User:Mewo7/Escorial Beatus

Folio 12 recto of the Escorial Beatus, the great winepress of God.

The Escorial Beatus (Escorial, Biblioteca Monasterio, Cod. & II. 5) is a 10th-century illuminated manuscript of the Commentary on the Apocalypse by Beatus of Liébana. The illuminations of the manuscript show similarities in style to those produced by Florentius, the artist responsible for a copy of the Moralia in Job of Pope Gregory I (Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional, Cod. 80). The manuscript was probably created at the monastery at San Millán de la Cogolla. There are 151 extant folios which measure 395mm by 225mm. The manuscript is illustrated with 52 surviving miniatures. Compared to other illuminated manuscripts, including other illuminated manuscripts at the time, the Escorial Beatus is slightly smaller in comparison. The Escorial Beatus is one of the most well-known illuminated manuscripts that make use of the Mozarabic style of art, which would later lead to other well known artistic styles.

History

The origins of Escorial Beatus are most often linked to the site of San Milllan de la Cogolla, based on paleographical evidence. The very first edition of the Commentary on the Apocalypse was finished 776. Escorial Beatus is also similar stylistically to other works that were form that area. For example, the stylistic way that human faces are illustrated in the Escorial Beatus, like the shape of the nose, is similar to another manuscript that is also believed to be from San Millan de la Cogolla (add cite). However, at the same time, there is no text or evidence within the manuscript itself that explicitly confirms or otherwise states its place of origin. Most manuscripts at San Millan would later be moved to the Real Academia de la Historia in the 19th century, however, Escorial Beatus was instead found in the Library of the Escorial in the 16th century. It's style does not resemble that of the other illuminated manuscripts that can be found at the Library of the Escorial.

At some point in time in its history, the Escorial Beatus was rebound, but it was rebound carelessly. As a result, the original beginning and original ending pages have been lost. More than a dozen illustrations have also been lost.

Between the years 784 and 786, there was an instance in which Beatus actually revised both the commentary and the illuminations. His reasoning for revising the commentary and illuminations are not known. Earlier copies of the Beatus Commentary were different in visual style, and did not have many of the traits that would be associated with the Mozarabic style.(cite). It did not have characteristics such as the wide eyes, the banded backgrounds, nor the patterning or posing associated with the Mozarabic style, which is one of the features the Escorial Beatus is most known for. Of the original illustrations within the commentary, 27 of the original illustrations are left.

Abbot Pantio of San Andres de Fanlo created a copy of Escorial Beatus, which has allowed for some reconstruction work to be done.

The Artist and Author

The illuminations are believed to have been the work of a single, experienced illuminator, and it is likely that the text was written at the same time the illuminations were produced. The images together with the text are crowded and densely packed together. Within several of the illuminations and miniatures, the text and inscriptions in the margins actually overlap with the illuminations themselves. In a few pages, the margins outside the illuminations are almost completely full of inscriptions, and because of this overlap between text and illuminations, some of the text cannot be clearly read.

However, there are a few instances in which the text and writing do not necessarily correspond with the imagery in the illuminations. Although the reason behind this isn't fully understood, it is possible that the text had already existed but the illuminator did not read it. Although the text and illuminations may have been produced together at the same time, this discrepancy suggests that the illuminator was not the scribe. The actual scribe likely wrote the inscriptions in the margins to provide an index to the proper subject for the illuminator.

For Beatus of Liebana, he believed that illuminations were an essential part of the experience when reading a manuscript. As a result, the text within the manuscript and the visual illuminations were meant to be interpretated together as a part of a whole, and not individually. In his writings, he elaborated further on what was the proper way to interact with manuscript and scriptures, and they have literal, metaphorical, and spiritual. The addition of illuminations to his manuscript were thus a very deliberate decision, and he believed that by having the illuminations, it further visualizes the events of the The Revelation in his Commentary of the Apocalypse. All together, the text of the manuscript and the illustrations unify Beatus's religious ideas.

Manufacturing/Material

Escorial Beatus has been rebound at least once in its history. It is bound in 18th century binding, with the original two beginning pages and the ending page lost because of a careless rebounding incident.

Imagery, Iconography and Symbolism

The Escorial Beatus is known for and provides a good example of the anti-plastic style, which is associated with the Mozarabic school. This style takes its inspiration from Africa, Islamic, and North European artistic traditions. This exposure to Islamic tradition stems from when the Arabs invaded the Iberian Peninsula in the year 711. The Christians who were already living in the Iberian Peninsula then adopted different traditions from Islamic styles, including motifs, form and style.

These influences would contribute to the Mozarabic style, which can be seen in other illuminated manuscripts later such as Beatus Apocalypse. This Mozarabic style would then go on to influence Romanesque and Carolingian styles. As a result, the Escorial Beatus links these various styles together. Mozarabic is a style that is not limited to just religious illuminations and illustrations, but the Mozarabic style can be found in textiles, ceramics, and even architecture.

Compared to other illuminated manuscripts, it is considered to be quite decorated. The elements within the images are densely packed together. The frames of the illuminations are quite decorated, and the work makes use of dark colors, patterning, and yellow backgrounds. The style of Escorial Beatus is very flat, with very opaque colors.

The imagery of the illuminations is taken from tales in the Bible, although most notably, there are illustrations, with accompanying commentary, depicting the apocalypse.

Beatus likely had knowledge of other commentaries and their illuminations, as the illuminations in Escorial Beatus resemble the style and picture found in commentaries like the Daniel Commentary. There is a book with a style that is reminiscent of a simpler version of the Mozarabic style, found in a Bible that was made in a Castilian monastery in the year 960, especially in regards to the figure drawing. There is evidence to suggest that the monastery, located in Valerancia, may be connected to the San Millan scriptorium where the Escorial Beatus is likely to have originated from. Manuscripts or illuminations from both areas show influences of Islamic Spain.

Angels and beasts are common imagery in Escorial Beatus. Angels appear in several of the illuminations, and there are seven individual illuminations that have angels as their main subject.

References

• Walther, Ingo F. and Norbert Wolf. Codices Illustres: The world's most famous illuminated manuscripts, 400 to 1600. Köln, TASCHEN, 2005.
• Steinhauser, Kenneth B. “Narrative and Illumination in the Beatus Apocalypse.” The Catholic Historical Review, vol. 81, no. 2, 1995, pp. 185–210. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/25024480. Accessed 12 Apr. 2024
• Williams, John. “The Census: A Complete Register of Illustrated Beatus Commentaries and Fragments.” Visions of the End in Medieval Spain, edited by Therese Martin, Amsterdam University Press, 2017, pp. 67–148. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1rzx606.6. Accessed 28 Apr. 2024.
• Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Mozarabic art". Encyclopedia Britannica, 19 Feb. 2018, https://www.britannica.com/art/Mozarabic-art. Accessed 16 April 2024.
• Miguélez Cavero, Alicia, et al. “Beatus Manuscripts under the Microscope: The Alcobaça Beatus and the Iberian Cistercian Tradition Revisited.” Journal of Medieval Iberian Studies, vol. 8, no. 2, Sept. 2016, pp. 217–51. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.proxy.lib.csus.edu/10.1080/17546559.2016.1221116.

External links

• The Art of medieval Spain, A.D. 500-1200, an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Escorial Beatus (no. 81)

This page will be placed in the following categories if it is moved to the article namespace.

Categories:

• Illuminated beatus manuscripts
• Mozarabic art and architecture
• 10th-century illuminated manuscripts
• Manuscripts in Latin
• Spanish literature