tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204628968145671962.post5263817652959176267..comments2023-10-08T06:20:49.328-07:00Comments on Encounters with Medieval Manuscripts, Spring 2015: Legacy of the Utrecht Psalter: the Eadwine Psalter & its brethren Carrie Beneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16693857186807966259noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204628968145671962.post-78375426791772775832015-03-13T09:01:02.481-07:002015-03-13T09:01:02.481-07:00I really like the images in this Eadwine Psalter, ...I really like the images in this Eadwine Psalter, particularly the page of Eadwine on fol. 283v, which deserves to be considered along with the discussion of the images in this psalter. While there is still a prominent influence from the Utrecht gospel being shown through this manuscript, it definitely has a different feel to it. The portrait of Eadwine displays this feeling the best to me. That same element of wispy figures is apparent a little, but the main thing that I noticed in the images, was the use of a softer color palette in the portrait. While the portrait still has the dark, rich blue background, the greens and reds are softer, and are not as harsh to look at. The swirling pattern in the clothes of Eadwine accent the green and red folds in his clothes. The unnatural use of color on the figure, such as the green shading on his face, is also notable. <br /><br />This portrait depicting the namesake of the psalter itself, makes it have a clear link to the person it was made to honor. The level of detail and the colors used, makes it a visually striking image to look at, and would definitely grab the attention of the reader as they were flipping through the pages.Abigail Youngbloodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02851562756275661942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204628968145671962.post-81215182099454198252015-03-12T20:55:03.719-07:002015-03-12T20:55:03.719-07:00What I find incredible about this manuscript is th...What I find incredible about this manuscript is the fact that it was copied in three different languages. But in a way, I’m a little confused by this as well. In class lately, we’ve been discussing how the stereotype that monasteries throughout medieval Europe were reclusive and disconnected from each other is completely wrong, and my intuition suggests that, if anything, the multilinguality of the Eadwine Psalter perfectly would illustrate the true interconnectedness of these monasteries. If the book was copied with the intention of staying in one place, why bother with Latin, Anglo-French, AND Old English? However, to the best of my knowledge, Canterbury Cathedral remained fairly protective of this manuscript until it was donated to Trinity College at Cambridge in the seventeenth century.<br /><br />A possible answer to this question is that, as the book was designed to be stunning in a number of ways already (e.g. the stunning illustrations and the impeccable attention to detail), the designers decided that adding versions of the text in other languages was a small price to pay in order to create a manuscript that was so visually and textually beautiful that we would still be discussing it centuries later.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17392878153377910946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204628968145671962.post-33769017782624231242015-03-12T09:39:10.614-07:002015-03-12T09:39:10.614-07:00I personally enjoy the evolving of the decoration ...I personally enjoy the evolving of the decoration and writing. The first Psalter was simple with the same brown writing because it was the earliest. The second adds a little more color to the mix and a little more design to the drawing. The third is better yet still. The fourth is like an explosion of culture in the colors, designs, and language. I agree with the other comment that the professionalism seems to adapt as the time goes on. But I also disagree because it could have been the best the scribes and illuminators could have done at the time. I also would like to know what happened during these changes, like did the monastery where they were written get a cultural renaissance of its own? I love how the third Psalter gains a gloss too it. It suggests that others are actually reading the book and that its purpose is too read it. This is unlike the first Psalter, where it seemed to serve as a reading material for someone else or something of a faint copy. I am glad you gave background to the other Psalter’s before going deep into the Eadwine Psalter because it gave context. Brianna Brandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13805899312410449254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5204628968145671962.post-65957165464105065532015-03-12T08:01:48.318-07:002015-03-12T08:01:48.318-07:00The illustrations in this psalter are really inter...The illustrations in this psalter are really interesting. I like how geometric they are. The rich colors in the Anglo-Catalan Psalter are also very interesting, it highlights the artwork giving it an almost three dimensional feel. I like how over time the professionalism of the manuscripts increases goes on in our course. They certainly appear to be more cleaned up and easier to read. The hybrid English Vernacular Miniscule is certainly very beautiful. I wonder if there has ever been any study’s done concerning the amount of time it takes for a monastery in isolation to develop its own form of script.<br />The dynamics of self-sufficiency in the monastery’s is also very interesting as well, I noticed you mentioned brown walnut gall ink and I wonder how difficult it was for monastery’s to provide for themselves the materials to copy and produce manuscripts independently. Although I know most monasteries were not totally isolated as the stereotype would suggest, I am interested in the full dynamic of supply and isolation. I suppose that it would probably very greatly depending on the location of the monastery themselves.<br />As always the biblical illustrations are always very interesting to me, the figures facial expressions are hilarious. <br />Mason Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06248934234198389961noreply@blogger.com