The heart of the database allows users to search the collection according to several manuscript and image criteria. The browse page also provides a “search by keyword” entry field that helpfully provides a list of alphabetically similar keywords in case the user’s entry does not match a term with hits. Multiple enlarged images can be simultaneously viewed on the screen, enabling easy visual comparison. An especially nice touch is that clicking on a thumbnail enlarges it not as a pop-up in a new window, but as a larger image pulled down from the top of the window by means of a blue tassel! Large, high-quality, digitized versions with added zoom capabilities are also available. Images returned through the browse page or by means of an expert image search (see below) are presented attractively as large thumbnails with full descriptive information (linked manuscript information and folio numbers, iconographic description, dimensions, and Iconclass codes). An assignment on daily life in the Middle Ages might lead students to browse “eating and drinking,” where they would find 28 manuscript images of scenes depicting the marriage feast at Cana or Esau’s sale of his birthright in return for a bowl of lentils. Alternatively, from the main highlights page the user can browse image anthologies dealing with church and society, Christian holidays, various topics like “fabulous animals” or “devils and demons,” and the Bible.įor students working on projects requiring thematic comparison, the site’s “browse by subject” page is an excellent entry point. A cartoon-style introduction links the user to a series of images with text commentary on saints in the Middle Ages, books of hours, the liturgical year, and classical mythology. “Highlights” is an attractive starting point for users who want to browse casually or learn about themes for more specialized searches. This link offers an indispensable overview of the site’s structure and contents. It also contains links to a description of the cataloging process and a substantial introduction to the “scope and purpose of the web catalogue”. The “general introduction” succinctly explains three ways the user can access the site’s image holdings: via collection highlights, a “browse by subject” page, or an “expert search” engine. One advantage of this system is that it is not dependent on language-specific keywords for searches. So, for example, a 13th-century miniature depicting Joseph on his way to find his brothers bears the code “71D1221,” indicating alphanumerically from left to right that the illustration is from the Bible (7), specifically the Old Testament Joseph story in Genesis (71D), and is one of the events leading up to Joseph’s enslavement and journey to Egypt (71D12). This system uses alphanumeric codes to categorize each image through 10 major thematic topics. Most portions of the site are available in either English or Dutch the keyword search in the “browse by subject” page (discussed below) can be conducted in English, French, or German.Ī key feature of this site is its use of the Iconclass classification system. Only illuminations, not entire manuscripts, have been digitized for the site. The vast majority of the manuscripts are from France and the Low Countries. The primarily late medieval images are drawn from close to 400 manuscripts from the 8th through 16th centuries, although more than half date to the 15th century alone. Taken from Psalm 50, the text reads: Domine labia mea aperies et os meus anutiabit laudem tuam (Lord, you will open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise).This site offers searchable database access to almost 11,000 manuscript illuminations (miniatures, initials, and border decorations) from the National Library of the Netherlands and the Museum Meermanno-Westreenianum in The Hague. Facing this page, the Virgin and Child embrace within a historiated initial D, flanked by the first prayers of the day, in Latin. Flowers, peacocks, and trees crowd the border, interspersed with Renaissance heraldic symbols and the personal mottoes of the book’s owner. The miniature on the left-hand page shows the Angel Gabriel and the Virgin Mary surrounded by naturalistic elements. Illuminated largely by Italian artist Taddeo Crivelli, these two pages in particular demonstrate superb examples of miniature and border illumination, complete with a historiated initial (a letter containing identifiable narrative scenes or figures). Though sumptuously decorated with incredible detail, the book is only about four-inches tall. See more pages of the Gualenghi-d’Este Hours.One magnificent manuscript in the Getty’s collection is the Gualenghi-d’Este Hours, seen above. The Annunciation to the Virgin, Gualenghi-d’Este Hours, Taddeo Crivelli, circa 1470, Ferrara (The J.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |