Chapter II: Part 2

[Coffin and Mummy of the “Lady of the House, Tesha” From Thebes, Dynasty
XXII-XXV.]

Coffin and Mummy of the “Lady of the House, Tesha” From Thebes, Dynasty
XXII-XXV.

The mummy is enclosed in a cartonnage, made of many layers of linen held together by plaster, elaborately decorated by inscriptions and figures of the gods. The anthropoid coffin is made of wood, and is also richly decorated. Tesha was the daughter of the Doorkeeper of the Golden House (or Treasury) of Amon at Thebes.

It was believed that man was composed of different entities each having its separate life and function. First, there was the body itself; then, the Ka or double—the ethereal projection of the individual, corresponding in a way to our ghost. Two other elements were the Ba or soul and the Khu or luminous spark from the divine fire. Each of these elements was in itself perishable. Left to themselves, they would hasten to dissolution, and the man, as an entity, would be annihilated. This catastrophe, however, could be averted through the piety of the survivors. The decomposition of the body could be prevented, or at least suspended, by the process of embalming; prayers and offerings saved the other elements from the second death and secured for them all that was necessary for the prolongation of their existence. The influence upon the arts of these religious beliefs is interesting to note. Scenes of harvesting, hunting, and similar episodes connected with the offering of food were painted or carved upon the tomb walls, generally for an utilitarian purpose. Through the recitation of prayers and magic formulae, the pictured semblances of food became reality and saved the hungry Ka from annihilation in case actual offerings should fail him. In the same way, portrait statues were placed in tombs to provide a semblance of the deceased to which the Ka could return were the actual body destroyed. These instances are perhaps sufficient to show us how closely art was related to religion in ancient Egypt.

CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE

Pre-Dynastic Period about 4000-3400 B.C.
Accession of Menes and Beginning of Egyptian History 3400 B.C.
Early Dynastic Period, I and II Dynasties 3400-2980 B.C.
Old Kingdom

III Dynasty 2980-2900 B.C.
IV Dynasty 2900-2750 B.C.
V Dynasty 2750-2625 B.C.
VI Dynasty 2625-2475 B.C.

Transitional Period

VII-X Dynasties. 2475-2160 B.C.

Middle Kingdom

XI Dynasty 2160-2000 B.C.
XII Dynasty 2000-1788 B.C.

Hyksos Period

XIII-XVII Dynasties. 1788-1580 B.C.

The Empire

XVIII Dynasty 1580-1315 B.C.
XIX Dynasty 1315-1200 B.C.
XX Dynasty 1200-1090 B.C.
XXI Dynasty 1090-945 B.C.

Late Dynastic Period

XXII Dynasty 945-745 B.C.
XXIII Dynasty 745-718 B.C.
XXIV Dynasty 718-712 B.C.
XXV Dynasty 712-663 B.C.

Saite Period

XXVI Dynasty 663-525 B.C.

Persian Conquest of Egypt 525 B.C.
Persian Period

XXVII and XXVIII Dynasties 525-398 B.C.
XXIX Dynasty 398-379 B.C.
XXX Dynasty 378-341 B.C.

Ptolemaic Period. 332-30 B.C.
Roman Period 30 B.C.-364 A.D.
Byzantine (Coptic) Period 364-640 A.D.
Arab Conquest of Egypt 640 A.D.

[Lower Part of Coffin. Dynasty XXI]

Lower Part of Coffin. Dynasty XXI

The exterior of this wooden coffin is decorated with figures of gods and minor divinities in shrines, alternating with invocations to various divinities. The most interesting scene is that next the foot on the right side, showing the goddess Hathor in the form of a cow. Beside her is a suggestion of the Theban cliffs and the open door of her shrine, which was hewn in the mountain side. This very shrine was discovered on February 7, 1906, and in it intact was a life-size cult statue of Hathor as a cow. Hathor was supposed to receive the setting sun and to welcome the dead on the brink of the next world. The decoration of the interior of the coffin is bolder and more highly colored than the exterior. On the floor may be noted the large standing figure of Osiris of Busiris. Various divinities are represented surrounding him. On the sides of the coffin are three registers containing each three mummiform figures with human or animal heads; at the top is the soul of the deceased, represented as a human-headed bird. This coffin doubtless comes from Thebes. The absence of the cover makes it impossible to determine the ownership. The coffin was perhaps originally decorated in advance for a woman’s burial, and held in stock for any burial. In one place, however, a man’s titles are given, although the name is not recorded, so that possibly, before the decoration of the coffin was completed, it was adapted to the use of a man.

[Statuette, Wood. Dynasty XII]

Statuette, Wood. Dynasty XII

Standing figure of a woman, carved in wood, with traces of painting; found at Deir; a fine example of carving in Dynasty XII. An inscription on the base may be read: “Funerary offerings, beef, fowl (?), things (?), good and pure for the honorable Kai.” Doubtless a portrait statue. The pose, with one foot advanced and the arms held stiffly at the sides, is a familiar one in Egyptian art. Note costume details: the thick wig and the tight dress supported by two shoulder straps.

[Goddess Neith, Bronze Dynasty XXVI]

Goddess Neith, Bronze Dynasty XXVI

This bronze statuette represents the Goddess Neith wearing the crown of Lower Egypt; probably of the Saite period. An excellent example of votive bronzes, of which there is a considerable number in the collection. These statuettes probably served as votive or propitiatory offerings; that is to say, they were offered at shrines in gratitude for favors experienced or in the hope of winning favors to come.

[Funerary Papyrus]

Funerary Papyrus

Fragment of the funerary papyrus of the Priest of Amon, Jekhonsefonkh; part of a scroll buried with the deceased for his instruction in the afterworld; Dynasty XXI.

[Ushabti, Wood]

Ushabti, Wood

Ushabti, Dynasty XIX (?), part of the burial equipment of “The Lady of the House, the Chantress of Amon, Aay.” Ushabtiu were placed in the tomb to answer for the deceased when called upon to labor in the afterworld. The inscription reads: “To illuminate the Osiris, the Lady of the House, Aay, beatified in peace. He says: O this ushabti, if one be drafted to do all the labors which are performed in the underworld—the Osiris, the Lady of the House, Aay, beatified, in peace—to cultivate the fields, to irrigate the banks, to carry the sand of the east to the west, behold, there will be smitten down ...” Here the text, which is part of Chapter VI of the Book of the Dead, breaks off because the available space was filled. It omits final instructions to the ushabti to reply, should the deceased be drafted, “Behold, here am I!” and thereupon relieve the deceased Lady of the House of the onerous task of laboring in the fields.

[Cover of a Canopic Jar, Terracotta]

Cover of a Canopic Jar, Terracotta

Cover of a canopic jar used in the burial to contain the human viscera; if not earlier than the Empire period, to which it is attributed, it represents the genius Amset.

[Group of Egyptian Alabaster Vessels]

Group of Egyptian Alabaster Vessels

From left to right: spherical vase, Early Dynastic; kohl jar used to contain antimony or other preparations for the eyes, Dynasty XII or XVIII; the three vessels following are of the Empire period, Dynasty XVIII-XIX.

[Bronze Mirror]

Bronze Mirror

Bronze mirror, originally highly polished, probably of the Ptolemaic period. Note the lotus column serving as handle and the two sacred falcons at the side of the handle.

The sacred falcon below is a charm or amulet of the XII or XVIII Dynasty in polished gray stone.

[Amulet]

Amulet

[Sacred Eye and Scarab]

Sacred Eye and Scarab

Heart scarab, Dynasty XX or later. Inscription is a prayer from the Book of the Dead, adjuring the heart, over which the scarab was placed, not to bear false witness against the deceased at the time of judgment. The Horus eye is a beautiful piece of faience inlaid with stone and glass, probably of Dynasty XIX.

ANCIENT ART

Except for Egyptian material, the representation of ancient art in our collections is unfortunately limited to comparatively few original examples. These include, however, an interesting group of Cypriote pottery (duplicate material from the Cesnola Collection) which has considerable importance from the archaeological as well as from the artistic point of view. This collection of pottery from the island of Cyprus shows an almost unbroken succession of styles from the Early Bronze Age, about 3000 B. C., down to the Roman period, and thus gives us a complete picture of the art of pottery in an important center of ancient civilization for about three thousand years. Artistically, it is probably the most successful product of the Cypriote artist. His sense of form and decoration could here find full expression without disclosing the lack of high artistic inspiration, which is apparent in his sculptural creations. Moreover, a certain fanciful originality which shows itself now in a fantastic shape, now in the addition of handles and bosses in unexpected places, gives to his vases a refreshing variety. The interest of this collection will be greatly increased when we are able to exhibit examples of the Greek painted pottery of the V and IV centuries B. C., which represents the culmination of ancient ceramic art. A small collection of Cypriote glass, dating from the I century B. C. to the V century A. D., attracts attention by its beautiful color, or iridescence, due to burial in the earth. Although we have as yet no original sculptures of the classical period, except for a few fragments, the development of sculpture in Greece and Rome may be studied in our cast collection.

[Piriform Vase. Cypriote, Mycenaean Style. ca. 1500-1200 B.C.]

Piriform Vase. Cypriote, Mycenaean Style. ca. 1500-1200 B.C.

[Cypriote Pottery]

Cypriote Pottery

From left to right: Amphora, white ware painted in black and red, X-V centuries B. C.; jug, red slip ware, XX-XV centuries B. C.; amphora, white ware painted in black and red, X-V centuries B. C.; jug, base ring ware, XV-XII centuries B. C.; oinochoe, white ware painted in black and brown, X-V centuries B. C. The earliest of the fabrics illustrated, i.e., the red slip ware, though usually not polished, is made evidently in imitation of the still earlier red polished ware. Base-ring ware is so called from the distinct standing base found on most specimens. With the white painted ware of the Early Iron Age, we come to a wheel-made pottery, usually having painted geometrical decoration.

[Babylonian Tablet From Jokha, ca. 2350 B. C.]

Babylonian Tablet From Jokha, ca. 2350 B. C.

This is one of a small collection of Babylonian tablets. It was made during the reign of Dungi, King of Ur. The inscription records an offering to the temple. The tablet is sealed to prevent the alteration of the record by the priests or attendants; the seal impression bears the figure of Sin, the Moon God, who was the deity of Ur of the Chaldees, and before the deity stand two priests in the act of worship. These inscribed clay tablets were used by the ancient Babylonians in place of papyrus or parchment.

GOTHIC ART

Since the Goths, a rude and barbarous ancient people, were in no wise concerned with the splendid art of that period intervening between Romanesque and Renaissance, which misguided later generations called Gothic because, forsooth, it was not classical, it is unfortunate that this inappropriate designation should be perpetuated by custom. But the misnomer is now used so generally—needless to say, without any sense of disparagement—that we must perforce accept it.

[A Pope, Statuette in Oak. Flemish, about 1500]

A Pope, Statuette in Oak. Flemish, about 1500

It is impossible to date any period of art with absolute accuracy; for art is always in the process of change, and the flourishing of any period of art is long anticipated by preliminary manifestations. In a general way, however, it may be said that the Gothic period extends from the second half of the XII century through the XV century. Italy presents an exception. The tentative Gothic art of the XIII century in Italy gave place to the new movement, founded upon enthusiasm for antiquity, as well as for nature, which we call the Renaissance. The classical element in Renaissance art is the feature which principally distinguishes it from Gothic. In the latter part of the XV century, the Renaissance spread from Italy into the northern countries, and, in the XVI century, accomplished a triumphant ascendancy over the late Gothic style.

The crowning achievement of Gothic art was the cathedral, where architect, sculptor and painter combined to create monuments which rank with the greatest works of human genius. Never has sculpture more perfectly adorned architecture; never has architecture more beautifully expressed the hopes and aspirations of a people. In this age the plastic arts were truly “the language of faith.”

From France, Gothic art spread to other lands, to Germany, Flanders, Spain, and England, and even to Italy. During the XIII and XIV centuries, the highest development of Gothic art took place in France, but, in the XV century, Burgundy and the merchant cities of Flanders gained pre-eminence. France required many years after the battle of Agincourt, in 1415, to recover from the exhaustion brought about by internal conflict and foreign wars. In the meantime, the rich cities of Flanders and the powerful Dukes of Burgundy offered the artist generous patronage.

If the artist in this late period lost something of the spirituality and noble simplicity of earlier times, he was more skillful technically and more realistic. Not that the earlier artist had not observed nature! On the contrary, he was eminently successful in discerning significant truths, but he subordinated objective representation to the requirements of a monumental style.

Save for a distinguished list of painters, headed by the great Flemish masters, the Van Eycks (?-1426, 1381-1440), Rogier van der Weyden (1400-1464), and Hans Memling (1425-1495), Gothic art is largely anonymous. In the minor arts, such as glass painting, the illumination of manuscripts, metal work and enameling, furniture, and textiles, woven and embroidered, the Gothic Age excelled, and the rare surviving examples of these beautiful crafts are treasured among the most precious relics of this great period of the world’s art.

[Head of the Virgin, Stone. French, late XIV Century]

Head of the Virgin, Stone. French, late XIV Century

[A View of the Gothic Room]

A View of the Gothic Room

The large well-head of Istrian stone in the foreground comes from the Palazzo Zorzi in Venice, and is a fine example of Venetian stone-carving in the XV century. The well-head, with its acanthus leaves at the four corners, reminds one of the Corinthian capital of classical times, and, as a matter of fact, ancient capitals were sometimes used in later periods for well-heads. On one side is an angel holding a shield supported by two lions passant. Doubtless, this shield was originally painted the owner’s coat of arms.

[Hunting Party with Falcons. Burgundian Tapestry, about 1450]

Hunting Party with Falcons. Burgundian Tapestry, about 1450

The two XV century Gothic tapestries in the Charles Jairus Martin Memorial Collection are masterpieces of the weaver’s art. They rank among the most beautiful and characteristic examples of the Golden Age of tapestries. The earlier of the two, The Falconers, was woven, presumably in the ateliers of Arras, about 1450. It is similar in style to the famous Hardwicke Hall hunting tapestries, owned by the Duke of Devonshire. These tapestries have been justly called “the finest of the XV century in England.” They formerly ornamented the walls of a great room in Hardwicke Hall, Devonshire, but were removed from there in the XVI century and cut to adapt them to walls pierced with windows in a new location. Taking into consideration the similarity in size, subject, costume, and style of representation, it is not at all impossible that The Falconers may have belonged originally to this celebrated set. Our tapestry, which comes from the Cathedral of Gerona in Spain, was evidently part of a still larger tapestry (tapestries at this time were often woven of great length), and may have been separated from the other pieces of the set at the time of their removal from Hardwicke Hall.

[Detail: Falcons Attacking a Heron; Hunter with Lure]

Detail: Falcons Attacking a Heron; Hunter with Lure

In the XV century, hunting and hawking—the latter also called falconry—played a significant part in the social life of the nobility. These sports and the ability to pursue them in a generous and polite fashion set the nobility apart from the commoners, and formed the chief topic of conversation, when war did not call from the slaughter of animals to the slaughter of men. One of the most necessary implements in falconry is the lure, used to recall the falcon. In the upper right-hand corner of the tapestry a man is shown waving a lure in his right hand. The lure is a pair of wings attached to a cord, to which the falcon is trained to return because accustomed to find food there. The mode of carrying the falcon on the gloved hand is illustrated by several of the personages in the tapestry. Several of the falcons are still on leash; one has just been released and thrown up into the air; another is having the hood removed from his head. The rich costumes illustrate the extravagant fashions which prevailed in the middle of the XV century, when there was great competition in dress between the wealthy commoners and the nobility.

Great beauty of color distinguishes this tapestry. The greens and browns of the foliage form an agreeable contrast with the rich crimson and blue of the costumes, relieved by passages of green and violet. The Gothic artist was not afraid to use strong colors, but he knew how to keep them in harmonious relationship. The simplicity of the design, the purposeful abstention from realistic effects, which we note in this tapestry, are virtues in the art of mural decoration that can not be too highly commended.

[Two Scenes from the Story of Esther. Flemish Tapestry, late XV Century]

Two Scenes from the Story of Esther. Flemish Tapestry, late XV Century

About fifty years later than The Falconers, this beautiful tapestry with scenes from the Story of Esther, in the Charles Jairus Martin Memorial Collection, represents the tendency toward a more ornate and sumptuous art that characterized the late XV century. In the lower right-hand corner of the tapestry, just above the scroll, may be noted a small fleuron, which is probably the mark of an atelier, but tapestries before 1528 can rarely be assigned to any definite atelier or weaver. We must be content to designate our tapestry as Flemish, woven at the close of the XV century. The story of Esther was popular among the Flemish weavers at this time. Our tapestry, which formed part of a set, may be compared with three hangings of the same subject belonging to the Cathedral of Saragossa.

The reproduction can give but an unsatisfactory idea at best of the original. Not only do we lose the mellow harmonies of color, but in reducing the design of so large a tapestry to a few square inches many of the most beautiful details are necessarily lost. In the left-hand compartment, Queen Esther, kneeling before the King, kisses the golden scepter which Ahasuerus extends to her. Having won favor in the King’s eyes, Esther asks as a boon that the King and Haman, the King’s favorite, whose plot for the persecution of the Jews Esther intends to circumvent, shall attend a feast which she has prepared for them. In the upper left-hand corner are two little scenes; Esther kneeling in prayer, and Esther receiving instructions from Mordecai. In the compartment at the right is pictured Esther’s banquet, the second feast, related in Chap. VII of the Book of Esther, which brought about the fall of Haman. Particularly interesting in this scene is the representation of table furnishings, the damask cloth, the enameled ewer in the shape of a boat, the knives with their handles of ivory and ebony, the hanap, the cup of Venetian glass, and the various pieces of plate. We have in this composition a remarkable document illustrating the luxury that characterized the life of the great nobles at the close of the XV century. In the scrolls at the bottom of the tapestry are Latin mottoes referring to the scenes above. Our tapestry was formerly in the J. Pierpont Morgan Collection.

In such tapestries as this and The Falconers, we may note the perfect relationship which exists between the nature of the design and the purpose to which the tapestry was put. Gothic tapestries of the XV century illustrate the true principle of mural decoration. Designers deliberately avoided realistic imitation of nature with spatial effects and tricks of illusion. They strove to achieve a decorative flatness of design which would emphasize rather than destroy the architectonic quality of the wall the tapestry was to cover.

A tapestry is woven, not embroidered, and forms a single fabric. Only two elements are employed in the making of it, the warp and the woof (or weft). These are the upright and the horizontal threads. The weaving is done upon a loom or frame. The bobbin, or shuttle, filled with thread of the weft, is passed from right to left behind the odd warp threads, and in passing leaves a bit of the weft thread in front of the even warp threads. On the backward trip, from left to right, the shuttle reverses its course and leaves the weft in front of the odd warp threads. Thus, all the warp threads are covered with the weft. A comb is used to press down the threads, so that they form an almost even line. Wool is generally used for the weft, linen or hemp for the warp. The texture was sometimes enriched with passages of gold and silver thread or perhaps a bit of silk.

[The Virgin and St. John. Flemish, about 1500]

The Virgin and St. John. Flemish, about 1500

Part of a large tapestry representing the Crucifixion. Its vigorous design and harmonious color make one regret all the more the loss of the other part of this splendid tapestry.

[Virgin and Child, Stone. French, XIV Century]

Virgin and Child, Stone. French, XIV Century

This life-size statue, which still retains traces of the painting and gilding with which Gothic sculptures were almost invariably enriched, is an important example of French Gothic sculpture. The monumental character of this great art is shown in the conventional rendering of the hair, and in the simplification of the modeling; its grace and naturalness in the pose of the Divine Mother. The beautiful, rhythmic lines of the drapery should be particularly noted. Representations of the Virgin in French XIV century art have neither the austerity of earlier periods nor the worldliness of later. They are characterized by charming sensibility and tenderness.

[A Saint, Lindenwood. German, School of Ulm, about 1500]

A Saint, Lindenwood. German, School of Ulm, about 1500

This statue of a holy woman, probably one of the half-sisters of the Virgin, Mary Cleophas, the wife of Alpheus, or Mary Salome, the wife of Zebedee formed part originally, it may be presumed, of a Pieta group. This remarkable example of German sculpture at the close of the XV century is carved in linden wood, and preserves largely intact the original gilding and polychromy which add so much to the decorative effect of the piece. A second figure from this group, a kneeling Magdalene, is in the Kaiser-Friedrich Museum in Berlin. There has been noted a similarity in style between these two sculptures and the work of the Meister des Blaubeurer Hochaltars (so called from the sculptured high altar in the choir of the cloister-church at Blaubeuren). We have represented, perhaps, a late phase of his art, stronger and more realistic than in his early period. It would be most interesting if the connection with this well-known master could be established, but, failing that, the figure may be confidently attributed to the school of Ulm, about 1500.

We do not expect to find in German sculpture of the XV century that spirituality which characterizes the great achievements of the Italian school. German plastic art was one of realism, modified by a strong decorative tradition centuries old, based not only on precedent but on propriety. If the carved altarpiece were to tell in the subdued light of the Gothic church, the artist had to resort to exaggeration, to sharp contrasts in modeling, to the added emphasis of gold and color, to secure his effect. The skillful artist converted his exaggerations of form and movement into beautiful decoration; seized upon the necessity of contrasting planes as a pretext for crumpling his draperies into numerous rhythmic folds, and used the resources of gilding and polychromy to enrich as well as to emphasize form.

But at his best, the German sculptor was more than a simple decorator. Our statue is a case in point. Here we have the work of one who surely has looked into the human heart. Beneath the pattern of line and area, beneath the gold and colors, is a living woman. Not our idea of a saint perhaps; rather, a pretty woman, dainty in her ways, coquetting with religeon—nevertheless very real. Our artist may never have seen a saint, but, no doubt, he saw many a maid like this in his parish. If we are not raised to spiritual heights by his conception of a sainted character, we are at least delighted by his charming humanity.

[St. Mary Magdalene, Linden Wood. Attributed to Jorg Syrlin the Younger,
1425-after 1521]

St. Mary Magdalene, Linden Wood. Attributed to Jorg Syrlin the Younger,
1425-after 1521

This relief, attributed to a well-known sculptor of the school of Ulm, one of the chief centers of South German art, may be dated about 1500. Such carvings as this were commonly used to ornament the doors of large shrines. The decorative treatment of the drapery, with its involved folds, is characteristic of the German school.

[Small Column, Marble. Southern French, XIV Century]

Small Column, Marble. Southern French, XIV Century

The foliage carved on the capital of this small column, probably from some cloister, exemplifies the skill with which the Gothic sculptor utilized natural forms as decorative motives.

[St. Francis Receiving the Stigmata. School of Giotto, about 1330]

St. Francis Receiving the Stigmata. School of Giotto, about 1330

The supreme moment in the life of St. Francis, the seraphic Poverello of Assisi, is the subject of this small panel picture, painted in tempera colors with a gold background, by an artist of Giotto’s school in the Romagna, who was probably a direct pupil of the great Italian master, and whose charm of color and grace of line were vivified by a feeling for reality of form inspired by Giotto’s example. Toward the close of the Saint’s life, two years before his death, he retired with some companions to the solitudes of Monte La Verna. On the morning of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, as St. Francis knelt in prayer on a lonely part of the mountain, there appeared to him a seraph with six flaming wings bearing the effigy of Christ crucified. Two wings were raised above His head, two were spread in flight, and and two covered His body. As St. Francis gazed ecstatically upon this vision, the Savior’s five wounds were miraculously imprinted on his hands and feet and side. The second figure in the composition is that of the Saint’s companion, Brother Leo, who by his aloofness from the dramatic action of the picture serves effectively as a foil to the figure of St. Francis.

[Madonna and Child. The Master of the St. Ursula Legend]

Madonna and Child. The Master of the St. Ursula Legend

The Master of the St. Ursula Legend, a Flemish painter of the second half of the XV century, derives his name from the famous altarpiece in the Convent of the Black Sisters in Bruges representing the history of St. Ursula, a work painted about 1470. The anonymous master of the Bruges altarpiece shows to some extent the influence of Memling; his style, however, is thoroughly personal in its naivete and admirable expression of a good-natured temperament. His character is well seen in such a painting as ours, where the Mother is full of modesty, her face expressing a tender, timid love for her child, who does not embrace her after all, not the most natural thing for a baby to do, but amuses himself with playing with the leaves of a book which the Madonna holds. The Virgin is a home-like, simple type, wholesome if not beautiful.

[Madonna and Angels. Atelier of Jean Bourdichon, 1457-1521]

Madonna and Angels. Atelier of Jean Bourdichon, 1457-1521

This delightful French miniature, or illuminated page, on parchment is from some dismembered Book of Hours. If not painted by Bourdichon himself, it was certainly done in his studio under his direction. The invention of printing eventually brought to a close the beautiful art of illumination, but at the time of Bourdichon it flourished in highest perfection.

[The Miraculous Field of Wheat. Joachim Patinir and Quentin Massys]

The Miraculous Field of Wheat. Joachim Patinir and Quentin Massys

Two leading artists of the Flemish school were Quentin Massys and Joachim Patinir. Massys (1466-1530) began a new epoch in Netherlandish art; he served as a “connecting link” between Jan van Eyck and Rubens. Patinir (died 1524) was one of the first artists to emphasize the landscape rather than the figures in a painting, but the time had not yet come when landscape could be painted for itself alone. It was necessary to relate it with the familiar religious painting of the day by introducing some biblical or legendary theme. A favorite subject was the flight of the Holy Family into Egypt. This is the subject of our panel-painting in which these two great masters collaborated; the landscape and the smaller figures by Patinir, the group of the Holy Family in the foreground by Quentin Massys. It is related that the Holy Family, closely pursued by Herod’s soldiers, chanced to encounter by the roadside a man sowing wheat in a field. The Virgin spoke to him, saying that if anyone inquired if they had passed he should answer, “Such persons came by when I was sowing wheat”; then by a miracle Jesus caused the wheat to spring up and ripen in one night. The next day when the farmer was cutting the wheat, those pursuing the Holy Family came up and asked if he had seen them. He replied as he had been told, with the result that the soldiers turned back, convinced that they had mistaken the road and that the fugitives had gone elsewhere.

RENAISSANCE ART

[A Group in the First Renaissance Gallery]

A Group in the First Renaissance Gallery

Renaissance means re-birth. When the barbarians wrote “finis” on the page of Rome’s ancient story, long centuries of tenebrous reorganization were to elapse before Italy once more emerged into the light of civilization. In comparison with the shadowy gropings of this age of transition, the brilliant culture of the XV and XVI centuries seemed indeed a re-birth, or renaissance of long-departed glories; and, as an apposite description of the art of this period, the word Renaissance is, on the whole, well chosen. Renaissance art attained its most complete expression in Italy during the XV and XVI centuries; but the new style was not confined by any means to Italy alone. During the XV century, Renaissance art began to spread from Italy to other European countries. Late Gothic art could not withstand its bewitchment, and in the XVI century, European art yielded almost without reserve to the ascendancy of the Renaissance style.

Enthusiasm for antiquity and enthusiasm for nature, it has been said, are the chief characteristics of Italian Renaissance art. While this is correct, it is principally the enthusiasm for antiquity that gives to renaissance art its peculiar distinction; for naturalism we find quite as potent a factor in the development of Gothic art as in that of the Renaissance. The Renaissance artist differed in the main from the Gothic not so much in his attitude toward nature as in the way he recorded his reactions—his style, in other words.

[The Second Renaissance Gallery]

The Second Renaissance Gallery

In the development of the Renaissance style, as distinguished from the Gothic, the example of Graeco-Roman art played an important part. Humanism, the taste for the literature and history of the ancients, awakened the interest of Italian artists in the monuments of their forgotten past, and led them to seek, in the surviving remains of Roman architecture and in the scanty examples of ancient sculpture and painting that chance had brought to light, the secret of beauty.

The attitude of the Early Renaissance toward the antique differed from that of the Late Renaissance. In the former period (XV century), enthusiasm for the art of an unfamiliar past, romantically dreamed of, rather than archeologically reconstructed, did not lead to that sterile imitation which came with wider knowledge and greater technical facility in the late days of Renaissance art. Artists of this period were disciples rather than imitators. Grandiose and formal, the Late Renaissance (XVI century) lost the child-like, romantic enthusiasm of the earlier period for classical art. Sculptors and painters not only sought forms which should recall the antique, but also turned eagerly to Greek and Roman mythology for their subjects. As the Renaissance drew to a close, artists began to borrow not only from the antique but also from the great masters of their own Golden Age, Leonardo (1452-1519), Raphael (1483-1520), Michelangelo (1475-1564), Correggio (1494-1534), and Titian (1477-1576). In this futile eclecticism the Renaissance came to an end.

[Madonna and Child. The Master of the San Miniato Altar-piece]

Madonna and Child. The Master of the San Miniato Altar-piece

The author of this charming panel-painting derives his name from his principal work, a large altarpiece still preserved in the little Tuscan town of San Miniato dei Tedeschi. We do not know the artist’s real name nor anything of his life save that his work, of which some eight or nine examples are recorded, shows the influence of the great Florentine master, Fra Filippo Lippi, and of another anonymous painter, the so-called Companion of Pesellino. The painting in our collection dates about 1480. We note in this picture the plastic quality which distinguishes the work of the Florentine artists from that of other schools. This love of form is an expression of the same temperament which enabled Florence to produce the greatest sculptors of the Renaissance.

[Portrait of an Ecclesiastic. Giovanni Battista Moroni, ca. 1520-1578.]

Portrait of an Ecclesiastic. Giovanni Battista Moroni, ca. 1520-1578.

A contmplative, dignified spirit is admirably expressed in this beautiful portrait, which goes to prove that Moroni at his best is entitled to a place among the great Italian painters of the Renaissance. Moroni spent most of his life in the little North Italian town of Bergamo, where he lacked the stimulating competition that occurred in larger centers. At times, his work, mostly in the field of portraiture, is commonplace, but in such paintings as the celebrated Tailor, in the National Gallery at London, or our own Ecclesiastic, we find an unusual power of perception combined with the “measure, distinction, and clearness” which were the Hellenistic ideals of his generation.

[Madonna and Child. Giampietrino, fl. first half of XVI Century]

Madonna and Child. Giampietrino, fl. first half of XVI Century

Among Leonardo’s Milanese disciples was Gian Pietro Rizzi, commonly known as Giampietrino, a definite artistic personality, but historically hardly more than a name. Although he was probably not a direct pupil of Leonardo, there is ample evidence in his work that he came under the influence of this great master, whose exquisitely perfect art had captivated all of Lombardy. Whatever the subject of his paintings, Giampietro’s real theme is always the beauty of woman. Affection, but never any great emotional feeling, is expressed in his numerous paintings of the Madonna, since passion would distort the delicate, aristocratic beauty of the forms he modeled with such loving skill. Our painting is exhibited as and indefinite loan from Mr. E. J. Carpenter.

[Madonna and Saints. Palma il Vecchio, about 1480-1528]

Madonna and Saints. Palma il Vecchio, about 1480-1528

In this important Venetian painting of the High Renaissance, the Madonna and Child are represented in a beautiful landscape surrounded by four saints; at the left St. Michael and St. Dorothea, at the right St. Joseph (probably) and St. Mary Magdalene. Such scenes are called in Italian “sante conversazioni,” or sacred conversations, and were especially popular in Palma’s time. This artist, one of the great masters of the Venetian school, was called il Vecchio, or the elder, to distinguish him from his grand-nephew who was called Palma the younger. Three periods of development may be noted in Palma’s work. The first is called Bellinesque, when Palma was still influenced by Giovanni Bellini. In his second period, Giorgione’s influence was dominant. The so-called blond manner characterized his third period. The fascinating landscape of our painting calls to mind the influence of Giorgione, but the wholesome well-being that radiates from this goodly company of saints reminds one more of Titian than of Giorgione. Palma enjoyed the beautiful luxurious things of life, he delighted in rich amplitude of form, in splendid glowing color, in the health and sanity of happy men and women; and to his vision he gave the permanency of supreme craftsmanship. Our painting, given in memory of James S. Bell by his son, was formerly in the Rangoni Collection of Modena.

[Stucco Relief. Workshop of Antonio Rossellino]

Stucco Relief. Workshop of Antonio Rossellino

During the Renaissance, a great number of charming reliefs in stucco and plaster by great sculptors, or in their style, were used for the decoration of the home or of wayside shrines. Our example, probably from the workshop of Antonio Rossellino (1427-1478), is a typical example of these popular reliefs.

[Glass. Venetian, XVI Century]

Glass. Venetian, XVI Century

The glass factories at Murano near Venice were celebrated during the Renaissance, as they are today, for their beautiful productions. The large beaker shown in our illustration is of bluish glass. The deep dish is of white glass decorated with colored enamels.

[Chair. Florentine, XVI Century]

Chair. Florentine, XVI Century

The grotesque figures, the grinning mask and other decorative motives which may be noted in this elaborately carved chair are characteristic of furniture designed in the High Renaissance.

[Pomona, Glazed Terracotta Statuette. Giovanni Delia Robbia, 1469-1529
(?)]

Pomona, Glazed Terracotta Statuette. Giovanni Delia Robbia, 1469-1529 (?)

This charming statuette of Pomona, or Dovizia, as it has been suggested, is the work of Giovanni della Robbia, a Florentine sculptor, the son of Andrea della Robbia who was the nephew of Luca della Robbia. The work of the della Robbia family in glazed terracotta is familiar to all lovers of Italian art. Giovanni was the pupil of his father. His early works, such as this Pomona, show him at his best; in his later productions he lacks refinement and indulges in polychromy with too liberality. When discreetly used, as in this statuette, color enriches the plastic quality of the work. The goddess wears a blue gown with decorations in golden yellow; the fruit is represented naturalistically in yellow green and violet; and the flesh parts are glazed in white. On her head the Goddess carries a basket filled with fruit, and in her left hand a brimming cornucopia. A little boy, with charming naturalness, turns to her for protection as if afraid of the dog barking at him.

[Candlestick, Wood, Carved and Gilded. Florentine, XVI Century]

Candlestick, Wood, Carved and Gilded. Florentine, XVI Century

Vasari and a writer of the XVII century mention a statue by Donatello of La Dovizia, which stood in the Mercato Vecchio in Florence. This statue is described as representing a maiden bearing on her head a basket of fruit. The statue is lost, but two existing statuettes of the della Robbia school, in addition to our own (both inferior to ours), are probably reflections of the Donatello Dovizia. In one, in the Buonarotti Museum, we see a maiden supporting on her head, with her right hand, a basket filled with flowers and fruit. A similar statuette in the Berlin Museum carries a cornucopia as well as a basket. Both are called Pomona. The cornucopia, however, is the classic attribute of Ceres and of Abundantia, or, in this case, Dovizia, the Italian version of Abundantia. That our statuette is intended as a personification of riches or abundance rather than as Pomona becomes yet clearer when we examine the inscription on the base: GLORIA ET DIVITIE IN DOMO TUA, “May Honor and Riches Be Within Thy House.” The boy and dog give a touch of domesticity to the group. They express “within thy house,” revealing Dovizia as a household goddess.

[Virgil Appearing to Dante, Tapestry. Florentine, Middle of XVI Century]

Virgil Appearing to Dante, Tapestry. Florentine, Middle of XVI Century

These two tapestries in the Charles Jairus Martin Memorial Collection are remarkably fine examples of Renaissance tapestry weaving in Italy and Flanders during the XVI century. The Dante tapestry was woven about the middle of the century in Florence at the Medici atelier—the Arazzeria-Medici—founded by Cosimo I in 1537. It bears in the selvage the mark of the Florentine manufactory and of the master weaver, John Rost, who with another Fleming, Nicholas Karcher, conducted (from 1546) the work of the Arazzeria. His mark, in the lower left-hand corner of the tapestry, is a punning device, a roast of meat upon a spit. The tapestry was woven for some member of the Salviati family, whose arms appear in the upper border. The design has been attributed on evidence of style to Francesco Rossi de’ Salviati (1510-1563), who, with Bronzino and other well-known artists of the High Renaissance, provided many cartoons for the Medici weavers. The scene represented is taken from the opening canto of Dante’s Divine Comedy; Virgil, the type of Human Philosophy, sent to guide the poet through Hell and Purgatory, appears to Dante who has lost his way in “the wood of error,” where he is menaced by three symbolical animals, the panther, the lion and the she-wolf, who would prevent him from ascending the “Holy Hill.” The border designs in the grotesque style are particularly interesting and typical of Renaissance ornament. The tapestry is unusually large, measuring 16 ft. 7 in. in height by 15 ft. 4 in. in width. Italian tapestries of the High Renaissance are not common; the Dante tapestry, formerly in the J. P. Morgan Collection, is far and away the most important example of its kind in the country.

[Joseph Ruler Over Egypt, Tapestry. Brussels, Second Quarter of XVI
Century]

Joseph Ruler Over Egypt, Tapestry. Brussels, Second Quarter of XVI
Century

The extraordinary success which attended the weaving at Brussels in the early part of the XVI century of the tapestries from Raphael’s famous cartoons brought the Italian Renaissance style into great favor among the tapestry weavers of Flanders. Evidence of this is clear in our tapestry from a set illustrating the history of Joseph. Behind the seated woman in the foreground stands a lady in the rich costume of the XVI century; it is not improbable that this is the portrait of some noblewoman at whose expense the tapestries were woven. In the lower left-hand corner of the border occurs the Brussels mark, a red shield with a capital letter “B” on either side. From 1528 on, the Brussels weavers were required by law to add the mark of the city, together with their own mark, to all tapestries of more than six ells. The weaver’s monogram, at the right in the lower border of our tapestry, as not yet been identified. The tapestry dates from about the second quarter of the XVI century. It was formerly in the Rospigliosi and Ffoulke Collections.

[Lectern, Walnut. Italian, Umbrian, XVI Century]

Lectern, Walnut. Italian, Umbrian, XVI Century

The architectural design of this large lectern is typical of Italian Renaissance furniture, as is also the use of such classical decorative motives as the egg-and-dart pattern, rosettes, swags, etc. The lectern, from some Umbrian church, served to support the large choir-books, oftentimes beautifully illuminated, that were in use during this period.

[Cassone, with Gilded Decoration. Florentine, Third Quarter of XV
Century]

Cassone, with Gilded Decoration. Florentine, Third Quarter of XV Century

Richly ornamented cassoni to hold the bridal trousseau constitute an important class of Renaissance furniture. The two marriage chests, illustrated on this page, are magnificent examples of this type of furniture. The Florentine cassone is ornamented with gilded, low reliefs in “pastille.” In the center are the four cardinal virtues, Temperance, Justice, Fortitude and Prudence; on either side of this group, mythological scenes that may be taken in connection with the virtues as representing the opposition between the ordered Christian life and pagan license. The Medusa heads are introduced as guardians against misfortune. This combination of pagan and Christian elements is thoroughly characteristic of the Renaissance. The beautifully carved walnut cassone was made in 1514 for a marriage which united two Sienese families, the Piccolomini and the del Golia. In its refinement of proportions and skilful execution this cassone is a masterpiece of furniture designing.

[Cassone, Carved Walnut. Sienese, 1514]

Cassone, Carved Walnut. Sienese, 1514

SEVENTEENTH CENTURY ART

[Chair, Portuguese. XVII Century]

Chair, Portuguese. XVII Century

The XVII century is an age of opposites. Democracy is contrasted with absolutism; the newly won Dutch Republic with the monarchies of Spain and France. Christendom is divided between the antagonistic sects of Catholicism and Protestantism. The Counter-Reformation, at first mistrustful of the artist, now makes use of art to further the Catholic reaction. But religious art itself, exclusively Catholic, is animated by varying emotions which find expression, on the one hand, in the passionate, morbid fervor of Ribera (1588-1656); on the other, in the easy-going rhetoric and corpulent healthiness of Rubens (1577-1640). In secular art we find equally striking contrasts; the pendulum swings from the aristocratic refinement of Van Dyck (1599-1641) to the vulgarity of Brouwer (1606-1638). It seems incredible that two such great artists as Rembrandt (1607-1669) and Velasquez (1599-1660) should have been contemporaries: Velasquez, reserved, proud, the embodiment of Spanish courtliness; Rembrandt, emotional, democratic, understanding and sympathizing with all mankind. But the contrast is no greater than between the popular art that flourished in the Netherlands under a free people, and the monarchical art, with its academies, court painters, sculptors, architects, tapestry weavers and cabinet makers, that revolved around the awesome person of le grand monarque, Louis XIV. Architecture, sculpture and the minor arts display more uniformity of style than the paintings of the period. Dependent largely upon the Church or upon an opulent aristocracy for patronage, they reflect the taste for grandiloquence, ostentation and splendid show which characterized, in this century, ecclesiastic and noble alike. The classic orders tower and writhe on church facade and palace walls. Within, where all is resplendent with gold and rich colors, magnificence pays its lavish homage to deity or to royalty in equal measure.

[Henry Hyde, Lord Clarendon. Sir Peter Lely, 1618-1680]

Henry Hyde, Lord Clarendon. Sir Peter Lely, 1618-1680

English painting before the XVIII century was largely dominated by foreign artists: Holbein in the XVI century; Van Dyck in the first half of the XVII century; and, in the second half, the Dutchman, Sir Peter Lely, who came to England in 1641 and speedily won great reputation as a portrait painter, imitating the style of Van Dyck who had just died. Lely’s work is distinguished by many excellent qualities, although marred by the pompous artificiality of his time. He is at his best in such a portrait as this, painted shortly after his arrival in England, of the second Earl of Clarendon (1638-1709) as a boy.

[The Concert. Michiel van Musscher, 1645-1705]

The Concert. Michiel van Musscher, 1645-1705

This interesting genre scene is by a Dutch painter of the late XVII century, a period when art, that had been democratic with Rembrandt and Frans Hals, now assumed, under the patronage of wealthy parvenus a pretentious gentility in which the accessories of life were more important than life itself. Van Musscher enjoyed considerable popularity in his time; he painted with meticulous care flattering portraits and pretty genre subjects; he was mindful of each shining pearl and gilded tassel, satin fold and silken curtain—not a detail escaped his devoted eye; but, were it not for a certain distinction which he had as a colorist and composer his paintings would have little importance today, save as records of costume and household gear.

[Portrait of a Lady. Michiel Mierevelt, 1567-1641]

Portrait of a Lady. Michiel Mierevelt, 1567-1641

Mierevelt, a well-known portrait painter of the Dutch school, lived principally at Delft, although occasionally residing at The Hague. He was court painter to the House of Orange, and like others of his kind, evidently enjoyed depicting the elegant costumes and accessories of his aristocratic sitters. Mierevelt differs widely from his younger and greater contemporary, Frans Hals, both in technique and in sentiment. Mierevelt’s style recalls the courtly elegance of the Renaissance—which one might expect, since he was born well in the XVI century; whereas Frans Hals, striking out along new lines, represents the new spirit of democracy which inspired the long struggle in the Low Countries to win political and religious independence. The portrait, illustrated above, is dated 1630.

[Tapestry, Hunting Scenes. Flemish, about 1600]

Tapestry, Hunting Scenes. Flemish, about 1600

In the background of this “hunting tapestry,” from the Lowry Memorial Gift, is illustrated the story of Diana and Acteon; the rash huntsman is turned into a stag by the outraged Goddess. In its design the tapestry is more Renaissance in feeling than Baroque, but the crowded ordinance of the composition betrays its late date. The carving on the chest below shows various typical motives of the Jacobean style.

[Chest, Oak. English, XVII Century]

Chest, Oak. English, XVII Century

EIGHTEENTH CENTURY ART

Art of the XVIII century differs radically from that of the preceding century. It is graceful, elegant and coquettish rather than ponderous, majestic and passionate. Forgotten is the fervent piety of the Counter-Reformation and the oppressive grandeur of le Roi Soleil. Life is joyful, to be lived in luxurious boudoirs, exquisite in refinement of decoration, or in pretty gardens where Nature, properly disguised, welcomes aristocratic shepherds and shepherdesses to her pastoral delights.

The changed political and social conditions of the XVIII century had their immediate effect in the world of art. Except in England—relatively democratic as compared with France and other continental countries—art was almost exclusively aristocratic, and mirrored the self-indulgent interests of fashionable patrons. Even in England, where Hogarth moralized for the bourgeoisie, and the sturdy lineaments of the commoner were portrayed by a Reynolds or Gainsborough no less frequently, and truthfully, than the high-bred mien of a great nobleman, artistic concessions to the Third Estate were distinctly limited. It was in courtly France, soon to be racked by social revolution, that the epicurean art of the XVIII century was most at home. When we name Watteau, Boucher, Fragonard, Clodion, Houdon, we sum up, perhaps, all that is most characteristic of painting and sculpture in XVIII century art. The portrait painters of England contribute to the century the meed of their greatness; Italy gains lustre through Tiepolo; Spain through Goya; but it is to France that we turn to experience in its completeness the spirit of the Rococo.

In the “century of little things” the minor arts attained an exceptional importance. Artisans ranked as artists, and justly. Among the distinguished artists of the XVIII century must be included such great craftsmen as Chippendale, Sheraton, Hepplewhite, Oeben, Riesener, Gouthiere, and Caffieri—to make but a brief selection from among the numerous English and French cabinet-makers, metal chasers, and other craftsmen of the period. The productions of these celebrated artisans were rightly looked upon as works of creative art of a high order, and the makers were accorded the patronage and protection of royalty and nobility.

In technical perfection the XVIII century crafts have never been surpassed. But too great proficiency led sometimes to artistic disaster, as we may note in tapestries imitating the difficulties of inappropriate pictorial models, or in the florid carving sometimes indulged in by the cabinet-makers—even the celebrated Chippendale, if the truth be told. These occasional deviations from the path of artistic rectitude must not mislead us, however, from a just appreciation of the extraordinary merits of XVIII century decorative art.

[Head of an Old Man. Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo, 1727-1804]

Head of an Old Man. Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo, 1727-1804

The work of Domenico Tiepolo, the son of Gian Battista Teipolo, the head of the Venetian school of the XVIII century and the last of the great Italian painters. In the period of exhaustion which followed the Renaissance, the Venetian school alone was blessed with genius. The list of painters is indeed impressive when compared with the nonentities of the other Italian schools of the XVIII century. Although Domenico did not display the same great genius as his father, at his best he approached Giambattista so closely that his works have often been confused. Domenico is known as an etcher as well as a painter. In his set of character heads, called the “Raccolta di teste”, there is an etching reproducing the above portrait.

[Portrait of James Ward. Gilbert Stuart, 1755-1828]

Portrait of James Ward. Gilbert Stuart, 1755-1828