Mathilda: Duae Vitae

Two women. Two lives. One story.

[mathildaduaevitae]

tag urself mod d is otto

[mathildaduaevitae]

[mathildaduaevitae]

[mathildaduaevitae]

[mathildaduaevitae]

[medieval-castle]

Burg Castel Taufers by  blackmountain__

[canonizedandotherwise]

Matilda of Ringelheim

[dutch-and-flemish-painters]

Frans van Kuyck - Trudging Through the Snow

pastel (50 x 70 cm)

private collection

Frans Pieter Lodewijk van Kuyck (9 June 1852, Antwerp - 31 May 1915, Antwerp) was a Belgian painter and graphic artist. He is also known for helping to establish Mother’s Day in Belgium.

He came from a family of artists. His father was the painter Louis Van Kuyck. His grandfather was also a painter and his son was the architect Walter Van Kuyck (1876-1934). He studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts and his first well-known work was the official poster for the Exposition Universelle d'Anvers (1885). Later, as a teacher at the Academy, he became involved in the cultural and political life of Antwerp. In 1888, he became a provincieraad (county councilor) and, from 1891, served as an Alderman of Fine Arts on the Antwerp City Council. He also sat on the boards of several museums, including what is now the Plantin-Moretus Museum, and was chairman of the “Koninklijk Kunstverbond Antwerpen” (Cercle Royal Artistique). During his time in office, the Vlaamse Opera Company was officially established and monuments were erected for Peter Benoit, Hendrik Conscience and Jan Van Rijswijck. On his initiative, the city acquired Schoonselhof cemetery and created the Nachtegalen Park. He was also the driving force behind the purchase and restoration of the “Vleeshuis” (a Medieval Guild Hall). In addition, he oversaw the beautification and expansion of the Leysstraat in 1898. In the Summer of 1913, he wrote a pamphlet, De Dag der moeders (Mother’s Day) and formed the first committee to promote its establishment as an official holiday.

[venicepearl]

Portrait of Otto I

[medievalart]

Henry the Fowler (876-936)

Duke of Saxony, king of East Francia and founder  of Ottonian dynasty.

[medievalart]

Matilda of Ringelheim (894/897-968)

A 12th-Century illumination depicting queen Matilda and her husband Henry the Fowler.

[artofthedarkages]

The Cumberland Medallion is a colorful circular brooch with a depiction of Christ haloed and in between the Greek letters Alpha and Omega.

Crafted out of gilt copper and glass enamel.

Made in the late 8th century for a Saxon nobleman in Braunschweig, perhaps proto-Ottonian.

Found in the ecclesiastical treasure horde at the Brunswick Cathedral in Germany.

Inherited by the Duke of Brunswick in the 17th century, and then sold to the Cleveland Art Museum in 1930.

Currently located at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

[pearl-nautilus]

Brooch, 970–1030 Ottonian (probably northern Italy) Gold with pearls, glass, and cloisonné enamel

[theenlightenedphilistine]

St. Michaels, Hildesheim, 1000 CE

Becoming a great center of learning under Bishop Bernward, the abbey church of St. Michael’s reflects this learning through its harmonious modulation and the adaptation of the Carolingian Basilica to to a new Ottonian style.  The church features a double transept plan, two choirs, perhaps due to the liturgy becoming increasingly complex.  This dividing focus breaks from the Carolingian preference for an eastern center of gravity.  Each transept contains a crossing square, the rest of the church modulated accordingly.  This early example of modulation would be seen in later Romanesque and Gothic examples.  Decorated with clear cubic forms, this would set a precedent for the clarity of the Romanesque.  The contrasting horizontal and vertical forms of St. Michael’s created a new aesthetic departing from early Christian precedents.  A remarkable original feature of the church was the set of great bronze doors likely designed by Bishop Bernward himself.  Prefiguring Ghiberti’s doors by centuries, this was the greatest bronze casting project since antiquity.  Seen daily by monks as they entered the cloister, the doors are a great example of typology, exhibited through old testament scenes illuminating the new, such as Cain and Able positioned next to the Crucifixion, Christ redeeming man for their sins.

(image courtesy of wikitravel.com)

[medievalvisions-blog]

The Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire, 10th-11th century CE.

[briefobservations]

Carolingian manuscript page. latter half of the 11th century. lovely.

[theancientwayoflife]

~ Brooch in the Form of a Six-Pointed Star. Culture: Frankish Period: early Carolingian Date: late 8th century - early 9th century Medium: Gold with repoussé and filigree decoration; copper backplate.