In this book, Lisa Reilly establishes a new interpretive paradigm for the eleventh and twelfth-century art and architecture of the Norman world in France, England, and Sicily. Traditionally, scholars have considered iconic works like the Cappella Palatina and the Bayeux Embroidery in a geographically piecemeal fashion that prevents us from seeing their full significance. Here, Reilly examines these works individually and within the larger context of a connected Norman world. Just as Rollo founded the Normandy 'of different nationalities', the Normans created a visual culture that relied on an assemblage of forms. To the modern eye, these works are perceived as culturally diverse. As Reilly demonstrates, the multiple sources for Norman visual culture served to expand their meaning. Norman artworks represented the cultural mix of each locale, and the triumph of Norman rule, not just as a military victory but as a legitimate succession, and often as the return of true Christian rule.
Author(s): Lisa Reilly
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Year: 2020
Language: English
Pages: 224
City: Cambridge
Cover
Half-title
Title page
Copyright information
Dedication
Contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
One Introduction
Past Questions
Normandy
Anglo-Norman Historiography
Sicily
The Invention of Norman Visual Culture
Two Vikings into Normans
Dudo and the Historia Normannorum
Three Anglo-Norman England: From Duke to King
Conclusion
Plates
Four Norman Sicily: The Invention of a Kingdom
The Creation of the Kingdom
Approaches to Understanding the Art and Architecture of Norman Sicily
The Cappella Palatina
The Muqarnas Ceiling of the Nave
Pavement
Mosaics
Central Apse and Choir/Sanctuary
The Dome
The Nave
West Wall and Royal Dais
The Aisles
Conclusion to Mosaics
Cefalù
The Norman Porphyry Tombs
Conclusion to Architecture
The Coronation Mantle
Conclusion
Five Conclusion
Selected Bibliography
Primary Sources
General
Kingship
General: Normans
Normandy
England
Sicily
Index
