was roughened in order to hold the final coat of plaster. At Boada and Montmell the intonaco was roughened into a sort of crude herring-bone pattern, which may have been the general practice throughout Catalonia. This plaster coating seems never to have contained hair or straw as in the Cappadocian frescos,2 but was a simple mixture of lime and sand. After it had set and dried, a second and smooth coat of plaster was laid on and, while still damp, the design was blocked in with colors mixed with water in the true buon fresco method. 3 The usual procedure then seems to have been to finish the work in fresco secco, that is, to rewet the wall and paint with milk of lime or lime-white as a binding medium. 4 Judging from the scant evidence which is to be had, the method was sometimes changed in certain respects. Occasional instances show that the whole painting, with the possible exception of minor details, was worked out entirely in buon fresco. Usually, however, the parts of the work done on a damp wall were only the outlines or flat washes of underpaint from which the figures were built out in fresco secco. Eastlake has advanced the theory that the earliest buon fresco executed in the Middle Ages was that by Pietro d'Orvieto (ca. 1398) of the scenes from Genesis in the Campo Santo at Pisa. 6 He is followed in this by Ernst Berger, who places the earliest true fresco about the year 1400.6 This argument seems untenable in the light of later discoveries. Dalton believes the Cappadocian frescos to have been painted in buon fresco,7 Toesca thinks the paintings at Galliano in Lombardy to have been done in the same manner,8 and Male advances the same theory in regard to the murals at St. Savin. 9 The wellknown manuscript of the eighth century in the archives of the cathedral of Lucca mentions the practice of the buon fresco method and the Mappen Clavicula of the twelfth century repeats the statement. 10 The Schedula Diversarum Artium of Theophilus, who has sometimes been identified as the German monk Rogerus living in the latter part of the eleventh century, makes no direct mention of the true fresco technique. In his comments on parsium 1 In general I have used the technical terminology of Cennino Cennini in this chapter (The Book of the Art of Cennino Cennini, London, 1899, translated by C. J. Herringham). 2 Ο. Μ. Dalton, Byzantine Art and Archeology, p. 267. 8 The only exception I know to this is the painting in the cathedral of Urgel, where the color is applied directly to the stone. This is also the case in the Byzantine frescos in the Parthenon at Athens. 4 This procedure is closely paralleled in the church at Schwarzrheindorf in Germany as it is described by Professor Paul Clemen in Romanische Monumentalmalerei der Rheinlande (Düsseldorf, 1916), pp. 645 ff. 6 Charles Lock Eastlake, Materials for a History of Oil Painting (London, 1874), p. 147. 6 Ernst Berger, Fresko- und Sgraffito Technik (Munich, 1909). 7 8 Byzantine Art and Archwdogy, p. 267. Pittura e Miniatura nella Lombardia, p. 45. ' "La Peinture Murale en France," in Michel, Histoire de l'Art (Paris, 1905), p. 762. 10 A. P. Laurie, The Materials of the Painter's Craft (London, 1910), p. 107.

[

70]

FRESCO TECHNIQUE IN CATALONIA green, however, he speaks of "painting on a new w a l l " (recenti muro) and in this he may have had a newly laid wall, that is, a damp one, in mind. 1 T h e evidence for the buon fresco method in Catalonia is extensive. Almost without exception^ where frescos have been unduly exposed to the elements, all that remains is a reddish-brown outline or flat tone. The list of examples illustrating this is imposing: Boada, Bigas, St.-Martin-de-Canigou, Santa Coloma de Andorra, Serrabonne, Granera, San Pedro de Casseras, and San Cugat de Valles. A t Arlanza in Castile in the figure of Christ, at St. Gille at Montoire in France (Loir-et-Cher), at Münster in Switzerland, and on the exterior of the church at Castel Appiano in the Tyrol (Bolzano) 2 this preliminary underpainting was also used. T h a t it is actually a preliminary outline and not meant as the finished product is certain, for at Arlanza and at San Cugat de Yalles there are several corrections which were later covered up with the fresco secco overpaint. Cennino tells us that this brownish color or verdaccio was the first thing that the artist should paint on the wall. 3 It was composed of a mixture of sinopia (a red, ferric-oxide earth), black, and limewhite. In the quattrocento the rest of the painting was in buon fresco, but in Romanesque Catalonia it was done in fresco secco, which would be the first to drop from the wall in case of physical injury. Professor Post has noted that the Italian manner of buon fresco was used for all of the work at San Miguel de la Seo de Urgel. 4 This is shown b y the fact that when the paintings were removed the color had sunk so deep into the plaster that it was possible to transfer a second layer or " impression" from the wall, a thing that would have been impossible unless the true fresco medium had been employed. A t San Baudelio de Berlanga, in Castile, there is evidence to show that only the first flat tones were in buon fresco. These have sunk into the wall and, the frescos having been removed, are still to be clearly discerned in situ. T h e details of the modeling and drapery were only on the surface, painted in fresco secco, and so did not penetrate into the plaster. The same is true of Sant Estebe at Andorra la Vella. A t San Pedro de Burgal the figures are also clearly built out in fresco secco from a flat buon fresco base. The upper layers of pigment on the faces of the Virgin and St. Peter have worn away, leaving only a flat tone, while the faces of the other saints, having been subjected to less severe treatment, are still intact. 6 Although the range of colors used in the Catalonian frescos was never very wide, the development seems to be from two or three tones in the earlier 1 An Essay upon Various Arts in Three Books by Theophilus, also called Rugerus, translated by Robert Hendrie (London, 1847). Hendrie (p. 85) tends to discredit this interpretation of the text because the buon fresco method is not mentioned in Byzantine manuscripts which Theophilus claims to follow! 2 3 Morassi in Bollettino d'Arte (April, 1927). Cennino Cennini, op, cit., p. 58. 4 C. R . Post, op. ext., p. 76. ' The recent repainting of the frescos has obliterated all of this evidence at Burgal.

[ 71 ]

FRESCO TECHNIQUE IN CATALONIA times to relatively many in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. In the Tarrasa baptistery, the only extant pre-Romanesque fresco in Catalonia, redbrown and yellow were used. A t Santa Eulalia de Boveda, in Galicia, blue was also included in the palette. Blue may also have been used in the enigmatic remains in the Camera Santa at Oviedo. A t Santullano and Linio only red and green are in evidence. It is dangerous to generalize from these examples, however, as they are all so badly preserved that it is impossible to tell whether or not some of the colors are lost from them. In the later, betterpreserved monuments of the true Romanesque period the range of colors includes many of those mentioned by Theophilus and Cennino. Colored earths, iron, copper, and sometimes lead compounds were extensively and almost exclusively in use. Sinopia, ochres, terraverde, ultramarine, and limewhite are most common. Azurite, vermillion (mercuric sulphide), and malachite are rare. 1 The blacks were probably lampblack rather than vineblack, since the artists seemed to have had an antipathy for organic pigments, although the latter is certainly within the range of possibility. Manganese appears never to have been employed and I know of no example of the use of lakes. It is curious that violet was not more extensively employed, considering that it was a great favorite with the Mozarabic miniaturists. In common with such French frescos as Vicq, St. Ours at Loches, and Tavant, blue is missing from the palette of Bohi. On the whole, the grade of ultramarine was very poor, but this may be due to the fact that the only examples which have come down to us are from small country churches which probably could not afford the better qualities of this very expensive pigment. Vermillion, also a costly color, but mixed with minium or red lead, may have been employed at Isabarre. This would account for the fact that the frescos there have blackened with time. A similar change occurred at Urbino in the frescos by Lorenzo da Sanserverino, at Assisi, in the paintings of Cimabue, and in the Romanesque frescos in the Badia, near Majori. Theophilus says that flesh tints in the frescos are painted with a mixture of cinnabar, ochre, and lime-white (which is almost the same combination as the "cinabrese" of Cennino). 2 In Catalonia this combination seems to have been used very often. The normal procedure was, I believe, to paint a flat wash of this flesh tint in buon fresco and to add the details of eyes, nose, mouth, and spots of red on the cheeks in fresco secco.3 Draperies were also first laid in with a flat tone and worked out later with milk of lime as a binding medium. T h e outlines and folds of the draperies were often drawn in black but sometimes a light outline was painted against a dark field. This 1 Malachite seems to have been used at Santa Maria de Tarrasa. • This was clearly seen at Burgal before the repainting.

[ 72 ]

2

Op. cit., Book I, chap. X V .

FRESCO TECHNIQUE IN CATALONIA latter method is quite common in Mozarabic manuscripts and seems to have originated in the illumination of the Ada Group of Carlovingian manuscripts, where the lines were sometimes drawn in gold or yellow pigment. The method of transferring many of the frescos and their installation in the Barcelona Museum has been fully described elsewhere and need not detain us here.1 The work was carried on by the Italian restorer, Franco Steffanoni, assisted by Arturo Dalmati and Arturo Cividini, who used the usual system of stripping off the paintings on cloth. The frescos in private collections have largely been transferred by Sig. Cividini. The damage done to these works of art through restoration is unbelievably great and cannot be mentioned and deplored too often. 1 J. Folch i Torres, "Les Pintures Murals Romitniques al Museu de la Ciutadella: Con s'han arrencat i transportat els frescos Romanic," in Gaseta de les Arts (July 1, 1924); and "La Doctrina de la Concervacio de les Pintures Murals," in Gaseta de les Arts (July 15, 1925).

CHAPTER II ICONOGRAPHY THE purpose of the present chapter is to treat the inconographic development in Catalonia and to attempt to show the possible sources from which it could have been derived. It is not the writer's intention to analyze each motive and to trace it back to its origin. Interesting as such a study might be, it would throw but little light on questions pertaining peculiarly to Catalonia. By the twelfth century, the great period of Catalonian mural painting, iconography had become more or less fixed all over Europe. It was a time of transition rather than development, a period when the forms had reached the high point of the Romanesque evolution and were beginning to take on an occasional new aspect which eventually would lead to the great Gothic compositions. It is useless to insist again on the development of the typical apse composition from the Christ in majesty above and a row of Apostles below, to the time when the substitution of scenes from the Gospels for the Apostles took place, in the second half of the twelfth century. Since the Christ and Apostolado is so common in Catalonia a detailed analysis of it may be considered as characteristic for most Catalonian iconography. The composition is derived from an Ascension of Christ so that it is this motive that we must study. What was probably the earliest representation of the Ascension, the Constantinian mosaic in the church of the Ascension at Jerusalem, has perished but it is reflected in the Monza ampullae of the sixth century. On these flasks there is a seated Christ in a mandorla supported by two or four angels, and below are two groups of gesticulating Apostles with the Virgin as orante between them.1 In the Rabula Gospels of the sixth century, the Ascension is confused or combined with the Vision of Ezekiel, for the four beasts, the wings, and the flaming wheels are introduced. (The latter are faintly echoed in the Tarrasa baptistery.) Christ is standing, and the sun and moon are brought into the composition. Below are two animated groups of Apostles with the Virgin flanked by two angels. These two types of Ascension (that of the ampullae and the Rabula Gospels) have been characterized as SyrioPalestinian as opposed to the Coptic type of Ascension as it appears in the famous fresco of the seventeenth chapel at Bawit.2 Here is a seated Christ in 1 P. Raffaele Garrucci. Storia dell'Arte Cristicma (Prato, 1876), PI. 433, No. 8; PI. 434, No. 2; and PI. 435, No. X. * Charles R. Morey, East Christian Paintings in the Freer Collection (New York, 1914), pp. 71-75; E. Baldwin Smith, Byzantinische Zeitschrift (Leipzig, 1914-19), pp. 222-225.

[74]

ICONOGRAPHY a mandorla, surrounded by the four beasts, wings covered with eyes, and the flaming wheels of Ezekiel, and flanked by two angels. In the zone below are two groups of Apostles holding books and in their midst is a Virgin and Child enthroned.1 The Apostles, instead of being animated and gesticulating are stiff and frontal, the distinguishing feature of the Egyptian Ascension. Another example may be seen in the carving of the sixth or seventh century in the Metropolitan Museum of New York.2 This oriental monumentality is carried still further in the wooden doors of the thirteenth-century church of al Mu'allaka at Cairo (now in the British Museum), where the Virgin and Apostles are placed under arches and the symbols of the Evangelists are in medallions.3 At Bawit there seems to be a transitional step towards medallions enclosing Evangelists, for they are shown against a background of wings covered with eyes, but the wings are rounded in such a way as to suggest an enclosing frame. In contrast to the two oriental types of Ascension with their frontal Christs and rows of Apostles, Baldwin Smith has defined a Western or Hellenistic type, the chief characteristic of which is a Christ in profile, stepping from the top of a mountain and reaching up towards the hand of God. Its earliest use is in an ivory in Munich which Mr. Smith considers of fourthcentury Alexandrian manufacture. In the sixth century it appears in sarcophagi of southern France and then in Carolingian and Ottonian art with increasing frequency. The history of the oriental and Hellenistic Ascensions in European art has been studied by Dewald.4 He has shown that the Hellenistic type was used almost exclusively until the eleventh century, when a gradual orientalizing process began which, in the twelfth century, results in the frontal Christ being normally in use. Certain sporadic examples of the Hellenistic Christ live on to a late date, however. In Italy and Spain the Hellenistic Ascension was never employed, while both the Syrio-Palestinian and Coptic types appear with regularity. The Syrio-Palestinian composition seems to have been more popular. Examples may be seen at Termeno, in the Tyrol (PL XXVI, Fig. 1), in the ninthcentury fresco of San Clemente at Rome, and in the apse mosaic of Santa Maria in Dominica, in Rome.6 The latter composition with the Apostles and Christ on the same level, above the arch of the apse, is especially characteristic of Roman mosaics but its influence is felt iü the North at Münster, in 1

Jean Cledat, Le Monastere et le Nicrople de Baoutt (Paris, 1906), Vol. II, Pia. Xlz-XLIV. Morgan collection, No. 17. 190. 46. ® Josef Strzygowski, "Die Christlichen Denkmäler Aegyptens," in Römische Quartalschrift (Rome, 1898), PI. II, Fig. 2. 4 Ernest Τ. Dewald, "The Iconography of the Ascension," in American Journal of Archeology (1915), Vol. XIX, pp. 277 ff. * Raimond van Marie, Le Peinture Romaine au Moyen-Äge (Strassburg, 1921), Pis. XVII-XVIII. s

[75]

ICONOGRAPHY Switzerland, where the sun and the moon of the old Syrian composition are also introduced,1 and in France in the church at Vicq (Indre-et-Loir). At Lucca the Coptic arrangement of frontal Apostles is used. The Benedictines employed the Syrio-Palestinian Ascension and may have been responsible for its wide-spread use in Europe. A perfect example is seen in the eleventhcentury church of Santa Maria di Torchio, on the south slope of Montescassino Vecchio. It was probably a hermitage belonging to the original abbey of Montecassino now in ruins only a short distance above it. In the semidome of the apse is a frontal Christ surrounded by four angels and below is the Virgin as an orante flanked by angels and two animated groups of Apostles. In style the paintings are similar to San Angelo in Formis. The earliest Ascensions in Spain are the Syrio-Palestinian type with groups of gesticulating Apostles. The first use of the motive that I know is on the Area Santa of Oviedo of ca. 1075 where the presence of seraphim and a St. Michael fighting the dragon gives it an apocalyptic connotation.2 On a pier of about the same period in the cloister of Santo Domingo de Silos the Apostles are stiff and monumental but they are still arranged in two groups in the Syrio-Palestinian manner.3 A slightly later example of San Pedro el Viejo at Huesca still retains the animated groups of Apostles.4 In Mozarabic illumination the Ascension as such is not employed but compositions clearly derived from the Syrio-Palestinian arrangement with two groups of gesticulating figures below and a frontal Christ in a mandorla above appears regularly in Beatus manuscripts.5 In the Beatus of A.D. 1223 in the Morgan Library is a Christ in majesty flanked by the sun and moon as used in the Rabula Gospels. This motive is repeated in the contemporary fresco at Arlanza, although in both cases the row of figures below is omitted.6 In the Catalonian Bible of Ripoll, Neuss has recognized the similarity of the Ascension to the Syrian prototype.7 The Coptic rather than the Syrio-Palestinian tradition seems to be favored in Catalonian mural painting, although at San Miguel de la Seo de Urgel and at Santa Maria de Mur the groups of gesticulating Apostles are derived from the latter composition. The usual method in the apses is to depict a row of frontal Apostles in quiet positions holding books (or sometimes, their attributes). In their midst the Virgin is normally represented as at Bawit, but unlike the figure at Bawit she often holds the Grail and is never portrayed 1 Professor Porter first called this to my attention. (Illustrated in J. Zemp and R. Dürrer, " D a s Kloster St. Johann zu Münster," in Mitteilung der Schweizerischen Gesellschaft für Erhaltung Historischer Kunstdenkmäler, N.F. V, VI, and VII (Geneva. 1906-10), PI. LX). 1 s 4 Porter, Romanesque Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads, 111. 659. Ibid., III. 678. Ibid., 111. 534. 5 Neuss, op. cit., PI. 13, Figs. 36-37; PI. 14, Figs. 38, 40, and 41. • C. L. Kuhn, "Notes on Some Spanish Frescos," in Art Studies (1928), Vol. VI, Fig. 7. 7 Neuss, Katalanische Bibelülustrationen, p. 127 and PI. 51, Fig. 147.

[ 76]

ICONOGRAPHY with the Child. At San demente de Tahull the row of figures are under arches as at al Mu'allaka; and at Fenouillar and Angulasters, as well as at Tahull, the symbols of the Evangelists are in medallions as in the Egyptian doors. At Granera and Marcevol the Evangelists are omitted and the mandorla of Christ is supported by angels as in the flasks at Monza and in Benedictine art. At Esterri de Cardos and Santa Eulalia de Estahon, the lion and bull appear to come from behind the bottom of the mandorla in the manner recalling the Rabula Gospels. A similar arrangement is used in a sarcophagus of the eleventh or twelfth century in the Museum of Spoleto and in the twelfth-century Lombard Bible in the Ambrosiana in Milan (Cod. B. 48).1 The seraphim flanking the Lord at Esterri and Estahon are in an oriental tradition and are found in both Coptic and Syrian art and are common in Europe from very early times.2 In Spain they first appear in monuments of the tenth century such as the manuscript of Gregory on Job dated A.D. 945 and now in the Biblioteca Nacional of Madrid, and in the Codices Albendensis and Emilianensis of the Escorial.3 The miniatures of the two Escorial manuscripts also contain the archangels Michael and Gabriel as at Esterri de Cardos, Santa Eulalia de Estahon, and Angulasters. The Catalonian archangels must have had an origin independent from the Mozarabic examples, probably in Italy, for, as we have seen, they carry scrolls with the words Peticio and Postulatius on them as do the angels at Galliano. The motive of Christ between archangels is common in Byzantine art and appears in such widely diffused monuments as the apse of the cathedral of Torcello, the frescos of Cappadocia, SS. Giovanni e Paolo at Rome, 4 and on an ivory reliquary in the British Museum which also has the six-winged seraphim and which is closely related to East-Christian art, although of Western manufacture as the Latin inscription shows.5 The type of archangels holding a square standard in one hand and a sphere in the other also has wide distribution in Byzantine art and goes back to the famous ivory St. Michael of the fourth or fifth century in the British Museum. In the Catalonian apses the Ascension often loses its original meaning and becomes an Apocalyptic Vision. The presence of the two archangels with their supplicating inscriptions may have reference to a Christ as Judge and in all of the representations the alpha and omega are present. At Tarrasa, in the St. Thomas fresco of Santa Maria, the seven candlesticks of the Vision of St. 1

Toesca, op. cit., Fig. 58. Wilhelm Neuss, Das Buch Ezechiel in Theologie und Kunst (Münster i.W., 1914), pp. 178 ff. Professor C. R. Post has called attention to the similarity of the Catalonian apses to that of Niederzell on the Island of Reichenau, which has a Majestas Domini flanked by seraphim and a row of Apostles below (reproduced in Karl KUnstle and Konrad Beyerle, Die Pfarkirche St. Peter und Paul in Reichenau-Niederzell etc., Freiburg i.B., 1901, PL I). 3 Folios 16v and 1SV. * Wilpert, op. cit.. Vol. IV, PL 243. 5 Ο. M. Dalton, Catalogue of the Ivory Carvings of the Christian Era in the British Museum (London, 1909), No. 47, 8

Pis. xxv-xxvi. [77]

ICONOGRAPHY John are present. At Mur lamps are substituted for candlesticks. The use of these instead of the more usual candlesticks is a purely Spanish invention originating, no doubt, in the Beatus manuscripts. Outside of Spain candlesticks, not lamps, are invariably used. A few examples are: the early engraved gem in the cathedral of Monza,1 the Bamberg Apocalypse of ca. A.D. 1000,2 the eighth-century stone slab in the baptistery of Cividale, the frescos of San Silvestro at Tivoli and at San Abbondio near Rignano Flamino, in Italy, and the German ivory of the eleventh century in the Bargello in Florence (No. 42). In the Beatus manuscript in Berlin the candlesticks are also used, but the book can conceivably be of Italian origin. Lamps are used in the Apocalypse at Cambrai {Cod. 386), due to Spanish influence, for the manuscript has stylistic and iconographic resemblances to the Madrid Beatus of 1047. In Catalonian manuscripts as well as in the frescos, both lamps and candlesticks are employed as seen in the Bible of Roda.3 Old Testament subjects are usually confined to scenes from Genesis. The story of Adam and Eve first appears in the very early paintings at Campdevänol. As we have seen, there is strong reason to believe that the subject was employed at Ripoll, from whence it spread to Sescorts, Brull, and Osormort. Its use at Barbara is probably unconnected with Ripoll influence. Breymann derives the scenes from such classic subjects as the allegorical representations on the "Prometheus scarcophagus" of the Capitoline Museum at Rome and the cameo of Athena and Poseidon in the Paris cabinet.4 They are common in the catacomb paintings and on the Early Christian sarcophagi of Italy, France, and Spain. In manuscript illumination the entire series is represented in the Vienna Genesis, and later in the Ashburnham Pentateuch and the great Bibles of the school of Tours.6 The theme was especially popular in Carlovingian and Ottonian times, when it reached its fullest development. Its earliest appearance in Mozarabic illumination is in the Morgan Beatus. 6 By the end of the eleventh century there are so many cycles similar to those of Catalonia that it is hopeless to attempt to determine from whence they are derived.7 The only other Genesis scenes which appear in the frescos of Catalonia are those depicting the story of Cain and Abel at Mur and Barbara. Pijoan sees 1

Garrucci, op. cit., Vol. IV, PL 433, No. 10. Heinrich Wölfl!in, Die Bamberg Apokalypse (Munich, 1981), PL 2. * Neuss, Katalanische Bibdiüustrationen, Ρ1. 58, Figs. 173 and 175. 4 Arnold Breymann, Adam, und Eva in der Kunst des Christlichen Alterthums (Wolfenbüttel, 1893), pp. 9 ff. 5 Anton Springer, "Die Genesisbilder in der Kunst des Frühen Mittelalters," in Abhandlungen der Philologischhistorischen Classe der Königl. Sachsischen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaft (Leipzig, 1884), Vol. IX, No. VI. • W. W. S. Cook, " T h e Iconography of the Old and New Testament Panel from Sagars," in Art Bulletin (December, 1827), pp. 153 ff. ' J. J. Tikanen, Die Genesismosaiken von S. Marco in Venedig und ihr Verhältnis zu den Miniaturen der Cottonbibel (Helsingfors, 1889). s

[78]

ICONOGRAPHY a connection between the Mur scenes and those of the Bibles of Roda and Ripoll, 1 but to me they seem quite independent of one another. In the Bibles, the Sacrifice is unsymmetrical and the figures of Cain and Abel are placed back.2 In the frescos they face each other in symmetrical fashion. In the Death of Abel of the manuscript, Abel is crouched on the ground while Cain stands over him ready to strike. At Mur Cain grasps his brother by the hair and holds a battle axe above him. Closer analogies to the Sacrifice are found in France at St.-Savin and in the sculptures of St.-Gilles, Nimes, and the capital of Moutiers-St.-Jean in the Fogg Museum. 3 Scenes of the Death of Abel similar to Mur are at Nimes and the Colegiata of Tudela, in Navarre. 4 Male has shown that these compositions go back to Byzantine originals, so that it is not safe to argue French influence in the frescos.6 Certainly the Sacrifice of Abel and Melchizedec at San Vitale, Ravenna, is close to the representations at Mur and Barbara, even to the flying fold of drapery. Other scenes from the Old Testament are rare. The story of Nebuchadnezzar at Bohi, Gudiol has shown, must come from the Roda Bible or some other similar manuscript. The story of Elijah and Elisha, if indeed that is what is represented at Tahull, is also illustrated in the Catalonian Bibles, although in a slightly different way. The Vision of Isaiah at Esterri de Aneo and Burgal has an oriental tradition behind it. It is not unlike the scene in the Vatican Cosmos which goes back to a sixth-century Coptic original.6 Occasionally the subject gets into European art, as seen, for example, in the manuscript at Bamberg of the early eleventh century (Cod. 74). It must have been a manuscript in a style similar to this which lies behind the splendid frescos at Burgusio in the Italian Tyrol, 7 so that it is not surprising to find this subject getting into monumental painting. Although comparatively common in the Middle Ages, the story of David and Goliath occurs only once in Catalonia, namely at Santa Maria de Tahull. It is even omitted in the otherwise very complete Bibles of Ripoll. The earliest surviving example of the iconography is to be seen on the doors of San Ambrogio at Milan. In the seventh century, the David and Goliath of the frescos of Bawit are like the Tahull example in the position of the figures and the arms and armor of Goliath. Although relegated to an unimportant position, by the eleventh century the bird is introduced into the scene in the ivory box now preserved in the Vatican. 8 In most of the examples the con1

2 Burlington Magazine (July, 1922). Neuss, op. cit., PL 2, Fig. 2; PL 3, Fig. 5. 4 • Porter, Romanesque Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads, 111. 1325, 1379, and 66. Ibid., 111. 786. » Emile Mäle, L'Art Religieux du XIIa sücle en France (Paris, 1922), p. 29. • Garrucci, op. cit., Vol. II, PL 148, No. 2. ' Antonio Morassi, "Gli Affreschi Romanici a Monte Maria di Burgusio," in Art Studies (1928), Vol. VI, pp.

136 ff. ' Clemen, op. cit., pp. 156 ff., and Figs. 124, 125, and 132.

[79]

ICONOGRAPHY tinuous method is used but in the Bible of Cluny at Dijon, a manuscript of A.D. 1109, the arrangement is almost exactly like that of Tahull. In French sculpture the scenes at Moissac and Angers are somewhat similar.1 Scenes from the Gospels are relatively rare in Catalonia. With the possible exception of Boada, which, we have seen, may conceivably be of the first half of the twelfth century, the Life of Christ was represented only after ca. 1150. It is impossible to say with certainty what the "biblical scenes" on the walls of Ripoll were, but in the light of the iconographic tendencies of Catalonia it is safer to guess that they were from the Old Testament rather than from the New. The Annunciation to the Virgin is omitted or has been destroyed in the cycles at Mur, Brull, and Barbara, and its unique use is at Fenouillar. Here the Virgin is at the right of the angel and is standing before a chair or bench. In her hands she holds a round object which must be a spindle. The composition is very common in Byzantine art and dates back at least as early as the fourth century, for it was used in the lost mosaic of the church of the Holy Apostles at Constantinople.2 Dalton 3 and Millet * associate the standing Virgin with a Syrio-Palestinian prototype, for it is used on the Monza ampullae of the sixth century and in the Rabula Gospels. The earliest example of the Annunciation in the West is in the Catacomb of Pricilla, where the Virgin, holding a spindle, is seated, and beside her is a basket.8 After the eleventh century, according to Dalton, the basket is omitted. At Fenouillar the section of the fresco near the feet of the Virgin is lost but probably no basket was depicted. The Visitation is used at Mur, Barbara, and Polinya and is of a type common to medieval art all over Europe. The two women are embracing before the house of Elizabeth. The vigorous movement of the latter at Barbara and Polinya is especially characteristic of Byzantine art and is found regularly in the Cappadocian frescos.6 The Nativity at Mur is oriental in so far as the Virgin is lying on a mattress instead of a bed. The composition is so badly damaged, however, that it is difficult to discern more than this detail. Even less remains at Brull. At Fenouillar, Barbara, and Polinya the manger is represented as opposed to the oriental scheme of depicting the scene in a cave. In the two latter representa1

Porter, op. cit.. 111. 283 and 1069. August Heisenberg, Grabeskirche und Apostelkirche (Leipzig, 1908), Vol. II, pp. 221-223. 3 Dalton, Byzantine Art and Archeology, pp. 652-653. * Gabriel Millet, Recherches SUT l'Iconographie de l'Emngile (Paris, 1916), pp. 67 ff.; Millet, "Quelques Representations Byzantines de la Salutation Angelique," in Bulletin de Correspondance Heltenique (Paris, 1894), Vol. XVIII, pp. 455 ff. 5 George Stuhlfauth, Die Engel in der Altchristlichen Kunst (Freiburg i. B., 1896), p. 9. 1 Guillaume de Jerphanion, Les Eglises Rupestres de Cappadoce (Paris, 1925), PI. 35, 1 and 4; PI. 37, 3; PI. 41, 1; and PI. 64, no. 1. 1

[80]

ICONOGRAPHY tions the two midwives washing the Christ Child are included. This motive is purely Byzantine, according to Dalton,1 although Heisenberg 2 and Noack 3 derive it from classical representations of the two women bathing the infant Bacchus. It is especially characteristic of Italian art of the thirteenth century 4 but it appears in Italy as early as the eighth century in the mosaic of the Lateran,5 and in the ninth century at San Vincenzo al Volturno. The elaborate architectural setting of the scene at Fenouillar somewhat recalls for me the Frankish book cover in the South Kensington Museum, which is a copy of an early Christian original.® The Epiphany is the most common of all of the scenes from the Life of Christ in the Catalonian frescos. At Esterri de Aneo and Santa Maria de Tahull the motive is used as the dominating theme in the composition of the apse and, in both cases, the Virgin and Child are in frontal position flanked by the three Kings. This type of Adoration is characterized by Baldwin Smith as Palestinian-Coptic.7 In the early representations an angel usually stands by the throne pointing the way to the Magi, which may account for the angel in the scene at Tahull. At Aneo, two archangels holding scrolls with the mysterious PETICIUS and POSTULATIUS somewhat suggests this. In addition to the figures at Galliano, Toesca notes that at S. Lorenzo, f.l.m. at Rome, archangels hold inscriptions with peticio and precatio.8 The Virgin flanked by archangels is so common in Byzantine and Early Christian iconography that it is useless to cite a long list of examples.9 At Aneo the Magi wear curious round caps and split capes which hang down between their legs in a manner similar to the costume worn by the Kings in the fresco at Qeledjlar in Cappadocia.10 At Fenouillar, Barbara, L'Escluse, Brull, and in the representation on the lateral wall of Santa Maria de Tahull the Virgin is in profile position and facing the three crowned Magi. This composition, as Dalton has said, is thoroughly Byzantine. At Tahull Herod is introduced and at Fenouillar the Magi are mounted, an element which is to be found in Byzantine manuscripts of the twelfth century.11 1

2 Op. cit., p. 654. Heisenberg, op. cit., Vol. II, p. 227. ' Ferdinand Noack, Die Oeburt Christi in der Bildenden Kunst (Darmstadt, 1894), p. 1. 4 Ε. Dobbert, "Duccio's Bild 'Die Geburt Christi,' etc.," in the Prussian Jahrbuch (Berlin, 1885), Vol. VI, No. IV, p. 159. 8 Wilpert, Byzantine Art, Vol. III, PI. 113. « Dalton, op. cit.. Fig. 146. 7 E. Baldwin Smith, Early Christian Iconography and a School of Ivory Carvers in Provence (Princeton, 1918). 8 Toesca, op. cit., p. 54. • In this connection it is interesting to note that in Coptic and Ethiopian manuscripts the Virgin is frequently mentioned as appearing between the angels Michael and Gabriel (Wallis Budge, Legends of Our Lady Mary the Perpetual Virgin and Her Mother Hanna, London, 1922, pp. lxvi and 199; and One Hundred and Ten Miracles of Our Lady Mary, London, 1928, p. 114). 10 Ο. M. Dalton, East Christian Art (Oxford, 1925), PI. XLIII. u An example is to be seen in the Psalter of Queen Melisenda in the British Museum (Egerton, 11S9).

[81]

ICONOGRAPHY The unique use of the Baptism of Christ is at Santa Eulalia de Estahon, where it is thoroughly Byzantine. The positions of the figures are rather rare for the twelfth century as St. John is at the right of Christ. This is more characteristic of the eleventh century and earlier, than the twelfth. The presence of only one angel is also rare at a late date but it is found in Byzantine art of an earlier period as in the frescos of Toquale Kilisse in Cappadocia.1 In Europe it appears in the stuccos of Münster in Switzerland which Zemp dates ca. A.D. 1087. The miracles of Christ are not depicted in the frescos and the only examples of the parables are the Wise and Foolish Virgins at Pedret and the Lazarus and the Rich Man at San demente de Tahull.2 The former, we have seen, is Italo-Byzantine in character, being similar to Civate and not unlike the composition in the Rossano Gospels.3 The scene of the beggar Lazarus at Tahull was on the triumphal arch, probably opposite a Last Judgment and near the scene of the angels conducting the souls of the dead to Abraham's bosom. In Northern art, for example in the frescos of Ponce, the subject is also used.4 In the Gospels of Otto II at Gotha and in the Crucifixion of Princess Gunhild, in Copenhagen, the Lazarus story was included with the Last Judgment.6 The Tahull example may be a reflection of this. Scenes from the Passion are almost as rare, for they appear only at Andorra la Vella, Urgel, Polinyä, and Barbara. In the latter church, the Entry into Jerusalem is in the Eastern manner with Christ riding sidewise. At Andorra la Vella, in the Washing the Feet of the Disciples, Christ is in the center with Peter and a group of Apostles at the right. Behind the Saviour is a bearded figure holding a cloth. This arrangement is similar to that found in Cappadocian art but the attitude of Christ, with gesticulating hands which do not touch the feet of Peter, is more like certain Byzantine miniatures of the thirteenth century.6 The Last Supper, as it is depicted in the cathedral of Urgel with seated figures on one side of a rectangular table, is Western in composition as opposed to the oriental manner of placing the figures at a circular table in reclining or seated attitudes. The Urgel type is found in the contemporary Italian art of the thirteenth century, but north of the Alps it is used at an earlier date.7 In the Arrest of Jesus at Andorra, the embracing figures of Christ and Judas are in the center of the scene, in the midst of 1

Jerphanion, op. cit., PI. 65, No. 2. The Marriage Feast at Cana may also be depicted in the frescos of Pedret, but the remains are too fragmentary to be surely identified. ' Arthur Haseloff, Codex Purpureus Rossanensis (Berlin, 1898), PI. IV. Other examples are cited by Male in L'Art Religieux du XII' Steele, pp. 148 ff. 4 Lasteyrie, op. cit., p. 552. 6 Frans Xaver Kraus, Die Wandgemaeide in der S. Georgekirche zu Oberzell auf der Insel Reichenau (Freiburg i. B., 1884), pp. 15 ff. • Millet, L'Iconographie de l'Evangile, pp. 310 ff.. Figs. 297 and 810. ' Ibid., pp. 286 ff. 8

[ 82 ]

ICONOGRAPHY soldiers. At the left Peter cuts off the ear of the servant. This is a type found as early as the sixth century in Latin art.1 The Christ before Pilate at Polinyä is in a poor state of preservation but appears to be in the traditional manner which was widespread at an early date. The Crucifixion is found only twice in Catalonian frescos, at Montral and Sorede. It is of the conventional type with the Virgin and St. John beside the cross while above them are the sun and moon and two angels. The Last Judgment at Santa Maria de Tahull is about contemporary with the earliest monumental representation of the subject in France, the tympanum of the west portal of the cathedral of Autun, dated 1120-30.2 Its arrangement in two zones somewhat resembles the Autun composition but in detail it more closely parallels the fresco in the Georgskirche at Reinchenau painted at the end of the tenth century. The Christ above, between Apostles and angels, one of whom holds a cross, and below, a Resurrection of the Dead and Weighing of Souls, are found in both frescos.3 The half-figure in the tympanum at Tahull recalls a similar arrangement of the Christ of the Last Judgment at San Pablo de Caserras. In the latter church the jambs of the arched opening were decorated with scenes from the Apocalypse. The jamb frescos at Tahull are lost but they may conceivably have contained similar subjects. The Last Judgment was probably also painted at San demente de Tahull since the parable of Lazarus and the angels carrying the soul to Abraham's bosom were depicted, two scenes which are iconographically related. The inclusion of Abraham in the Last Judgment is a Byzantine motive appearing, for example, in the eleventh-century Gospels of the Bibliotheque Nationale (Grec. 74) ,4 In Italian churches under Byzantine influence, the Last Judgments are placed on the west wall and contain the Abraham. Examples may be found at San Abbondio near Rignano Flamino, Santa Maria ad Cryptas at Fossa, San Michele near Oleggio, and San Casale near Brindisi (PL LXIII, Figs. 2-3). St. John's vision of Christ in majesty surrounded by the four and twenty Elders is portrayed at Fenouillar and Barbara. The first use of the subject was probably in the fourth-century mosaic on the fagade of old St. Peter's at Rome. By the fifth century it had already become a motive for ceiling decoration of San Paolo f.l.m.6 The sixth-century mosaic of SS. Cosma e Damiano probably served as a model for the later compositions at Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, Santa Prassede, and the frescos of San Silvestro at Tivoli.6 North of the Alps and doubtless due to Italian influence, the motive was used 1

2 Millet, VIconographie de I'lZvangile, pp. 326 ff. Porter, Romanesque Sculpture, 111. 80-81. ' Konrad Gröber, Reichenauer Kunst (Karlsruhe, 1924), Figs. 36a and 37. * Henri Omont, JLvangiles avec Peintures Byzantines du XI" Sücle (Paris, N.D.), Vol. I, PI. 41. 1 Clemen, op. ext., p. 62. • R. van Marie, Italian Schools of Painting, Vol. I, pp. 42-44.

[83]

ICONOGRAPHY in the dome of the cathedral of Aachen.1 In the Beatus manuscripts it appears with regularity. In all of the examples, with the notable exception of the Beatus, the Elders are bearded and carry crowns. In the Mozarabic Beatus manuscripts they are beardless and hold cups and musical instruments. The Beatus of San Sever was illuminated under a strong Romanesque influence and in this manuscript the Elders are bearded. The same applies to the figure of an Elder on the page of a manuscript used as a cover lining of Cod. 2 in the cathedral archives in Burgos. The Fenouillar Elders hold the same attributes as those of the Beatus, but the facial types are more in the Italian tradition. The fact that at both Fenouillar and Barbara the motive is used as a vault decoration seems to indicate a similar vault composition as a prototype rather than a direct influence from manuscript illumination. The possibility of influence of the Beatus manuscripts is rather more likely in the apocalyptic scenes at Polinya. The instances of themes taken from this part of the Scriptures are few in Catalonia, however. The battle of the angels with the seven-headed beast is represented at Caserras and, as we have seen, may also have been included at Santa Maria de Tahull. It is difficult to determine if this motive was inspired by the Beatus commentary, for it also was portrayed in the frescos of Civate, and the beast is represented on two capitals of the cathedral of Parma and in the mosaic pavement of Casale,2 and so may have come from Italy. A true example of Beatus influence in this subject can be seen in the small relief of the beast in the portal of San Cebrian at Zamora.3 The only other sure examples of figures from the Apocalypse are found in the lamb with seven eyes at San demente de Tahull. Miracles and scenes from the lives of saints are also uncommon in Catalonia. The Stoning of Stephen, appearing at Bohi, occurs very early in Christian art, was included in the Carlovingian repertoire, and by the twelfth century was common all over Europe. The compositions at San Vincenzo al Volturno and at Münster, in Switzerland, are rather close to Bohi but it is not possible to be sure of a direct connection.4 The episodes from the story of Saints Peter and Paul at Barbara may have been inspired by Byzantine models. They are found, for example, in the famous copy of the Sermons of St. Gregory of Nazianzen in Paris (Grec. 510) of the ninth century,5 and are seen in fragmentary condition in the choir of S. Teodoro of Pavia. The story of the true cross as represented at Barbara is also an oriental motive, examples of which are seen in the same manuscript 6 and in the Cappadocian 1

4 Clemen, op. cit., Fig. 5. A. Kingsley Porter, Lombard Architecture, Vol. II, p. 254. ' Manuel Gömez-Moreno, Catdlogo Monumental de ßspaüa, Zamora (Madrid, 1927), PI. 57. 1 Zemp, op. cit., PI. XLIV. Early frescos containing this subject have recently been discovered at Auxerre. 5 Henri Omont, Fac-similts des Miniatures des plus Anciens Manuscrits Grecs de la Bibliothique Nationale (Paris, 1902), PI. XXII. «Ibid., PI. LIX.

[84]

ICONOGRAPHY 1

frescos. Professor Post has pointed out the few instances of its use in the West.2 To sum up, the character of Catalonian iconography may be described as conservative and highly traditional. Some of the motives go back to Coptic of Syrio-Palestinian originals but most of them are found in Italy at an early date. Almost all of the elements employed have parallels in European art of the same or an earlier period. A few purely Spanish innovations are introduced and these have their origin in Mozarabic manuscript illumination. The ornamental motives in Catalonian mural decoration show as much variety in prototypes as does the iconography. Professor Post has solved the problem of the origin of the banded backgrounds which are a common feature in the frescos.3 The motive is derived from the conventionalization of landscapes where the zones of foreground, distance, sky, and so on, eventually become flat horizontal bands of color. It is within the range of possibility that the motive in Catalonia was suggested by Mozarabic illumination, but a more likely explanation is that it comes directly from a fresco tradition. It is very common in mural painting all over Europe and in Rome is found in the seventh and eighth centuries at Santa Maria Antiqua4 and in the ninth at San demente. 6 The painted curtains decorated with animals in medallions which are at the bottom of so many Catalonian apses must certainly have been suggested originally by oriental textiles. This motive, too, is found in frescos outside of Catalonia at a very early date, as seen, for example, in the apse of Santa Maria Antiqua, where doves in medallions adorn the draperies. One of the very common decorative motives, not only in Catalonian frescos, but also in the painting and sculpture of Italy, France, and Germany, is that of the "double axe." It is composed of four semicircles of equal radii so arranged that they give the appearance of a double-edged axe head. It is used, at times, as a simple border, and at times as an all-over decoration with the single elements fitting into each other. The history of the motive during the Carlovingian and Romanesque periods has been studied by Deschamps 6 and O'Connor.7 It appears that the double-axe enjoyed continuous usage in Europe from late-Roman times to at least as late as the fourteenth century.8 1

2 Dalton, Byzantine Art, p. 275. C. R. Post, op. cit., pp. 157-158. »Ibid., pp. 59-61. 4 Wilpert, op. cit.. Vol. IV, Pis. 143-145, 161, 164, 192-19S. Ibid., Vol. IV, PI. 210. • Paul Deschamps, "Un Motif de Decoration Carolingienne et ses Transformations ä l'fipoque Romane," in Bulletin Monumental (Paris, 1921), pp. 254-266. ' Robert B. O'Connor, "The Medieval History of the Double-Axe Motive," in American Journal of Archeology (1920), pp. 151 ff. ' See, for example, the frescos of Bierge in France. The widespread use of the double axe is illustrated by the fact that in Villard de Honnecourt's notebook, written in the thirteenth century, there is a sketch of this motive with the legend, " I was once in Hungary, where I dwelt many days, and there I saw the pavement of a church made in this fashion." 4

[85]

ICONOGRAPHY To the list of Roman mosaics given by Deschamps in which the motive is used, I can add: the example from the west side of the amphitheater of Trier, the so-called "Philosopher Mosaic" found in Cologne and now in the WallrafRichartz Museum of that city, a mosaic in the Museo Nazionale of Naples, the mosaic found at Tossa in Catalonia in 1921, the mosaic in the Provincial Museum of Barcelona (No. 797), the mosaic found at Viljoiosa, and the mosaic of the time of Septimius Severus from Puig de Cebolla near Sagunto. In addition to the Merovingian example found by Deschamps at Nantes, the motive was used in pre-Carlovingian times in the eighth-century English manuscript known as the Codex Aureus of the Stockholm Library, 1 on the impost block above a Visigothic capital of the Mosque of Cordova, 2 and in the eighth-century mosaic pavement of the church of San Felice at Vicenza. I t is possible that this decoration originated in Mycenaean art, for it is used in the halls of the palace at Knossos, perhaps as a sacrificial instrument. From there it probably passed into Roman art by way of the Greeks. Something very like it is used on the Athenian Dipylon vases. The warriors on this pottery carry the "Boeotian" type of shield. The heads, legs, and weapons of the warriors are so small that the large shields give the effect of pure ornament and exactly resemble the double-axe as it is used in Roman mosaics.3 A glance at any catalogue of Greek coin types will tell how popular the double axe was in the Ionian cities. In this connection it is interesting to note that a single-headed äiX6 äS 3/ sacrificial instrument is used decoratively on a Mithraic altar in the Casa di Cicilio II at Pompeii. Has it any connection with the Createan double axe? In both religions the worship of the bull figures prominently and in both instances the sacrificial instrument is used as a motive of decoration. The single-headed axe motive appears on a Visigothic altar in the Museo Arqueologico of Cordova (Spain being a stronghold of Mithraism), in precisely the same manner as on the Pompeian example. I t is, I think, unlikely that the wide diffusion of the double axe in Europe is due to oriental influence. Its use in the Near East is rare, while it appears with regularity in the late-classic monuments. On the columns of the fagade of the mosque of Diarbekir in Asia Minor, a building which has been dated before the Arabic invasion of A.D. 639, the motive is found. A fragment of a stone screen in the Kaiser Friedrich Museum in Berlin (No. J 6764), assigned by the museum authorities to Asia Minor and dated by them in the sixth century, also contains the double-axe.4 An argument favoring the Near 1

Folio 150T. ' Phot. Mas, No. C 41623. ' Gisela Μ. Α. Richter, "Two Colossal Athenian Geometric Vases in the Metropolitan Museum of Art," in American Journal of Archeology (1915), pp. 385 ff., Pis. XVIII-XXIII. * O. Wulff and W. F. Volbaeh, Die Altchristlichen und Mittelalterlichen Byzantinische und Italienische Bildwerke (Berlin, 1923), p. 9.

[86]

ICONOGRAPHY East theory is the fact that the motive is used as masonry inlay in the rear wall of the church of Santo Stefano at Bologna, a structure which, it is generally agreed, was built under Syrio-Palestinian influence. The border around the apses of Santa Maria de Tahull, Estahon, and in the sculptured portal of Folgaroles, which is certainly a cufic inscription, is clearly derived from Moorish art. The motive is used in Mohammedan decoration as early as the ninth century in the carved screen of the mosque of Sidi' Okba at Cairuan.1 The alternating heart motive of Pedret, which is also used at Santa Maria de Aneo, we have seen is found in Benedictine art of southern Italy.2 Another motive which appears in the same region is the floral border in the central window of the apse of San Miguel de la Seo de Urgel. This is composed of a series of hearts separated by foliate ornament and containing split palmettes. Something very similar is seen on the jambs of the portal of San Liberatore of Serramonacesca, a south-Italian work of about A.D. 1100.3 The fret borders, so common in Catalonian frescos, are found all over Europe in almost all periods and mediums in the Middle Ages, so that it is useless to cite examples. Obviously they all go back to classic prototypes. The motive was used in mural paintings even in classic times.4 The solid fret as it appears in the tympanum of Carennac in Languedoc, enlivened with rectangular compartments containing animals, is close to many examples in Catalonia and Lombardy.8 Lasteyrie sees a connection between the tympanum and the fresco of the Ascension at St.-Jean of Poitiers.6 1 Elisabeth Ahlenstiel-Engel, Arte Arabe (Barcelona, 1947). * Bertaux, op. cit., PI. IX, No. 1. * Ibid.., Fig. 73. ' An example from Pompeii is now in the museum at Naples (No. 8548). * Porter, op. cit., 111. 381. It is used in the frescos of San Giorgio in Borgo Vigo at Como and in the church at Agliate. * Op. cit., pp. 553-555.

C H A P T E R III CATALONIA AND EUROPE IN the last chapter we have seen a large number of iconographic analogies to the paintings of Catalonia, a number so widely distributed that it is almost impossible to see any direct lines of influence. True, the Byzantine elements seem to predominate but they are so diluted that they may have been taken from very indirect sources, considering the strong orientalism in European art in general in the twelfth century. Indeed, the theory advanced by Professor Post, that the Romanesque painting of Catalonia belongs to a general artistic tradition found throughout Europe, offers the only sound explanation to the enigma. B y an examination of historical data we hope to narrow, somewhat, the limits of the broad artistic currents which flowed into the district. Catalonia's relationship with the rest of the Iberian Peninsula seems to have been relatively slight in an artistic way. We have seen but few instances of Mozarabic influence in the frescos, chiefly, I suspect, because the vast majority of the monuments were executed after the Mozarabic style already had gone out of fashion. Even such early frescos as Predet and Campdevänol contain nothing that can be called truly Spanish. The great Mozarabic Bibles and Beatus manuscripts exerted but slight influence. The Commentaries of Beatus at Gerona and Urgel can hardly be Catalan, so close are they to the styles developed in the scriptoria of Leon and Castile. The pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela seems to have had but little effect on the development of Catalonian painting. Indeed, it may have been this famous pilgrimage that is responsible for such isolated instances of Catalonian influence in Castile that we have noted at Maderuelo, which is not far from the pilgrimage road that passes through Burgos. All four of the roads from France to Santiago avoided Catalonia. Three of them entered Spain at Ostabat and the fourth at Jaca in Aragon. Certainly, as Professor Porter suggests, the pilgrims from Italy (and perhaps Germany as well) may have returned from Santiago via Catalonia in order to visit Ripoll and Montserrat. 1 If the popularity of the shrine of St. James had any influence on Catalonian painting, it must have been through the introduction of motives from other countries rather than from Spain. Oliva of Ripoll had close connections with Sancho of Navarre, and, after 1162, Catalonia and Aragon were ruled by a single monarch, but even this had no great effect on the painting. The only examples of truly Romanesque 1 A. Kingsley Porter, Romanesque Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads, Vol. I, p. 18Ϊ. [88]

CATALONIA AND EUROPE frescos in Aragon that I know of are Uncastillo and Roda Ribagorza, which in style and iconography are totally unconnected with Catalonia. The many instances of Italian and Byzantine motives in Catalonia suggest a closer connection to the East, which historical evidence substantiates. During the Roman domination of the peninsula, the relationship with Italy is self-evident. At this time, trade routes must have been highly developed both by land and sea between the two countries, as we have seen them developed between Catalonia and France.1 The introduction of Christianity in the Roman Empire did nothing to impair this relationship. Tarragona remained faithful to the Church of Rome until the fall of the city in A.D. 409 and Greek inscriptions appear in the mosaics at Elx. We have already mentioned the Byzantine occupation of the east coast and the trip of Joan of Biclara to Constantinople. Under the Moors, interchange between Italy and Catalonia must have decreased of necessity, but even then we read of the removal of the relics of San Fruitos from Tarragona to a monastery near Genoa to prevent them from falling into the hands of the infidel.2 In the tenth century the Benedictine Order, with Montecassino as its head, begins to play an increasingly important röle in the cultural and ecclesiastical affairs of Catalonia. These south-Italian monks had been in exile at Capua from 896 to 949, and it is only after their return to the home monastery that the great Benedictine Renaissance took place. By the end of the tenth century the Catalonian monasteries of Bages, San Cugat de Valles, Ripoll, San Juan de les Abadeses, San Pablo del Campo, San Pedro de les Puelles, Saint-Martin-de-Canigou, and Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa were all under the rule of Montecassino.3 In A.D. 951 the monks Sunyer and Senderedus of Ripoll made the difficult journey to Naples to secure the correct text of a manuscript of Eugippius. In 968 Oliva Cabreta, father of the famous Oliva of Ripoll, journeyed to Italy for the second time, accompanied by the abbot of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa and by several Italians who had been residing in Catalonia. The party traveled to Rome and then proceeded southward to Montecassino. Oliva remained there until his death in A.D. 990. Other parts of Italy were also in close communication with Catalonia. The pilgrimage to Rome was popular and was taken by Guissad and Count Ermengal of Urgel (977 and 998), Arnulf of Ripoll (951), Ato of Vich and Boreil II (970), and Miro Bonfill of Gerona (983). From the north came Pietro Urceolo, doge of Venice, who spent the last nineteen years of his life as a humble monk at the monastery of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa. From Lombardy came workmen to ply crafts, with what profound effect on architectural 1

See page 38. Rovira i Virgili, op. cit.. Vol. II, p. 201. 3 Ibid. Unless otherwise indicated, these facts are drawn from this source. 2

[89]

CATALONIA AND EUROPE decoration, Sr. Puig i Cadafalch has pointed out.1 This, plus the fact that the name Lombardus or Langobardo appears with frequency in documents of the tenth and eleventh centuries, has caused the eminent archeologist to hint that the maestri comacini themselves may have worked in Catalonia, although recent opinion has thrown grave doubts on the very existence of such a band of workmen. So much we are sure of, however, that several Catalonian monasteries were subject to the rule of the Italian priory of San Michele of Chiusa, which was on the ancient road from Piedmonte to France. It is not surprising, therefore, that strong north-Italian influence should appear in the art of Catalonia. In the eleventh and twelfth centuries the popularity of pilgrimages to Rome and the Holy Land continued to be great. Twice did Ermengal I of Urgel journey to Rome (998 and 1001), and his successor and namesake took the pilgrimage to Palestine and was so overcome by the fatigues of the trip that Jerusalem became his last resting place. Ramon Borell of Barcelona and Arnulf of Ausonia together visited Rome in 1002. Hue II of Empurias, Geraud I of Roussillon, and William Jorda of Cerdagne all saw the shores of the Holy Land. In 1067 Catalonia adopted the Roman form of liturgy, it being the first district in Spain to do so. In 1116 Reallus, a professor in Barcelona, set sail in the company of his count, Ramon Berenguer, and landed at Genoa. They then proceeded south by land to Pisa and Rome, where they worshiped at the shrine of St. Peter. Extensive commercial connections with Provence, Sicily, Pisa, Genoa, Languedoc, Greece, Alexandria, Palestine, and North Africa drew Catalonia into political complications, which further strengthened her relationship with Italy. To mention only two instances, in 1114 a military expedition against the Balearic Islands was made with the aid of Pisa and Genoa, and in 1147, the conquest of Almeria was accomplished in union with Genoa. It need hardly be added, after a glance at these data, that direct influence from Italy and the Near East was highly possible. We reach a similar conclusion when we examine the facts which connect Catalonia with France. The very origin of Catalonia as a political entity is bound up with France. The Reconquest was organized by the Franks and in 778 Charlemagne himself crossed the Pyrenees, driving out the Moors from Gerona and setting up a Frankish rule there. In 796 his sons Louis and Charles established a governor at Barcelona and by 809 the Franks had advanced as far as Tortosa. After the Carlovingian wars nearly five thousand inhabitants from Spain crossed the mountains and established themselves in Roussillon, thus spiritually abolishing the Pyrenees as a barrier between the two countries. The Franks remained masters of Catalonia until the donation of Charles the Bald 1

Puig i Cadafalch, op. eit., Vol. II, pp. 16-22.

[90]

CATALONIA AND EUROPE in 874 made Wifredo the first independent count of Barcelona. Some scholars believe, however, that at least nominally Catalonia remained under French rule until freed by an act drawn at Corbie under St. Louis in 1258.1 By no means were all of Catalonia's ecclesiastical affiliations with Italy. The church of Camprodon was under the rule of Moissac 2 and in the inventory of the archives of Ripoll of A.D. 979 a copy of a chronicle of Moissac was listed. The influence of the Provengal Monasteries of Ste.-Marie-deGrasse and St.-Victor of Avignon has been noted by Don Marcario Golferichs 3 and Professor Porter has pointed out a direct connection between the Avignon abbey and Catalonian manuscript illumination.4 Both of these south-French monasteries were subject to the rule of Moissac. In the ninth century, Barcelona, Ausona, Gerona, and Eine were all under the archbishop of Narbonne and we hear of Catalonian notables making donations to foundations at Grasse, Carcassonne, Narbonne, Marsailles, Avignon, and St.Gilles.» The relationship with northern France is less striking, but that it exists can hardly be doubted. Perhaps the most famous instance of this is seen in the life of Gerbert, who was born in Aquitaine, became bishop of Rheims, and before he died in the papal chair at Rome he had spent years of his life as a student at Vich and Cordova. The friendship of Oliva of Ripoll and Gaucelinus of Fleury has often been noted. Indeed, monks from Ripoll visited St.Benoit-sur-Loire and made a drawing of a Mappa Mundi which adorned the episcopal palace at Orleans.6 The existing manuscript which contains a copy of this map was executed at St.-Victor of Marsailles.7 In 1068 many bishops from northern France attended the council of Gerona and we have numerous notices of Catalans giving donations to the Cluniac order.8 Perhaps it was fortunate for the art of Catalonia that the austere and iconoclastic Cistercian order was not introduced until 1131. The first true Cistercian monastery in Catalonia was Santa Maria de Poblet, near Tarragona, which was founded only in 1150. We need hardly review the instances of monumental evidence which show connection with Italy and France. Campdevänol is related to Lombard sculpture and to Merovingian art all over Europe. The frescos in the Tarrasa baptistery could have been inspired by some neo-Irish manuscript from al1

Antonio Ballesteros y Beretta, Historia de Esparia (Barcelona, 1918), Vol. II, p. 348. ä Villanueva, Viaje IAterario, Vol. XV, pp. 108 ff. La Vanguariia (July 18,1944). 4 Burlington Magazine (March, 1928). • Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit.. Vol. II, pp. 23-24. • Alexandre Vidier, "La Mappemonde de Theodulfe et la Mappemonde de Ripoll," in Bulletin de Geographie Historique (1911), pp. 285 ff. 7 Anselm Μ. Albareda, "Els Manuscrits de la Biblioteca Vaticana Reg. Lat. 123, Vat. Lat. 5730 i el Scriptorium de Santa Maria de Ripoll," in Catalonia Monastica (Monserrat, 1927), pp. 23 ff. 8 Puig i Cadafalch, op. cit.. Vol. II, pp. 29 and 31. 2

[91]

CATALONIA AND EUROPE most anywhere, but since the historical connections with Italy were so strong at the time, the suggestion of an influence from Bobbio or St. Gall can safely be hazarded. Pedret seems to have been surely under a direct south-Italian influence as both iconography and epigraphy show, and the figure style, we have seen, is Italo-Byzantine. The lost frescos at Cuxa and possibly also at Ripoll may owe their inspiration to Italy. The compositions at Esterri de Cardos, Esterri de Aneo, Santa Eulalia de Estahon, and Burgal come directly or indirectly from such a Lombard composition as San Vincenzo at Galliano. These are the most striking of many instances of relationship with Italy. It is useless again to list the others. Nothing definitely French came to our notice until the middle of the twelfth century, where we saw indications of the Languedoc style.1 From that period until the introduction of Gothic (which itself came in part from France and in part from Italy) the influence of France becomes more in evidence. Especially have we seen the Poitiers styles of fresco painting and manuscript illumination at Fenouillar, l'Escluse, and in the group of churches near Vich. What can we conclude from this evidence? Of the eleventh-century monuments we know so little that it is dangerous to generalize. Can we say that the period in general was inspired by the Benedictine art of southern Italy? It is one of those questions that we must leave as a mere suggestion until fresh material is brought to light. Certainly if such existed, it was supplanted in the next century by influence from Lombardy. In the late twelfth and thirteenth centuries the Lombard elements die out and the wave seems to come from France, strongly admixed with Byzantine elements. Whether these oriental elements came from the Near East directly or via Italy or France, it is difficult to say. A glance at the map shows that the known Catalonian monuments fall into groups. Those in the North, the mountain group, are scattered along the narrow river valleys that drain the Pyrenees and those in the South tend to center about the great municipalities in the plains. Each has a style distinct from the other, due partly to the fact that neither group belongs to the same period, and partly because of their geographic location and separation. The northern group is essentially of the twelfth century, the southern, of the thirteenth, with, of course, exceptions in each. The mountain frescos themselves are geographically and stylistically split into subdivisions. To the northwest are three parallel river valleys, each with its own monuments and distinct style. The westernmost of these is the Bohi valley with its three churches all decorated about 1123 and all stylistically of the same family, as we have seen. Its neighbor to the east is the valley of the 1 The resemblance of the Tahull Torture of the Damned to that at St.-Jacques-des-Guerets ia too vague to be classed as a direct influence.

[ 92 ]

CATALONIA AND EUROPE Rio Noguera Pallaresa, in which are located a great number of monuments. Estahon, Esterri de Aneo, Esterri de Cardos, and Burgal, we have seen, are closely related iconographically and may have been inspired by a common Lombard prototype. Certainly the two churches on the Noguera de Cardos, Esterri and Ginestarre, are blood relatives, and even Estahon has a vague similarity to them. The few fragments at Ager seem to have sprung from the same stock but Mur and Orc&u belong, apparently, to the next group to the east. Of the later monuments in the Noguera Pallaresa group, Sorpe and Isabarre are much akin to one another. The last of these westerly divisions centers in the Balira River valley and extends from Andorra through the Seo de Urgel and seems to have exerted its influence across the rocky ridge to the west as far as Tremp. This is seen by the obvious similarity between Mur and San Miguel de la Seo, and between Argolell and Orcäu. Unfortunately only a few twelfth-century paintings have survived from this district so that conclusions are based on scant evidence. It is certain, however, that Angulasters and Santa Coloma de Andorra come out of the same artistic tradition. Where we have noted Lombard influence in the Noguera Pallaresa valley to the west, French influence appears in at least two of the churches in the basin of the Rio Balira, namely at Mur and Urgel. The easternmost division lies entirely on the northern slope of the Pyrenees and may be classified geographically and stylistically as the Roussillon group. Of the three important fresco cycles which have come down to us, two of them, Fenouillar and L'Escluse are alike in style. To the south two main divisions can be made, the Vich and the Barcelona groups. In the Plana de Vich we have seen that Sescorts, Brull, and Osormort all come from a common origin, possibly Ripoll, possibly France, and possibly France by way of Ripoll. Near Barcelona are Barbara and Polinya, with fresco cycles which were executed by the same atelier. The murals at Santa Maria de Tarrasa, aside from physical proximity, have nothing in common with the others. One must realize that these classifications are very general. Such important monuments as Pedret, Caserras, Campdevanol, and San Miguel at Tarrasa are left quite unaccounted for. It must inevitably be so, and possibly when more frescos came to light, still more exceptions will be discovered. The grouping does, I think, place the majority of the twelfth- and thirteenthcentury monuments in their proper pigeonholes.

C H A P T E R IV CONCLUSION THE average traveler and, indeed, the student who casually dips into the literature of Catalonian mural painting is liable to quite an erroneous impression of its importance. The Catalonian scholars have only comparatively recently become aware of the medieval treasures which their country contains. This discovery coming at a time of political trouble and fervent national feeling has caused them, quite unconsciously and humanly, rather to overemphasize the significance of their national art. The student in Barcelona comes out of the glaring heat of the city into the cool refreshing gloom of the museum to study the frescos. He sees them magnificently installed, their brilliant colors enlivening room after room and, unless his eyes are sharp, he fails to detect the modern repaint that is largely responsible for their splendor. If he would but make the difficult journey northward to see the miserable little rubble buildings from which these dramatic paintings were taken, doubts would begin to arise in his mind. Could these tiny churches, most of them tucked away in highly inaccessible mountain nooks — could these buildings have contained anything constructive to contribute to the general trend of European art? The very fact that they fall so neatly into local groups seems to show that the frescos were painted by craftsmen more or less cut off from the rest of the world. The mural painters of Catalonia seem to have absorbed much and given out but little. They adopted elements from other styles, using what models came to their hands. They gave their art a Catalan flavor, transforming it into a style charmingly and peculiarly their own, but they were not creators. However much we may admire the dominating religious austerity of Mur, the subtle delicacy of Argolell, the solemn oriental majesty of Burgal, the wild, brutal joyousness of Bohi, and the sophisticated balance and pattern of Tahull, we are driven irrevocably to the conclusion that the Catalonian school of mural decoration was fundamentally traditional and unoriginal. There still remains a great deal to be done in the study of Catalonian frescos. The activities of collectors and dealers are accomplishing much in the rediscovery of paintings, but the known monuments still seem to be suspiciously near to the modern automobile roads. Andorra and the unexplored district east of Tremp may yet yield many treasures. Countless fine paintings must still be hidden from the eyes of the world by mountain peaks or a thin coat of plaster and whitewash.

PLATES

PLATE I

1. S. Miguel de Tarrasa. Elders

. Carmona, Museum. Mourning Figure

(Phot.

Kuhn)

3. Pedret. Personification of the Church

PLATE III

1. Pedret. Wise Virgins

2. Pedret. Foolish Virgins

(Phot.

Vidal)

(Phot.

Vidal)

PLATE IV

PLATE V

'·: '.' - ϊ ί .:·'-· .

PLATE VI

(Phot. Vidal)

1. S. demente de Tahull. St. James

{Phot.

2. S. demente de Tahull. Lazarus

(Phot.

3. S. demente de Tahull. Angel Choir

Vidal)

Vidal)

PLATE VII

PLATE VIII

(Phot. Vidal)

1. Sta. Maria de Tahull. Magi

(Phot. Vidal)

2. Sta. Maria de Tahull. Apostles

(Phot. Vidal)

3. Sta. Maria de Tahull. St. Peter

PLATE IX

(rtwt.

VitM)

1. Sta. Maria de Tahull. Grotesques in Medallions

{Phot.

Vidal)

2. Sta. Maria de Tahull. Border of the Main Apse

3. Sta. Maria de Tahull. East Wall

PLATE Χ

(Phot. L. Torres

1. Maderuelo. Frescos of the Vault

CPhot. Vidal)

2. Sta. Maria de Tahull. Last Judgment

Balbds)

PLATE X I I

(.Phot. Vidal)

1. Sta. Maria de Tahull. Zaccharias and the Scribe

(Phot.

Vidal)

2. Sta. Maria de Tahull. David and Goliath

3. Sta. Maria de Tahull. Torture of the Damned

PLATE X I I I

(Phot.

Vidal)

1. Bohi. Tympanum «»•wf/VjufuG;.' cjii'atr, twejp .ι

w m M w f c w i a f t g j i j ^ ! fftifli

•

i t Onc

, e

vrcmä^mäbo

S

w

7 v

,· l

fl ||ttwn.c-p

Ψ^ΐΜβΜ ^ T^J I ^«"f \ 4 Μ ί ,

Ucfwn/*

[Iftutrof

E

· UTERI] Dti ®BT( Α Hilf S tOBt»l»lK J

£ CULMS

J ©ANGUUSTEf

®A*DOftU »ST». /ft COLONA^/M AtCOUlL

PUlOCtt-Di

o

OfOLVIiL

®

RIPOLU©, 5AM jAiktt \ Μ fOWTAUW

®P!5KtT ®o»c»u

OMMABAttE

CASStRlAS

Ο

tuiwn

cutms

#

•

cBAIMA

.SAN UOStNS M l MUNT

liarwt

Ο

ITARRA5A

•

MARMtLLA

TARRAGONA Ο CANM5A

Ο TORIOS»

GEOGRAPHIC - DISTRIBUTION OF · CATALONIAN · FRESCOS • L t c t m · •

LOCATION

®

SITES

OF

©

5ITE5 WHICH

®

DOUBTUL.

FROM

FRESCOS

WHICH

STILL

fttSCOS

CONTAINED

IN

HAVE

FR.E5COS

SITU. SEEN

UMOVED.

NO LONCEi.

EXTANT.