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Carolingian Renaissance
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This "Carolingian Renaissance" was an isolated phenomenon. Learning did not catch fire throughout Europe. Only in the royal court, monasteries and schools was there any real focus on education. Yet because of Charlemagne's interest in preserving and reviving knowledge, a wealth of ancient manuscripts were copied for future generations. Just as important, a tradition of learning was established in European monastic communities that Alcuin and St. Boniface before him had sought to realize, overcoming the threat of the extinction of Latin culture. While their isolation from the Roman Catholic Church sent the famous Irish monasteries into decline, European monasteries were firmly established as keepers of knowledge thanks in part to the Frankish king.
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The Carolingian Renaissance was a period of intellectual and cultural revival occurring in the late eighth and ninth centuries, with the peak of the activities occurring during the reigns of the Carolingian rulers Charlemagne and Louis the Pious. During this period there was an increase of literature, writing, the arts, architecture, jurisprudence, liturgical and scriptural studies. The period ... saw the development of Medieval Latin and Carolingian minuscule, providing a common language and writing style that allowed for communication across most of Europe.
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More than 1,000 years ago, as the founder of the Carolingian Renaissance – the fusion of classical ideals with the intellectual heritage of the Germanic world – Charlemagne created the basis for western culture and a European identity. He was in constant and close contact with the great scholars and artists of his time, and established at his palaces the court schools in which, among other things, the Carolingian minuscule – the precursor of all later western families of writing – evolved.
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Until 1977, when it appeared at a London auction, this ivory from the Carolingian "Renaissance" was unknown. Carved in high relief, the frontally enthroned Evangelist displays his Gospel with the opening phrase IN PRINCI / PIO ERAT / VERBVM ("In the beginning was the Word" [John 1:1]). The arch, with its rich acanthus decoration, is supported by elaborate columns and encloses John's symbol, the eagle, which is directly above him. The entire composition is framed by a simple inscribed border. The text of this inscription is based on a line from the "Carmen Paschale," a poem by the fifth-century Christian writer Sedulius.
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The Carolingian Renaissance is embodied in Charlemagne's political ambitions for creating a well-organized society by implementing ideas of unity, clarity, order, and reason in the modular way of thinking. Thus, this dominant principle creates close relationships between different areas of artistic expression and emphasizes the interdisciplinary nature of the medieval culture in general.
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The Carolingian "renaissance" of the late eighth and ninth centuries, in what is now France, western Germany and northern Italy, transformed medieval European culture. At the same time it engendered a need to ensure that clergy, monks and laity embraced orthodox Christian doctrine. This book examines Carolingian thinking on the critical issue of the Passion. It considers how changes in the understanding of the Crucifixion are reflected in a range of contemporary writings, and the impact of those developments on a selection of artistic representations of the crucified Christ.
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Carolingian Renaissance