Table of contents:
- About the term "Psalter"
- The origin of the "Paris Psalter" manuscript
- Composition of the Psalter
- David with lyre
- Other miniature illustrations
Video: What secrets are kept by the "Parisian Psalter" - a luxurious example of medieval miniature
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
The Psalter of Paris is the most luxurious and magnificent example of medieval book illustration. It is a complex mixture of the classical past and the medieval Christian present, designed to convey the political message of the Byzantine emperor to the masses, as well as revive the ancient past.
About the term "Psalter"
Today the word "psalter" refers to a book or manuscript of the Bible Book of Psalms. The Psalters were one of the most frequently copied and popular works in the Middle Ages due to their central role in church ceremony. Since ancient times, the word τό ψαλτήριον (psalterion) (translated as Psalter) meant a stringed plucked musical instrument with 10-12 strings, accompanied by which, as well as some other instruments, songs addressed to God, that is, psalms, were sung. The psalms that have come into the Russian language are also related to the verb ψάλλω (psallō) - to tear, pull (the bowstring of the bow), pluck, twist the strings with your fingers, play the cithara and lyre, sing, chant.
The origin of the "Paris Psalter" manuscript
The miniature was created in Constantinople in the middle of the 10th century, in the very heart of the era that Byzantine scholars call the "Macedonian Renaissance" (867-1055).
The Paris Psalter derives its name from its present-day location, the National Library of Paris. This manuscript, like most of its medieval counterparts, was not made from paper, but from carefully prepared animal skins. As mentioned above, the Psalter was created in the X century, but in fact is a deliberate elegant imitation of a Roman manuscript of the III-V centuries, therefore the Paris Psalter was intended to revive the classical past. The master - miniaturist widely drew from antique samples not only pictorial techniques and motives, but also ideological and artistic content.
Composition of the Psalter
The Paris Psalter, among other things, is the most famous illuminated Byzantine codex and is famous for an unusually extensive and richly illustrated composition. It consists of 449 pages, including 14 full-page illustrations in rich ornamental frames. The size of the manuscript is 37 x 26.5 cm. The first seven pages are devoted to the history of David and his just and exemplary government for other kings. David is the second king of the people of Israel after Saul. According to the Bible, he reigned for forty years. The image of David is the image of the ideal ruler. According to biblical prophecies, the Messiah should come out of the lineage of David.
The rest illustrate the corresponding parts of the text (at the same time, the Christological cycle, as well as iconoclastic plots are absent in them). The composition of the manuscript is limited by wide ornamented frames, characteristic of the Macedonian Renaissance period. Their background is covered with gold, which brings them closer to the works of easel art. Since King David has traditionally been considered the author of the Psalms, he is shown here as a creator - musician and composer, sitting on top of a boulder playing the lyre in an idyllic natural setting.
David with lyre
The most famous miniature in the series with David depicts the king playing the lyre. The landscape resembles the motives of late antique art (rocks, trees, city buildings). Beasts enchanted by music have already gathered around David, his play is inspired by Melody, the allegorical figure of which is depicted next to David in a free, natural pose. Around this central group are the figure of Echo (a mountain nymph, "daughter of a rocky cliff") and a male figure representing the city of Bethlehem. The composition was probably based on a Greco-Roman painting depicting Orpheus captivating the world with his music.
What is significant: David's environment, including plants, animals and landscape, is different from the magnificent golden backgrounds of the imperial mosaics (Justinian and Theodora in Ravenna or the icon of the Vladimir Mother of God). On the contrary, David is depicted naturally as a young shepherd, not as a great king or king.
Other miniature illustrations
The second illustration shows David protecting his flock from a lion, with a dead bear he has already killed.
The third page depicts David surrounded by his father and brothers, with the personification of meekness over him.
The fourth illustration shows David accompanied by the personification of the Force. He fights Goliath.
The fifth illustration is a good example of a late Roman artistic motif in which halos are used to denote the most important figure, in this case King Saul. Inscription in the upper left corner: "Saul killed a thousand, and David ten thousand."
The sixth illustration shows the coronation of David by a female figure, whose halo indicates that she is also an important personification.
The last illustration in this series shows King David at an advanced age with the figure of Wisdom, the figure of Prophecy on the right, and the dove of the Holy Spirit over his head.
The Psalter of Paris is a brilliant imitation of the works of classical art, filled with Christian content. This is the oldest surviving "aristocratic" Psalter. Thanks to the preserved medieval miniatures, contemporary art critics can learn in more detail about the worldview of a person at that time.
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