24 de septiembre

Stylistic and Theological Complexity in Mosan Enamels (c. 1140–1180)

Bernát Rácz

Among the metalworking and enameling schools of the twelfth century, Mosan art stands out for its complex intellectual qualities. While perhaps visually not as colorful and vivid as the products of the southern enameling schools, its emphasis on classical forms and strong narrative content makes it unique even among other northern enameling centers. This emphasis on intellectual and theological content is evident in complex scenes used to compare important episodes from the Old Testament and the life of Christ, reflecting contemporary theology (The Brazen Serpent, Sacrifice of Isaac, Marking of the Tau, Jacob Blessing the Sons of Joseph, etc.). However, this typological emphasis is only one aspect, since Mosan art also addresses hagiographic narratives interwoven with the Passion of Christ, ultimately focusing on Eucharistic themes. Characters in Mosan art are often shown as the elect or in situations of revelation (Marking of the Tau, Washing of the Feet, Constantine’s Vision of the Cross, Discovery of the Holy Cross).

These multilayered enamels were part of complex liturgical objects that would have played important roles in relic veneration. Inspired by Carolingian and Byzantine metalwork, Mosan artists started to experiment with shapes to create highly interwoven narrative compositions. For this, they used, for example, triptychs to carry on the traditions of Byzantine staurothekes, but these were still no match for the extremely interconnected scenes. A solution came from the quatrefoil arrangement, which, while a universal form, actually had a long tradition in the former Carolingian heartlands: in the ninth century, several manuscripts already experimented with the creation of such geometric narratives, primarily for book covers, developing quatrefoil- and lozenge-shaped compositions. The invention of free-standing quatrefoil reliquaries established a shape that lived up to the refined style and special narratives. Furthermore, these scenes also allowed an interrelation with the central relic, which in some cases (Lobbes phylactery) was visible in some form. In other cases, the hidden relic in the central part or behind the enamels around the central piece would have been fully tied to the narratives, since the religious communities using these artworks would have been aware of what relic lay behind each part of the reliquary. In the case of phylacteries, in contrast with triptychs, a significantly greater freedom of movement and exposition was possible, since these reliquaries would often have been hung, also allowing them potentially to be carried around. These hanging reliquaries, full of reflective and shining materials that are transformed by light, create spheres of their own. The shapes of quatrefoil reliquaries also create the impression of a cosmic sphere, since the quatrefoil, apart from representing the cross, also represents the world. Thus, phylacteries can be considered one of the greatest inventions of Mosan art in the way they unite all these aspects relating to the sensory experience.

Among phylacteries and quatrefoil compositions, the recently discovered fragments of the Pétermonostora reliquary stand out. Usually, only small Mosan artworks survive, but this large Mosan masterpiece, discovered in the Kingdom of Hungary among the ruins of a monastery destroyed by the Mongols in 1241, adds significant context to both the iconography of Mosan art and the understanding of quatrefoil reliquaries. These fragments reveal a uniquely high-quality Mosan artwork of a distinctive style that was most likely a free-standing quatrefoil reliquary. Apart from its many stylistic and iconographic peculiarities (the Ascension and the Washing of the Feet, the latter with a double narrative), technological investigations also revealed fascinating details of this reliquary. From inscriptions revealed beneath the enamel surface using industrial CT scans, it seems that not only the central part of the artwork contained relics, but also the large compartments behind the enamels were used as relic containers. This demonstrates how new technological approaches and archaeological work can provide significant additions to our knowledge of medieval enamels.