Apocalyptic Concepts in the Middle Ages

Although the development of manuscript culture—the creation and reproduction of sacred texts—was one of the most important components of Christianity, illuminated Apocalypses from the early Christian period and late antiquity have not survived, but they certainly existed from the fifth century onward. However, later works inherited the earlier imagery, allowing us to reconstruct two traditions: first, early Christian Romanesque prototypes, which influenced the iconography of Central Europe and the early medieval Spanish tradition; second, North African prototypes of the fifth and sixth centuries, reflected in the Apocalypse of Beatus 26.

Even Constantine the Great, who had conceived the idea of creating a second capital for the Roman Empire, chose between the contenders Milan, Trier, Troy, and Byzantium. The choice fell on the latter, which was immediately renamed Constantinople in honor of the emperor. In the 9th century, Charlemagne, crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III , proclaimed Aachen, located near Trier, as his capital. The so-called "Carolingian Renaissance" had begun. Charlemagne's imperial ambitions inspired him to turn to the established formulas of Roman and early Christian art: the lost mosaic of the dome of the imperial chapel in Aachen depicted the well-known scene of the adoration of the throne by the 24 elders ( a urum) . coronarium ), also recorded in the depiction of the adoration of the lamb in the late Carolingian Codex Aureus of Emmeram ( Aureus of Saint Emmeram , circa 870) 27.

The influence of the late antique tradition is also found in other Carolingian monuments. For example, the Prologue of St. John from the Gospel of St. Medard ( Plures fuisse É vang é liaire de Saint - M é dard de Soissons (early 9th century) 28shows a free depiction of the early Christian worship of the lamb, combined with a late antique image of the sea (" and before the throne a sea of glass like crystal ," Rev. 4:6) and architectural motifs symbolizing the New Jerusalem of the Apocalypse in the form of a richly decorated permanent backdrop of the ancient theater ( scaenae) frons — the backdrop of an ancient theatre, see Fig. 4 4) 29.

As a result, the image of the Roman Empire, which is depicted in the Revelation of John exclusively in monstrous allegories, became an integral part of the discourse of power and the iconography of the Apocalypse.

An outstanding example of medieval Romanesque art is the Apocalypse, now housed in the Trier Library 30. This early ninth- century manuscript, created in the northern scriptoria of the Charles Empire, in the Abbey of Saint-Martin in Tours, or in the city of Cambrai, where a partial copy survives 31, contains 74 full-page miniatures and is considered the earliest and most complete illustrated Apocalypse to have survived from the Carolingian era. The Trier Apocalypse, while not entirely based on an ancient manuscript, absorbed the late Roman visual tradition, adapted for Christian expression: Satan traces the image of Bacchus, and the angel traces the goddess of victory, Nike. The images of paradise and the lamb are borrowed from Roman mosaics, as are many other details: the earth is represented by a human figure, and God's punishments and evil are represented by a dragon, depicted as a winged serpent. The Whore of Babylon riding the Beast harks back to the iconography of the goddess Isis riding the dog Sirius on Roman Gnostic coins (see Fig. 45) . A book is depicted as an ancient scroll, and the painful expressions of the tragic faces are reminiscent of ancient theatrical masks. The personified winds are depicted as naked busts with winged heads, a reference to the wide-brimmed winged hat "petasus" of Hermes (sometimes medieval artists depicted horns instead of wings, misunderstanding the origins of the iconography). The Apocalypse unfolds in the architecture of ancient cities; the angels are dressed in Roman togas, with laurel wreaths adorning their heads. The specific arrangement of the illustrations within the text also harks back to late antique examples 32. However, despite the direct connection with the ancient tradition, the text itself is written in the Vulgate and a specific Carolingian minuscule (font) 33.

Among the entire tradition of visualizing the Apocalypse, the Beatus cycle stands out , having appeared in Spain in the 8th – 9th centuries. It is distinguished by its schematic illustrations, reminiscent of the distinctive graphics of Dendy video game consoles. The first versions of these were created during the lifetime of Beatus, a priest who wrote a commentary on the text of the Apocalypse 34. The combination of bright, primitive images with Beatus' commentary on the main text transformed Revelation into an entertaining and instructive "comic," while the distinctive iconography "preserved" an early North African type of imagery, also present in the Coptic tradition. Such visual interpretations reflected the mnemonic technique of the Benedictine monastic practice ( Lectio Divina ), which consisted of reading and memorizing the text, meditating, and reflecting on its content.

It is much more difficult to determine the origin of the medieval image of Christ in Majesty ( Majestas Domini ), inspired by the vision of God in the Apocalypse (chapters 4-5 ) , as opposed to the Eastern Byzantine type, drawn from the visions of Ezekiel.

The Western prototype is present in early medieval manuscripts depicting Christ with a book sealed with seven seals, seated on a globe or throne, surrounded by the Four Living Creatures (symbols of the Evangelists). If we compare the Christ in Powers from the Codex Amiatinus (c. 700) 35and the early Trier Apocalypse (early 9th century) 36, both based on Italian models of the 6th century, we can see how the Western, "Roman" type was combined with the "Eastern," Byzantine type of depicting Christ in Powers. It was in the second quarter of the 9th century that a unique Carolingian style was created in the scriptoria of Tours. Such enduring visual symbols emerged as the mandorla (a distinctive halo surrounding Christ), the rainbow throne (on which Christ sits), the arched throne, and the Four Living Creatures framing the image.

A consistent iconography of the Apocalypse is recorded in numerous manuscripts and monumental art of the "Carolingian Renaissance," which influenced the artistic canon of churches in Germany, France, and Italy from the 9th to the 13th centuries. 37Isolated scenes from the Apocalypse are also found in illuminated manuscripts 38. These typically consist of a depiction of the Son of Man amidst seven candlesticks (1: 12–20 ) and an apocalyptic-decorative initial in Romanesque bibles. Sometimes Christ was depicted in power, seated on a globe (either a globe or a rainbow, holding a book in his hands, surrounded by a mandorla), as in the 11th- century "Maximinian" Gospel 39or the Admont Bible, which depicts Christ from the vision of the prophet Ezekiel 40.

In both imagery and interpretation, the Church lived with a premonition of the Second Coming, placing its hopes and aspirations in the Last Judgment as the triumph of justice and faith in Christ. Early Christians keenly sensed the coming Kingdom of Heaven, the Judgment, punishment, and retribution. Justin Martyr (110–165) wrote: " I and other sensible Christians throughout the world know that there will be a resurrection of the body and a millennium in Jerusalem, which will be built, adorned, and exalted . " 41However, the Second Coming, expected any day, never arrived, so its arrival was delayed for 1,000 years. The change of millennia has always been painful and fatal for humanity, a striking example being the transitional year 1000 and the dates surrounding it 42.

Bernard, a Thuringian hermit, took these words of Revelation: " And I will strike her children dead: and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will render unto every one of you according to your works " (Rev. 2:23), " And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away: and there is no more sea " ( Rev. 21:1) as the text of a sermon, and in about 960 publicly declared that the End of the World was near. Bernard even gave the exact date of the fateful day, which was to occur when the date of the Annunciation coincided with the date of Good Friday, and such a day was to fall in 992.43

The eschatological monk Drutmar of Aquitaine, abbot of the Benedictine monastery in Corbie, predicted the end of the world for March 24, 1000. In many cities 44, belief in the impending apocalypse was so strong that people sought refuge in churches to spend the night in prayer to the saints at their relics and crosses. The first page of a manuscript by monk Raoul Glaber describes a premonition of the imminent arrival of Satan, " as John foretold, when the thousandth year shall come, and that shall be now . " 45Sylvester II , Pope under Otto III, calculated the official date of the apocalypse, which reinforced the terrifying mood in Europe. During his reign, the famous illuminated manuscript, which vividly depicted images of the coming Day of Judgment, was produced - the Bamberg Apocalypse 46, as well as the later Carolingian Apocalypse from Munich (both were created in Reichenau) 47.

Another important and frequently encountered theme in connection with the apocalypse is the image of the Last Judgment and the Archangel Michael defeating the dragon (serpent). Since the 9th century, scenes of the Last Judgment have adorned the western walls of cathedrals. The earliest surviving example is the frescoes from the church of the Benedictine monastery of St. John in Müstair ( Benediktinerinnenkloster St. Johann , Müstair, early 9th century, Switzerland). Unlike the Byzantine iconography of the Last Judgment, the Western one is much closer typologically to the representation of the Apocalypse. Forming a single motif, two angels with books are depicted on either side of the Judge (Rev. 20:12), St. Michael piercing the dragon with a spear, saints accompanied by angels, Heavenly Jerusalem, and the bride of the lamb (Rev. 21–22). Later, the image of the Last Judgment became more complex due to the addition and detailing of scenes.

Under the influence of book miniatures, monumental art—fresco—developed. The baptistery of the cathedral in Navarra (Italy) depicts majestic scenes from the Revelation of John, dating from the 11th century. Extraordinary 11th-century Lombard frescoes, preserved in northern Italy at the Abbey of St. Peter in Civate (Abbazia di San Pietro al Monte), depict Eden, the rivers of paradise, evil in the form of griffins and chimeras in the narthex , the Archangel Michael and his companions defeating the dragon on the western wall of the choir , and the Adoration of the Lamb by eighteen persons, including eight women and ten men, in the dome of the ciborium above the altar. The surviving scenes from the Apocalypse in the central nave of the French abbey of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe (Vienne, 1100) immerse the viewer in the figurative world of Romanesque emblematic monumental art.

The late 10th and early 11th centuries were a terrifying time in European history. Between 980 and 1040, it seemed as if the angel of death himself had spread his wings over the world: famine reigned, pestilence swept across Europe, and a disease known as St. Anthony's Fire—ergotism, a gangrenous disease of the extremities that burned away people's bones—raged. Sufferers besieged the roads leading to holy sites, especially the relics of St. Anthony, filling churches with the stench and the spirit of death. The passions of this disease are captured in Hieronymus Bosch's triptych, "The Temptation of St. Anthony." As a result of the crisis of hygiene and medicine, unable to cope with the human plague, approximately 40,000 people fell victim to the plague in the Aquitaine region of southern France. The Black Death decimated vast swathes of Europe, and then came famine. From 987 to 1060, a long period of famine and epidemics raged. The Hungarian invasion began, and the horrors of Attila the Hun returned: the Hungarians represented a different anthropology and an alien culture, leaving a frightening, terrifying, and terrifying impression on the inhabitants of Europe, whose territories were devastated. Raoul Glaber describes scenes of a terrible state of decline and human impotence, including cannibalism. Historical circumstances were perceived as the beginning of an apocalypse. In proportion to the popularity of eschatological ideas, a figurative tradition also developed: from the 11th century onward, an increasing number of manuscripts were created on the theme of the Revelation of John. A vast Romanesque cycle of apocalypses emerged, dominating medieval Europe from the late Carolingian period until the beginning of the Gothic era ( 9th – 13th centuries). These manuscripts are united by a common style of majestic and large-format illustrations; their number grew, the drawings became more detailed, acquiring exegetical significance. The images of the Romanesque cycle can be found not only on the pages of manuscripts: wall frescoes, decoration, and church sculpture also developed within the same paradigm. Early precursors of the Romanesque tradition in manuscripts are scenes from the Apocalypse from Carolingian bibles: the Moutier-Grandval Bible (Tours, 830–840) 48, the Vivian Bible ( Tours , 846) 49, and the Bible from San Paolo fuori le Mura in Rome (Reims, circa 870) 50. Their frontispieces depict the Lamb and the Lion, the Holy See (Rev. 5), angels, or an image of a church symbolizing the messages (Rev. 2:3).

As if taken from the pages of Romanesque manuscripts, the frescoes of the Abbey Church of Saint-Chef (third quarter of the 12th century, France) depict monumental scenes from the Apocalypse on a large scale: the 24 Elders, Christ in His Might, the Judgment, and the Heavenly Jerusalem. The much less well-preserved frescoes of the Church of St. John the Baptist in Clayton (England, second quarter of the 12th century) are executed in the same stylistic manner , as are the majestic fresco fragments from the Abbey of Saint-Polycarpe (Aude, France, second half of the 12th century). Grandiose frescoes adorn the interior of the Romanesque double church of St. Mary and Clement in Bonn (Doppelkirche St. Maria und Clemens, Germany, second half of the 12th century).

From the late 12th to the 13th centuries, the iconography of the apocalypse continued to develop, with scenes and images becoming more complex: adoring elders sat on thrones in a semicircle around Christ, holding cups or musical instruments in their hands. One of the earliest examples is Saint-Sever Beatus (mid- 11th century) 51.

In the 12th century, transformed elders appear in images of the missal in the treasury of the Abbey of Saint-Germain in Auxerre ( Abbaye Saint Germain d ' Auxerre ) and on the tympanums of the portal of the Abbey of St. Peter in Moissac ( Abbaye Saint Pierre de Moissac ). The most striking examples from the Romanesque cycle are the Bible from the monastery of Sant Pere de Rodes (Girona, Spain) 52and the Lombard Beatus from Berlin 53, which differs from the pectoral Spanish tradition described above.

Around the beginning of the 12th century, a unique cycle of frescoes was created in the crypt of the Cathedral of Anagni (Italy)—one of the most important surviving ensembles of the Middle Ages 54. Scenes from the Apocalypse are integrated into a complex narrative about the microcosm and macrocosm. Man, his creation, and natural history are linked with the events of Holy Scripture and the lives of heavenly beings. The fresco scenes depict the signs of the zodiac, Noah's Ark, and the prophets. In the apse itself, over the story of the martyrdom of St. Magnus, the patron saint of Anagni, scenes from the Apocalypse are depicted: four living creatures surround a lamb with seven horns, seven eyes, and a sealed book, while elders, holding cups, address it in prayer. The eastern, rather than the western, part of the crypt depicts the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the opening of the seals, and the Son of Man with hair as white as snow, fiery eyes, and a double-edged sword protruding from His mouth . He sits on a rainbow with keys in his right hand—a symbol of the keys of heaven and the keys of hell, where evil will be imprisoned after the Judgment.

Other Italian monuments also date back to this period: frescoes conveying early Italian imagery in the transept of the Basilica of St. Elias near Lake Nepi ( Basilica di Sant ' Elia ), poorly preserved frescoes in the nave of San Severo in Bardolino (Chiesa di San Severo, Bardolino, second half of the 12th century) and two manuscripts of the New Testament by Veronese (early 13th century) 55.

The Romanesque tradition is represented not only in Italian monuments, but also in the cycles of miniatures of Central Europe: the commentaries on the Apocalypse of Archbishop Haimon of Auxerre (Haimo Autissiodorensis, ca. 865) 56and the encyclopedia "Book of Flowers" ( Liber floridus ) 57Lambert of Saint-Omer ( Lambertus de Sancto Audomaro (1120), containing approximately 60 scenes from the Apocalypse 58. A characteristic feature of the style of these manuscripts is their abundant illustrations: a page offers numerous images, accompanied by a few inserted quotations from the text of Revelation. The frescoes in the gallery of the cathedral in Gurk (Dom zu Gurk, Austria, 1260–70) are also executed in a similar style.

Influenced by the intensive development of apocalyptic imagery in manuscripts of the 12th and 13th centuries, church decoration, including bas-reliefs and sculpture, also became more complex. From now on, scenes of the Last Judgment on the tympanums of Gothic cathedrals loom grandly over the congregation; inside, demons writhe and grimace from the capitals, tormenting sinners, while Archangel Michael pierces Lucifer with a spear. Furthermore, many apocalyptic scenes are depicted in carved bone reliquaries.

The Romanesque capitals of the portico of the Abbey of Saint-Benedict on the Loire (Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire, France, second half of the 11th century) depict a scene with the four apocalyptic horsemen, while the capitals of the southern galleries of the aforementioned monastery in Moissac (Cloître de l'abbaye Saint-Pierre de Moissac, 1100 ) represent the four horsemen and the apocalyptic beast. The tympanum of the portal of the Church of Saint-Pierre in La Lande-de-Fronsac, Gironde (Église Saint-Pierre de La Lande-de-Fronsac, 12th century) depicts Christ with a double-edged sword. On the vaults of the porch of the Romanesque abbey church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe (France, circa 1100), the New Jerusalem, represented as the bride of Christ, and a choir of the saved are carved in stone.

Certainly, exegetical practice had a primary influence on the formation of the iconography of the Apocalypse: different biblical images could be combined, and the new synthetic image, in turn, generated new meanings. For example, in the fresco in the apse of the Church of St. Pere ( 10th - 11th centuries), the Archangel Michael fights with a seven-headed dragon. This image is placed next to the Adoration of the Magi. The dragon spews water from its mouth, aiming at Mary from the adoration scene. The fusion of two different plots is associated with one medieval interpretation of the Apocalypse (Chapter 12), voiced by Ambrosius Outpert . Autpertus , 730–784) 59, and his followers, Gaimo of Auxerre and Berengaudus ( Berengaudus , Expositio super September visions libri Apocalypsis , see Fig. 8, 27 ) 60, who identified the Mother of God with the Woman from the Apocalypse, clothed in the sun, and Herod with the seven-headed dragon (see Fig. 22).

A unique frontispiece to St. Augustine's manuscript of The City of God, housed in Oxford (c. 1130–40), depicts Christ enthroned among the apostles beneath the City. Below and to the left, the Christ-like Archangel Michael casts the defeated Satan out of the Heavenly City with his spear (Rev. 12:7–9), while to the right is the gracious Church, represented as a Woman (the Virgin Mary) clothed in the sun. In her arms, she holds, protectively, newly baptized souls, reborn from sin and immune to Satan's attacks, while the old body of a newly baptized soul lies nearby (Rom. 6:22) 61.

12th- century fresco from the crypt of St. Stephen in Auxerre Cathedral reveals a confluence of imperial ambitions and theological ideas in the image of Christ the Equestrian, seated on a white horse (Rev. 19:11–16). Christ is depicted in the context of the ceremony of Rome's triumphal entry into the city ( Adventus : in ancient Rome, the formal greeting of the emperor after a military campaign) facing a frontal depiction of a huge cross and accompanied by a heavenly army of riding angels.

Christ on horseback can also be seen on the capital of the choir of the church of Saint-Nectaire ( Puy - de -Dôme, France, 12th century): the Savior, dressed in a red toga and seated on a white horse with a bow and arrow, is combined with an image of the Last Judgment carried out by the Archangel Michael. And on the capital of the choir of the church of St. Peter in Chauvigny (É glise Saint - Pierre de Chauvigny , France, 12th century) Archangel Michael, carrying out the Last Judgment, is combined with the image of the Babylonian harlot and the fall of Babylon itself - the idea of the collapse of evil.

Around 1130, a magnificent tympanum, one of the masterpieces of Romanesque sculpture, was created on the theme of the Last Judgment in the Cathedral of Autun, France (Cathédrale Saint-Lazare d'Autun). At the very center of the composition, in a mandorla, surrounded by angels, sits Christ on a throne. To the right, the righteous enter the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem, opened by the Apostle Peter. To the left, the Archangel Michael, on one side, and the devil, on the other, weigh the souls of men. Above this scene is an inscription stating: "Let the horror of these images terrify sinful, earthly people, for all the terrible things depicted here will truly happen 62." The judgment is surrounded by scenes from the Apocalypse. The arches of the vault above Christ are decorated with zodiac signs and medallions depicting the seasons and seasonal activities. The existence of the planets and natural cycles—the time of the world—is subordinated to its Creator and moves toward an inexorable end that will expose all human deeds. The relief's symbolism consistently reflects the theological views expressed by Honorius Augustodunensis (c. 1080–1156), a medieval scholastic, historian, and philosopher. The third book of Honorius's encyclopedia, Elucidarium ( Lamp ), enthusiastically discusses Christian eschatology. In the spirit of Socratic dialogue, it discusses the Antichrist, the Second Coming, the Last Judgment, and Purgatory, demonstrating the torments of hell and the joys of the Heavenly Jerusalem. Honorius's ideas are also linked to the interpretation of the Woman Clothed with the Sun as the Church-ecclesia. This interpretation of the Virgin Mary is presented in the famous "Garden of Delights" ( Hortus deliciarum ) — the first encyclopedia written by a woman, Herrada of Landsbergensis (1130–1195), a Benedictine nun and abbess of the Hohenburg Monastery. Completed in 1185, the manuscript was one of the most famous of its period, a compendium of 12th- century knowledge. However, in 1870, the manuscript perished, surviving only in copies. In addition to encyclopedic topics, the text contained excerpts from Greek and Arabic authors, Herrada's poems set to music, and numerous illustrations, 336 of which covered a variety of topics: theosophical, philosophical, literary, including discussions of the Apocalypse.

The popularity of medieval interpretations of the Apocalypse was also reflected in monumental art: in unique iconographic programs, such as the frescoes of the All Saints' Chapel in Regensburg (Allerheiligenkapelle, Germany, circa 1165). They depict motifs from the Liturgy of All Saints, based on the commentaries of Honorius and Rupert of Deutsch on scenes from chapter 7 of Revelation: angels hold back the winds from the four cardinal directions, the sealing of the sons of Israel, Christ Pantocrator ascending in the dome, and a choir of the elect before the throne of God. These scenes are executed according to the canon of Byzantine iconography and are analogous to the mosaics of the Palatine Chapel in Palermo 63.

The progress of the 12th and 13th centuries affected various areas of applied culture: ceramics, blacksmithing, and glassmaking. The windows and stained-glass windows of monumental Gothic cathedrals were decorated with scenes from biblical lore, including apocalyptic scenes. Daylight shimmered through the stained glass (light, beauty, and harmony are emanation from God, according to the scholastic project realized in Gothic art), illuminating images of the Last Judgment drawn from manuscript miniatures 64.