Review: [untitled]

Author(s): Sharon E. J. Gerstel

Source: The Art Bulletin, Vol. 87, No. 2 (Jun., 2005), pp. 331-341
Published by: College Art Association
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25067174 .
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Exhibition Review
The Aesthetics of Orthodox Faith

Byzantium: Faith and Power culture and historical context, this exhibi this exhibition seems
arbitrary. Byzantine
tion was designed
to
appeal to a mass, lay rule over the ended in May 1453;
(1261-1557) capital
audience for which such concerns may have the remaining parts of the empire were con
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
been deemed irrelevant, or thereafter. In 1557, accord
uninteresting, quered shortly
York, March 23-July 4, 2004 even
perhaps offensive. ing to the exhibition catalog, the term By
The decision to take an aesthetic ap zantium was first used by Hieronymus Wolf
Helen C. Evans, ed., Byzantium: Faith and
to the material the difficul (1516-1580), librarian and secretary to the
proach signals
Power (1261-1557), exh. cat. New York: Met
ties attached to the contextual of Late in Augsburg, to define a field
study Fugger family
ropolitan Museum of Art; New Haven: Yale
Byzantine art and may reveal an attempt, of study.2 Wolf, however, did not invent the
University Press, 2004. 658 pp., 721 color to avoid name.
moreover, certain political pitfalls. The Chronica per
fourteenth-century
ills., 146 b/w. $75.00; $50.00 (paper) More than the art of the Early Christian extensum
descripta of Andrea D?ndolo already
and Middle Byzantine periods, works and contains the term "Bysancium" in connec
The last centuries of the Byzantine Empire monuments of the last centuries are tion with a the fall of
closely prophecy regarding
have often been characterized as a
period associated with modern national, cultural, to the Latins in 1204.3 And,
Constantinople
of decline. Internal and religious
political and religious identities. Even today, contem whereas Wolf initiated Byzantine studies in
fissures, a share in the Mediterra
waning porary icon and church most often the editing
painters Germany, particularly through
nean economy, the loss of regional hege the
appropriate style of the thirteenth and of other
texts, sixteenth-century humanists
mony following the Fourth Crusade of 1204, were
fourteenth centuries for the creation of by doing the same in Holland and Italy.4
and the confrontation with burgeoning
zantinizing, that is, Orthodox, devotional Nonetheless, the Metropolitan's creation of
states in surrounding territories can all be in recent a notional as a
images. Most notably, years, the Byzantium that survived
cited as reasons forthe ultimate of
collapse apse of St. Demetrios in Thessalonike, a construction for 104 years beyond
scholarly
the empire to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. critical monument of the early Byzantine the fall of the empire allowed the organiz
It is this complex period in world history was in the Late Byzantine ers to encompass a
period, painted large number of works
that the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New a renovation criticized that Byzantinists have to
style, jarring widely generally ceded
York, recently addressed in its exhibition Greek art historians and their colleagues in the field of early modern
by archaeologists,
Byzantium: Faith and Power (1261-1557), the but one the city's church lead art.
promoted by
third in a series of shows devoted to the for ers. The nationalistic associations of Late The achievement of amassing
diplomatic
mation, development, and dissolution of art has other which more than three hundred and
Byzantine repercussions, fifty works
this remarkable Rather than ex are manifested in the authorship cat
empire.1 of the from twenty-seven countries should not be
the of the empire's in the to museums,
ploring impact political alog. Unlike the periods highlighted undervalued. In addition
and economic fortunes on artistic and cul first two are
Metropolitan exhibitions, which cathedrals, monasteries, and individuals lent
tural the Metropolitan Mu
developments, intensely studied by American and Western objects from their collections. Seeing the
seum show, as its title suggests, focused in the Late Byzantine in their
European scholars, pe works permanent settings would
stead on the religious matrix of Eastern riod remains, to a the research have numerous the
large extent, required plane tickets,
which bound the area of scholars rental of a car, even a
Orthodoxy, together living and trained in former and perhaps donkey
largely disparate cultures of the Balkans and and territories. The or camel. The made it easy?
imperial neighboring Metropolitan
Russia, Egypt, and Ethiopia, as well as com of monuments in a and viewers to take in so
publication significant inexpensive?for
munities in the Near East. As a result, the wide of in one location. The
variety languages?including Greek, many objects agglom
visitor encountered a somewhat monolithic eration of such a vast number of works,
Serbian, Macedonian, Bulgarian, Turkish,
view of the Orthodox world that minimized and Russian?poses a had
its problematic Bal
particular challenge however, aspects.
differences in society and culture in order to "Western" in this area.
objects were
scholars working ancing the many first-rate sev
to construct a sense of common The of most scholars to read eral quite pedestrian ones. The contrast be
religious inability publi
In reality, many of the in cultures cations in so many to tween common
practice. languages (in addition these works and those that
cluded in the show in different lan the more standard for standard are master
prayed languages required by any indisputable
guages, did not share the same liturgical the study of art history) often of painting introduced the critical
impedes syn pieces
traditions, answered to different ecclesiasti thetic or cross-cultural to the issue of whether icons should be more
approaches
cal authorities, and, in some cases, differed material; in addition, it makes the material considered works of art or primar
properly
on matters of doctrine. The to
inaccessible Recent
substantially virtually nonspecialists. Thus, ily devotional objects. discussions in
exhibition featured icons as the most the awe encoun
promi part of engendered by the the field of icon theory have been domi
nent manifestation of Orthodox Christian ter with so many "unknown" in By nated
objects by this very question.5 Nevertheless,
stress on
ity, and the show's the aesthetics zantium: Faith and Power, in reality, derived the inclusion of works of seemingly lesser
of faith brought viewers face to face with from their publication in English and their aesthetic value was illuminating because it
the holiest of figures. Set against porridge for the first time, in an American demonstrated that paintings of even minor
display,
colored and greenish blue walls, these devo context. artistic merit could a vital role in the
play
tional were as works of The framework for the lives of Orthodox Christians. This
objects presented chronological religious
art, largely decontextualized and subjected, show from 1261 to 1557. The first was at the center of the focus on
ranged paradox
many for the first time, to purely art histori date marks the recovery of Constantinople the aesthetics of faith that the exhibition
cal appreciation and scrutiny. The two pre from its Latin rulers and the installation of but left
presented largely untheorized.
vious shows read Byzantine art through its the Palaiologoi, the dynasty that would rule Icons dominated the exhibition. The
cultural contexts; the framework of this one the empire in its last centuries. The second number of painted the most com
panels,
was different. With its emphasis on the aes date is more For Byzantinists, mon form of dkon in theshow, was
problematic. (image)
thetics of painting over details of the selection of 1557 as a terminal date for It was hard to know how to
religious overwhelming.
 ART BULLETIN JUNE 2005 VOLUME LXXXVII NUMBER 2
332

(cat. no. 5). Other objects in this gallery

provided evidence of female patronage in

this period, a often discussed from
subject
the perspective of written sources and of

ongoing interest to scholars in the field.

Three icons, for example, portrayed Maria

Angelina Doukaina Palaiologina, the daugh

ter of Symeon Uros (cat. nos.
Palaiologos
24A-C). The selection of saints on at least
one of the icons, where Maria is depicted
without her husband, suggests that she may
have a role in devo
played ordering specific
tional imagery.
the opens with a map,
Although catalog
there was, none within the
unfortunately,
exhibition. It is not easy to understand the
decision to exclude maps. Without knowl
one
edge of the geography, might have in
ferred that many of the sites represented by
objects in the galleries were in close proxim
ity and easily accessible. Here it is important
to recall that most of the contained
regions
1 Painted box with scenes from the life of John the Baptist, 14th within the show are mountainous
reliquary century. extremely
The Cleveland Museum of Art and that a critical role in
topography played
the dynamics of artistic influence and recep
tion. Certainly, political boundaries in this
were and it
period constantly changing,
approach the figures of the saints within the large galleries. In the absence of explana would have
been difficult, the chrono
given
setting of a museum. Within a church, the tory labels or signs, the theme of each gal logical span of the show, to accurately de
icons would have evoked a different re was not obvious. A road map to limit the borders of actual states. Yet in the
lery always
candles or the show was partially of a map,
sponse. There, flickering lamps provided by the audio absence the juxtaposition of ob
enliven the holy faces, and the wooden pan guide, but the rental of supplementary jects from different cultures that
suggested
els on which they are rendered emit the equipment should not have substituted for many states fell within the ter
independent
pungent smell of incense. Within the dark clear presentation. I describe the galleries ritorial boundaries of
the Byzantine Empire.
ened church the figures, set on a if an unfortunate
gold back briefly, since they differed substantially from One wonders episode with
appear to wrench free from the the thematic divisions and of the of a map in the 1997 show dis
ground, arrangement labeling
strict confines of their wooden backing. In entries in the The couraged the kinds of political commitment
accompanying catalog.
the museum, the bright overhead lights lev first gallery was dedicated to the who that such maps inevitably
people betray.6
eled the figures, thus appearing to confirm lived within Byzantium and
its sphere of ar The second gallery, linked by wall color

long-held (and incorrect) notions that Byz tistic influence. This was not im to the first, accentuated church
emphasis furnishings
antine figurai painting is flat and static. Yet mediately apparent, since the center of the and liturgical objects. The suspension of an
even in this museum exhibition the power was filled with three enormous choros, or church at
gallery large bilateral chandelier,
of the icon was so
palpable and the saints so icons that were not associated with known the center of the room evoked the interior
vital that in the last gallery, filled with Neth donors (cat. nos. 90, 99, 103). On the pe space of a monastic church (cat. no. 60).
erlandish works, the transition from icon to riphery of the gallery, people
were repre Such chandeliers are
traditionally placed
was sufficiently that one by name
painting sented or on a above eye level and set in circular motion
unsettling by portrait variety
was left to wonder whether icons of objects, coins, seals, icons, jew on feast days so that their glimmering
Byzantine including lights
are by aesthetics alone or wor
empowered elry, and manuscripts. The Byzantine mimic the heavenly constellations. Lowered
whether, indeed, a thies could be found on the left side of the installation offered the opportunity to ex
they possess mystical
presence of any human re those in neighboring lands to the amine the intricate decoration and
independent gallery, closely
sponse. right. The people who inhabited the vitrines the mechanism by which individual lamps
With its concentration on icons, the exhi were emperors or aristocrats, are attached to the fixture. The left
primarily larger
bition was, of course, about recognition. themselves the patrons of the luxury arts on side of the room was dominated by large
The identification of holy a In viewing these objects, one got a scale such as a stone rosette that
figures played display. sculpture,
large role in that process. The viewer noted sense of the individuals behind the "master decorated the facade of the
originally
the number of icons of the Virgin in various pieces." The rings, with
signet their narrow church of St. Stefan the Milentija of
Monas
and labeled with exotic names? us that
reminded in the (cat. no. 40). This work,
poses openings, people tery in Serbia
Hodegetria, Kykkotissa, Paramythia, late medieval were smaller marked and knotted vines
Pelago period generally by palmettes
nitissa?names that recalled local cult icons of stature, and the rubbed surfaces of the a cross, was with a sculpture
forming paired
and important shrines for the Byzantine coins communicated their handling in ev of the Virgin and Child from the Banjska

supplicant. The legacy of these popular eryday transactions. The Venice Alexander Monastery (cat. no. 41). Sculpted works are
icons was traced in non-Orthodox works Romance (cat. no. 32), a secular fairly common in Serbian architectural dec
popular
executed in Italy and northern Europe work written in Greek, contains
in notations oration of the late medieval and
period,
said to be modeled on Turkish and Georgian, the identi scholars have that
their presence
through paintings revealing suggested
these Byzantine prototypes. In these cases, ties of generations of owners. One humble in church tympana and facades reflected
however, questions about transmission and a small bowl inscribed with an Serbia's between
piece, glazed geographic position Byzan
meaning could have been explored in abbreviated name, Demetrios (cat. tium and Italy. Even until the
perhaps Romanesque
greater detail, for example, whether images no. 21), that even more modest end of rule, however,
signaled imperial Byzantine
of the Virgin functioned in the same or sim works in Byzantium were fashioned with a builders the use of three-dimen
spurned
ilar ways when placed in culturally and reli refined shape and style. This sional on the exterior of their
simple clay carvings
giously divergent vessel was elevated in stature churches, those of the late period
settings. by being prefer
The exhibition unfolded in a series of shown in the same case as a rare
ivory pyxis ring glazed tiles and elaborate brickwork,
 EXHIBITION REVIEW: GERSTEL ON BYZANTIUM 333

2 Thessalonike ca. 1300. Thessalonike, Greece, the Museum of Byzantine Culture

epitaphios,

which generally enlivened the east end of case of liturgical objects, including
a very churches shown as
supplemental visual im
the church, the of liturgi rare work, a wooden casket in the ages on labels failed to convey the extent
emphasizing place today
cal sacrifice. Exiled to another were Cleveland Museum of Art (cat. no. 73). Re and quality of monumental in this
gallery painting
the ceramic that decorated the east studied in detail a number
plaques cently by Kristine Hess,7 period. Curiously, of exhibition
facade of the church of St. Basil in Arta the box is covered with scenes from the life labels referred to these absent cycles, which,
(cat. nos. 34A, B). The juxtaposition of the of John the Baptist and most likely served
as in addition to their inherent significance,
three-dimensional and the ce a to ivory often fixed dates for the attribution
sculpture reliquary (Fig. 1). Comparisons provide
ramic tiles would have a sub caskets of the Middle are of undated and unsigned works such as
highlighted Byzantine period
stantive difference in attitudes toward reli inevitable and raise the question of the icons. The label for a miniature mosaic icon

gious and exterior church of precious materials in the cen of the Twelve Feasts in the next for
sculpture availability gallery,
decoration in Byzantium and its neighbors, turies covered by the show. In the 1340s, example, stated that the detailed depictions
demonstrating that cultural differences, in Alexios Makrembolites refers to the use of "may reflect the now-lost mosaic program of
this case between Byzantium and Serbia, are wooden coffers (rather than ivory?) by the the great fourteenth-century Constantinopo
more than presented. to store their coins.8 The of litan Church in the Chora The
complicated wealthy types monastery."
The second gallery held other furnishings materials presented in the show, so different value of the
comparison to a lost work of
from church interiors. A set of doors that from those seen in the second exhibition of art is dubious, and the introduction of a
may have to the church of St. the series, The Glory of Byzantium, revealed church on a museum label
belonged nonrepresented
Sophia in Novgorod (cat. no. 63) formed something about the economic realities of raises a
question about the intended audi

part of the iconostasis, the high screen that the period. One is reminded that in the ence for such explanatory texts. Why were
divided the church sanctuary from the nave fourteenth century the emperor John VI larger representative photographs of key
in late medieval Russia. a choice fa Kantakouzenos was so that he not added to
Again, impoverished cycles give such comparisons
voring comparison would
been have
useful. was reduced to from and tin These have been in
drinking clay validity?10 might placed
from Byzantine rather than those of gold and sil the entry vestibule or in the small
Fragments templon screens, goblets reading
lower and more visually permeable, were ver.9 References to these issues would have room situated at the center of the exhibi
located in other galleries of the exhibition greatly enhanced the educational value of tion.
but might have been profitably placed in the exhibition. In addition to monumental the
painting,
this room. A fragment of the epistyle from Examples of monumental same contained from
painting, gallery manuscripts
the stone
templon of Sts. Theodore in Mystra largely provincial and extremely fragmen Byzantium, Armenia, Rus', and Serbia.
(cat. no. 37), for example, was set in a later tary, confronted viewers in the small gallery Here, a number of important terms and

gallery. Inscribed with the names of the ab that followed. Representing the excellent ideas were introduced on the labels, al
bots Daniel and Pachomios (the latter name painting of Mystra, for example, were twelve though they
were left unexplored or inade
was or di
partially obscured by the supporting small segments taken from excavated quately explained. For example, the term

clamp), the epistyle is carved with vegetal lapidated churches in that once-glorious which refers to one of the great
Hesychasm,
and pseudo-kufic ornament common to city; of these, five were illustrated in the cat monastic movements of the Late
spiritual
such architectural dividers. Although many alog (cat. nos. 48A-E). In contrast to the Byzantine period,
was advanced in connec
structural were of damaged frescoes a
fragments brought together picture offered by the tion with fragment of fourteenth-century
in the second a a
gallery, ground plan of exhibition, ecclesiastical wall painting from church decoration from Pskov, Russia (cat.
church, marked with components of this period survives in abundance: hundreds no. 46), and a the
specific manuscript containing
furnishings and the names of functional of churches with
complete fresco cycles are theological works of John VI Kantakouzenos
spaces, would have assisted
non-Byzantinists preserved in Turkey, Greece, Serbia, Bul (cat. no. 171). On the museum label for the
to better understand the place of such ele the Former of Pskov paintings, the was made
garia, Yugoslav Republic suggestion
ments within the church proper. Macedonia, and elsewhere. The small pho that Hesychasm may have influenced the
The right side of the gallery contained a from the interior of a number of selection of the dark, severe colors. While
tographs
 ART BULLETIN JUNE 2005 VOLUME LXXXVII NUMBER 2
334

art historians and theologians have investi ranged in an arched form set on
capitals.
tos church in Ohrid, which was painted by
connections between Most are the well-known Michael As trapas and Eutychios. In the
gated potential significant frag
Hesychasm and artistic developments in the ments from the tomb of the nun Maria West, the involvement of painters, such as
late medieval period, particularly in Byzan Palaiologina (cat. no. 49), which have been Jean Bondol, in the design of textiles is well
tium and Russia, direct relations have been associated with the important female monas documented. If, indeed, one can
identify
neither established nor tery of Constantine in Constantinople. the hands of in the design
securely universally Lips specific painters
accepted. Other
manuscripts in the gallery The Lips fragments demonstrate the ten of the Thessalonike and the Cruci
epitaphios
raised the concept of cultural influence dency of wealthy to them fixion these works im
Byzantines depict embroidery, provide
through the display of a bilingual Gospel selves in attitudes of supplication over their portant clues about artistic practices in the
Book (cat. no. 162, opened to a page with graves and to commission elaborate poems Late Byzantine period,
an age in which the
an rather than one revealing the two for these markers. These funeral texts, names of trained artists began to emerge
image
column text) and other works that whether carved or recited over the tomb, from the anonymous tradition of
bilingual workshop
to the influence of Fran constitute some of the most beautiful litera earlier centuries. Overall, the exhibition
variously pointed
ciscan missionaries (cat. no. 173) or, more ture of the Late Byzantine period. Two
capi overemphasized Western names while ne
the Gothic West. tals in this installation carved with to credit Byzantine
generally, images of glecting artists of the
The color palette as the visitor saints the return to fig same
changed military exemplified period.
entered the fourth with a urai decoration in certain architectural con The the sixth,
gallery, painted large subsequent gallery,
dark blue background. Its rich hue set the texts. The four-sided
capital (cat. no. 55), was devoted to icons. A wall text provided,

stage for the display of the luxury arts, prin proposed here as part of a tomb niche, was
belatedly,
an overview of the function of
a series of remarkable miniature mo more of a ciborium this room were
cipally likely part freestanding holy images. Within icons
saic icons and steatites. Here, one was con or architectural An divided to subject matter:
support.11 interesting according proces
fronted with the question of manufacture piece in this collection of objects was a re sions, the Virgin, saints, the life of Christ,
and the assumption that works, al lief with the Archangel Michael, which was and the Mandylion. The sizes of the icons
luxury
though varying tremendously in quality and discovered in the city of Iznik (Byzantine varied; the largest over ten feet in
panels,
technical skill, were produced in Constanti Nicaea) (cat. no. 52). Although the label height, belong to a Russian iconostasis (cat.
nople. Miniature mosaic icons, as suggested suggested that the piece formed part of a no. 113). The icons that filled the seventh
were for a its subject and derived from the collec
by preserved examples, produced templon screen, composition gallery exclusively
very limited time in Byzantium and were made its association with a tomb more tion of the monastery of St. Catherine on
A number of them ended cases the labels contradicted Sinai.13 This gallery was recon
highly prized. up likely. In both Mount
in Western collections, either as small devo information in the catalog. structed to create
the impression of the
given
tional or as the of In the same gallery was seen a collection church's basilica
objects centerpieces shape. As in the previous
works. The most ex of the least the icons were in
larger visually striking liturgical textiles, probably room, largely clustered
in Western use is the known works in the show. Many of these are cases to subject. This chamber,
ample undoubtedly according
mosaic icon of the Man of Sorrows, which still held by monasteries as treasured ob the most cohesive in the
exhibition, allowed
was taken to Italy in 1380 by Raimondello and their at the Metro the visitor to assess the many
jects, presentation styles of paint
Orsini del Balzo, count of Lecce, and do politan allowed the viewer
the extraordinary ing found in the icon collection of a single
nated to the basilica of S. Croce in Gerusa to assess their beauty, method monastery. It is fortunate that the Sinai
opportunity
lemme in Rome (cat. no. 131). There, the of manufacture, and importance. The two monastery permitted
so many of its precious
icon was reassigned a
sixth-century date and elaborate sakkoi (cat. nos. 177, 178) en icons to travel to the exhibition, as
they
are
was encased in a relic cabinet. In addition closed the patriarchal or, in special cases, among the finest works from the
surviving
to the mosaic icons, this gallery held a small celebrant in an array of embroi studied
and
episcopal period. Initially by George
number of works of steatite and precious dered icons. This costume element is well Maria Soteriou
and Kurt Weitzmann, the
stone that were used for private devotions known from monumental painting, but the icons in the show, particularly those classi
or for adornment. Several of these of the actual vestments better illus fied stylistically as "Crusader icons," have
personal analysis
small pieces (cat. nos. 143, 146, 148), with trates the of the liturgical ser come under as scholars
resplendence increasing scrutiny
dates that have yet to be securely estab vice and the symbolic role of the celebrant turn attention
their to painting in the east
lished, were purchases or gifts to the mu as the
living embodiment of Christ. This ern Mediterranean. One of the questions
seum. a icons of so many
gallery also contained large number of outstanding is how differ
The turn into the next was accom liturgical cloths through came to be housed in a single in
gallery epitaphioi, paraded ing styles
panied by yet another shift in color; the the church during the Holy (Good) Friday stitution. Although scholars have posited the
muted gray walls a return to more service. Of singular is the Thes existence of a painting at Sinai, a
signaled importance workshop
common works. From this point on, the salonike (cat. no. 187A), which number of icons appear to have been
epitaphios
the show seemed less was most in a textile work to the mon
road map through likely executed painted elsewhere and donated
clear, as galleries were divided into in that northern Greek city 2). astery. One of the most icons in
large shop (Fig. interesting
small thematic units. The fifth gallery was The inclusion of this Thessalonian work the current show portrays the Deesis and
subdivided into sections devoted to the
Byz raises important issues about workshop prac five saints (cat. no. 219), incorrectly called
antine tomb, miscellaneous pieces of sculp tices that were unexplored in the exhibi Franciscans on the museum label (Fig. 4).
ture from church interiors, and tion. The detailed on the The label also called the icon "Crusader"
liturgical representation
textiles. With the installation of so many of the Communion of the Apostles and attributed it to the late thirteenth cen
epitaphios
works, coherenceof display on either side of the recumbent Christ and tury; the Soterious, who first published the
occasionally
gave way to exigencies of space. In this gal the heavy figure style of the Apostles and work, dated it to the late thirteenth-early
the aforementioned Arta that a noted pair of church fourteenth The faces and hands
lery, for instance, angels suggest century.14
tiles and a glazed bowl from Serres (cat. no. Michael and Eutychios, of the saints are beautifully modeled, ex
painters, Astrapas
22) seemed out of a marble were involved in the design of this liturgical and The on
place; plaque pressive, elegant. layered paint
decorated with a (cat. no. 35) would cloth 3). The same team may also have the faces is nearly translucent. The closest
griffin (Fig.
also have been better situated within the been responsible for the design of a second parallel
to this distinctive
painting style is
Other not in the show: an silk seen on a icon of 1356, the funerary
second gallery. parts of the display textile embroidered Cypriot
were more cohesive. In an attempt to indi of the Crucifixion, today in Bul icon of Maria, the virgin daughter of the
panel
cate the reconstruction of an arcosolium garia.12 The large Bulgarian panel (48 by church lector Manuel Xeros (Fig. 5). The
or 122 to combine
tomb type of monumental
(the grave fa 26% inches, by 68 centimeters), style of this work is said Byzan
vored by emperors and aristocrats in the dated about 1295, is associated an tine and Gothic features, and
through although
late period), of sculpture were ar with the donors of the Periblep scholars have attributed the panel to the
pieces inscription
 EXHIBITION REVIEW: GERSTEL ON BYZANTIUM 335

hand of a Palaiologan master, the individu

alism of the portrait of the young woman
an awareness of Italian art of the
betrays
period.15 Like these two panels, the Sinai
material scholars to unravel the
challenges
complexities of interwoven styles of the late
medieval period, but such an exercise de
on first
pends identifying regional styles and
understanding the historical and economic
circumstances that resulted in their hybrid
ization or In the case of the
exportation.
Sinai icon, the identification of the "holy
new Michael, Paul, Philip,
martyrs" George,
and Mateos, figured in the lower
register,
should reveal either the provenance or au
dience for the panel.
In the first seven works made in
galleries
were with those
Constantinople juxtaposed
fabricated in such as Serbia,
varied settings
Armenia, and Ethiopia, an
creating impres
sion of cultural harmony, religious unity,
and artistic similitude. In the midst of this
laudable multiculturalist vision, however,
Byzantium, the Greek-speaking empire of
the show's title, was all but lost. One might
3 Communion of the Apostles, 1294/95. Ohrid, Former of
expect that the exhibition would begin with Yugoslav Republic
a to works Macedonia, Church of the (photo: Thalia Gouma-Peterson)
gallery dedicated that originated Virgin Peribleptos
in Constantinople in order to foreground
the core elements of Byzantine art in its last
centuries. Indeed, numerous entries in the
referred to works as its fall to the Ottoman Turks. Of a fresco illustrat
accompanying catalog following Constantinople, fragment
of Palaiologan or as exam interest was a woodblock
exemplary style particular depict ing Franciscan friars from the Kyriotissa

ples of the Palaiologan Renaissance. The ing the siege of the Byzantine capital in Monastery (Kalenderpl?ne Camii) in Istan
use of such concepts have been 1453 (cat. no. 247A). Other views, such as bul (cat. no. 274), was not in the exhibition.
might
tested in a separate gallery. Another the procession of S?leyman the Magnificent Other works, the Arsenal Old Testament
impor
tant raised in the first half of the the hippodrome (cat. no.
problem through by Pieter Coecke 272) and the Perugia Missal (cat.
show was the question of dating and prove van Aelst (cat. no. 253), the pag no. 276) among them, however, gave a
displayed
nance. With the field of Late Byzantine of the Ottoman court while record sense of the artistic was in
eantry style that popular
studies in art history in its infancy evidence for the survival the Crusader Levant. These
largely ing documentary manuscripts
and with many works still unpublished, a of Byzantine monuments in the postcon have often been used as of reference
points
number of the objects in the show could quest city. Two examples of sixteenth-cen for a set of icons from Mount Sinai painted

only be assigned to a century or tury brocaded silks with Christian themes in what has been called the Crusader
broadly style.
two. Future work should refine these (cat. nos. 269, 270) reveal the tolerance of Restrictions on
help imposed by the monastery
dates as more comparative material be the Ottomans for the continued the display of the icons, however,
production prevented
comes available. for many works of ecclesiastical textiles. Yet several the examination of these works side by side.
Similarly, objects
the attribution to specific sites of manufac in the
gallery merited inclusion here only Although the ninth gallery showed paintings
ture remained of the la
premature. Many by the narrowest criteria. A late-twelfth-cen executed in Venice and in Crete, its colony,
bels listed multiple cities
for the prove tury Psalter housed in Constantinople's fa none by Paolo Veneziano, whose work has
nance, often followed by question marks. In mous in the fourteenth been to Cretan frescoes
Hodegon Monastery profitably compared
a number of cases, the provenance was (a recent
century gift to the museum) was of the fourteenth century, were on view.16
as Byzantium,
given generically frustratingly selected by virtue of an inscription of 1554 The absence of panel paintings by such Ital
broad but unfortunately accurate. Scholars (not visible in the display) the ian masters as Duccio and Giotto consti
recording
of the period are well aware that styles par execution of the Christian Nicholas Pazartis tuted another missed to recon
opportunity,
ticular to flourished simulta in the (cat. no. 255). sider remarks made Vasari about
specific regions hippodrome Similarly, by Giorgio
neously and independently. The movement several excluded items would have been wel the maniera greca. In addition, southern Ital
of artists as fortunes fur come additions, such as textiles with tir?z ian works, were
political changed unfortunately, underrepre
ther the picture. to bands of the kind noted
complicates Corollary by Antonio sented.
the issue of style?whether Byzantine or Pisanello, which made their way into so The final held some of the most
by gallery
zantinizing?is the question of influence, many Italian paintings of the period, and interesting, and some of the most problem
which was the gal metal decorated with Christian atic, material in the show. Divided a thin
omnipresent throughout objects by
leries. The nature of such influence is criti themes, which would have complemented wall, from
objects fifteenth-century Italy
cal to the of the material, for the enameled am were on one
understanding glass bottle and glazed installed side, those from
after the seventh gallery the exhibition phora (cat. no. 244). Altogether, the display northern on the other. We entered
Europe
shifted to the interaction of the Orthodox of such diverse within a the world of fifteenth-century
objects single gal Italy in order
peoples with
their non-Orthodox lery might have offered an to to consider how the Byzantines were per
neighbors. opportunity
The next(small) raised the issue evaluate the artistic koine that has been ceived on Italian soil, both as visitors and as
gallery
of Byzantium and Islam. This, the eighth noted in luxury arts of the eastern Mediter residents. For Italians such as Pisanello, who
contained an odd assortment of ob ranean. the likeness of the em
gallery, masterfully captured
jects produced either for Islamic communi The galleries featured works peror John VIII Palaiologos and members
remaining
ties or for indigenous Christians in Islamic produced in Crusader contexts and in Italy. of his retinue while attended the Coun
they
lands. A number of works in this one of the most cil of Ferrara, the Byzantines to
important Unfortunately, important appeared
contained views of Constantinople works from the Crusader of be exotic creatures Pisanello's close
gallery occupation (Fig. 6).
 ART BULLETIN JUNE 2005 VOLUME LXXXVII NUMBER 2
336

sionate responses. What would the

Byzantines have thought about the Nether

landish Madonnas placed in domestic set
a merchant have
tings? Would from Bruges

thought the Virgin Hodegetria remote?

What gave the last gallery its interest was its

presentation of the tantalizing possibility of

direct influence. Whether scholars will ac

cept this idea as valid or not remains to be

seen. Clearly, the issue of differences in aes
thetics and devotional practices is much
more than the exhibition at
complicated
times seemed to suggest. These divergences
may be much more and difficult
powerful
to define than the formal similarities of rep
resentation. Yet, in the end, despite these
differences, Byzantine and early modern
served the same both
paintings purpose,
intended as aids to devotion, lead
religious
the to elevation
ing supplicant spiritual
through contemplation of the material

beauty of sacred figures.

Without benefit of the catalog, certain
themes emerged from the groupings of ob

jects within the galleries. The visitor was

squarely confronted with exempla of Chris

tian faith and as manifested in de
practice
votional works of both East and West. In the
affective arose in monas
West, piety, which
tic circles and was vigorously championed
the Franciscans, gave rise to the graphic
by
representation of Christ's humility and suf

fering. It has been

argued that the proto
for these was the Byzantine
type images
Man of Sorrows. But whereas in the West
emotional responses to such images
private
were cultivated, this was not the
carefully
case in Byzantium, where were linked
they
with the corporate celebration of the Eucha
rist and of Christ's Passion during Holy
Week. Along similar lines, the Virgins in the
East are placed against golden backgrounds,
as if emerging from some
otherworldly
realm. The Western Madonnas often inhabit
domestic spaces, in which artifacts of every

day life are used to engage the viewer in

common and affective
experience bonding.
4 Icon with the Deesis and five saints, late 13th or 14th Sinai, the Holy Part of the difficulty in understanding dif
century. Egypt,
Monastery of St. Catherine through the courtesy of the Michigan ferences in responses to these works stems
(photo: reproduced
Princeton-Alexandria to Mount Sinai) from them divorced from their
Expedition seeing origi
nal contexts. The majority of Byzantine
icons come from churches?many of the
ones were installed in icon screens?
larger
attention to details of costume and military larly those representing the Virgin, and but the initial placement of the Western
the tir?z band on the of the Madonna and Christ exe is not fully explained in the exhi
equipment, including paintings paintings
robe, serves as a foil for cuted by such masters as Hans Memling, bition. Even if it is hard for us to discern
emperor's pictorial
detailed van der Weyden, Jan van Eyck, Ge the difference between images
Sylvester Syropoulos's descriptions Rogier comparable
of the Italians of the same Al rard David, and Dieric Bouts. These com in the East and West, it is clear that people
period.17
though the name Bessarion (1403-1472) parisons patently demonstrated the degree of the time recognized the divisions. In the
earlier
in the exhibition, it is in to which Western artists drew inspiration fifteenth century, Sylvester Syropoulos
appeared
this final that we first saw a portrait from works. But the discussion records an raised by the emper
gallery Byzantine objection,
of the famed convert to Catholi needed greater which
nuance, have or's confessor, Melissenos, to using
Byzantine might Gregory
cism, a cardinal, and avid col been if actual Byzantine icons a Latin-rite church for Orthodox services
subsequently provided
lector (cat. no. 324). Adjacent to his por (rather than black-and-white the Council of Ferrara (1438) as fol
reproductions) during
trait was the cover for his staurotheke, the had been the northern lows: "When I enter a Latin church, I do
displayed alongside
sliding lid of a reliquary of the True Cross, works. Within the gallery, no
explanation
not revere any of the saints there that are
with an elaborate scene of the Cru was of how the Byzantine or which because I do not recognize any of them. At
painted given style
cifixion (cat. no. 325). Byzantine style arrived in northern Europe. the most, I may recognize Christ, but I do
The final component of the show con In considering the aesthetics of faith one not revere Him either, since I do not know
sisted of paintings from northern was forced, in looking from icon to paint in what terms he is inscribed. So I make the
Europe.
The viewer was asked to the ing, to consider how panels of wood cov
sign of the cross and I revere this sign that I
contemplate
similarities between icons, particu ered in pigment could such pas have made and not anything that I
Byzantine engender myself,
 EXHIBITION REVIEW: GKRSTEL ON BYZANTIUM 337

see there."18 For Melissenos, there can be

no devotional without the identi
experience
fication of the depicted or its
figure inscrip
tion. Throughout the show, inscriptions
played
a secondary role to images. Yet it was
the inscription, in the posticonoclastic
world, that performed as the guarantor of

authenticity; without these labels, spelled

out or abbreviated, the icon could not prop

erly function.
The issue of framing, both narrowly and
defined, was a focus of the exhibi
broadly
tion. Two bilateral icons, one from the
Vlatadon Monastery in Thessalonike (cat.
no. 82) and the other in the collection of
the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul
(cat. no. 90), are composites formed of
small panels set within later works. The join
between the panels is disguised on the re
verse by the application of a cloth layer be
low the painted scenes. On the obverse,
however, the contrast between old and new
is emphasized and the thematic juxtaposi
tions purposeful. The miniature mosaic icon
of the Akra or Man of Sorrows
Tapeinosis,
(cat. no. 131), as we have seen, was encased
within a cabinet when it traveled
reliquary
from Byzantium to Italy. Framed by the rel
ics of nearly one hundred and fifty saints,
the Man of Sorrows, the archetypal image of
Christ's Passion, visually recalls the suffering
of the martyrs whose bones, housed within
individual compartments, constitute tactile
and visual reminders of suffering and sacri
fice. But framing also meant creating obfus
cation with revetments of gold or silver in
order to reveal glimpses of hands and faces
(cat. nos. 4, 150-55). The understanding of
revelation concealment was intui
through
tive to the Byzantines, who mere mo
caught
ments of the liturgical service framed by
high screens, which heightened the sanctity
and drama of the liturgy. The issue of fram
to the broader
ing also extends questions
asked by the show, which includes the in

quiry into icons and aesthetics raised above.

on
The word influence, which appeared
labels the galleries, was another
throughout 5 Icon of the Xeros detail. the Archbishop Makarios III
family, 1356, Nicosia, Cyprus,
significant theme of the show. Scholars have
Foundation Cultural Centre
rightly questioned the use of the term to
describe the process by which artistic forms
are altered cultural forces.19 For
by external
the material under consideration in this ex
hibition, was as as in mentioned church chandelier sus looked back to their historical monuments,
reception important ously
fluence. In the late medieval world, influ pended in the second
gallery. The metal copying venerable works and styles associ
ence and reception can be attributed to a framework is decorated with openwork ated with powerful dynasties and golden
them the coexist double-headed and quad These so-called renaissances in
variety of factors, among sphinxes, eagles, ages. appear
ence of different in a single land, all of which, to the label, Byzantium cycles of disruption,
after such as
peoples rupeds, according
trade, "resemble Islamic motifs." Iconoclasm or the Latin occupation, when
diplomatic exchanges, intermarriage, thirteenth-century
and artistic With the of the double-headed was drawn to the security and pres
missionary activity, copying. exception society
Each of these instances, in which two or eagle, however, these motifs had long been tige enjoyed by previous generations. A leaf
more cultures collided, engendered differ incorporated into the Byzantine artistic rep from a thirteenth-century Psalter represent
ent of influence, on the ertoire, the notion of direct influ ing King David standing between personifi
degrees ranging, making
part of the receiving culture, from knowing ence
misleading. cations of Wisdom and Prophecy (cat. no.
assimilation to subconscious emulation. Fur Together with ideas of influence, the ex 159; see similarly fig. 9.10, MS Vat. Palat.
ther the issue of influence is hibition the opportunity to exam Gr. 381 [B]) conspicuously the Paris
complicating provided copies
in which ine the intentional rejection of influence Psalter (Biblioth?que Nationale de France,
Byzantium's thousand-year history,
artistic styles were consid cultural introspection and the ap MS gr. 139), one of the most lavish manu
long-integrated through
ered art forms. The differences of styles and from the of the tenth century. Associated with
indigenous propriation subjects scripts
between or even choices that gave rise to the early rulers of the Macedonian dynasty, the
primary, secondary, tertiary past?artistic
influence needed to be more thoughtfully notion of a Palaiologan "renaissance." In all Paris Psalter proclaimed imperial virtues
demonstrated. A case in point is the previ of Byzantium, artists and patrons through the of the story of
periods representation
 ART BULLETIN JUNE 2005 VOLUME LXXXVII NUMBER 2
338

by the architectural historian Slobodan Cur

cic, introduces the second section of the
w devoted to the church, ecclesiastical
catalog,
and Curcic's
*? *
furnishings,
essay primarily
liturgical
centers on monastic
objects.
architec
on those buildings con
;'-v-,i4r:*i;?^r#f()f??i^ ture, especially
structed or decorated
through imperial
or
aristocratic A short essay by
patronage.
Sarah Brooks,
"Sculpture and the Late Byz
antine Tomb," studies imperial and aristo
cratic burials, particularly the sculptural dec
oration of arcosolium tombs. A third essay
in this section, written by Anna Ballian,
examines liturgical implements through
surviving examples and written records.

Inexplicably, the catalog has no essay on

monumental painting, which should have
succeeded Curcic's contribution. As noted
above, monumental was one of the
painting
sfe
greatest achievements of the Palaiologan

period. Its absence from the show and the

are to say the least. The
catalog regrettable,
catalog entries that end this section gather
together objects scattered throughout the
show. Of particular value is the pairing of
6 Antonio Pisanello, studies of Emperor John VIII Palaiologos and his retinue, 1438 of building interiors with
photographs
39. Paris, Mus?e du Louvre, des Arts The Metro of sculpture and church
D?partement Graphiques (photo: pieces furnishings
politan Museum of Art) (cat. nos. 34, 37, 39, 41, 60). Thanks to the

arrangement of the catalog, the church as a

building and space for worship is much

more articulated here than in the
clearly
exhibition.
David. Thus, in addition to their aesthetic the public. many in the field The third section of the catalog is dedi
Unfortunately,
appreciation of earlier works, artists and pa viewed this as an opportunity lost. cated to the
subject of icons in various me
trons of the thirteenth century The exhibition's lavish 658-page dia, from panel to textiles. Draw
appropriated catalog, paintings
art forms an eye toward for a scholarly
earlier with their produced audience, contains ing on her own experience in witnessing
social and seventeen thematic essays of varying length the modern-day use of devotional
political implications. panels,
One of the greatest of launch as well as entries for each of the exhibited Annemarie Carr sensitively
challenges Weyl analyzes
ing such an ambitious exhibition lay in pre works. The authors include senior scholars three of Late Byzantine icons in her
aspects
material to a wide range of in the field, museum curators, and an arch essay: the growing of panel
senting complex importance
audiences. The first step entailed
collecting bishop, along with several younger scholars paintings in number and scale, the respon
and installing hundreds of works; the sec who worked as part of the exhibition team. sive clusters of images, and the self-referen
ond, displaying the works in a meaningful More than one hundred authors, many of tiality of icons.20 A short essay by Arne Ef
way. Discussions with visitors to the exhibi them associated with institutions, fenberger considers the miniature mosaic
lending
tion revealed that many could not grasp the the catalog entries. As mentioned icons exhibited in the fourth
composed together gal
of the a the divisions of the catalog do not icons were
underlying meaning show; indeed, above, lery. As the author shows, mosaic
number commented that it simply con to the of in collectible outside
correspond placement objects highly objects Byzantium,
tained too many works. Rather thanappre the exhibition, and some catalog entries in the West, which may
particularly explain
ciating developments in certain types of differ with the museum's labels. the survival of such a large number of these
viewers saw the of The first essay, authored
icons, many duplication by the principal precious works. Jannic Durand's insightful
as In the absence of in curator, Helen C. Evans, serves as a general essay, "Precious-Metal Icon Revetments,"
images repetitious.
materials, some found the show introduction. Here, Evans the chro surveys of metal revet
terpretative explains surviving examples
too difficult and left the galleries in search boundaries of the exhibition, ments as well as those mentioned in church
nological
of displays of more familiar (and comfort identifies major artistic centers, and gives a inventories. Durand on the work of
expands
able?) works. From the standpoint of an ac brief summation of the history of the period Andr? Grabar by adding examples unknown
ademic whose research teaching and
focus as well as some information about to the earlier scholar, and also by discussing
Byzanti
on the under consideration, the dis um's interactions with cultures. the surviving revetments within the context
period neighboring
junction between the way in which Late By In the next essay, Alice-Mary Talbot intro of popular devotional His essay
practices.
zantine art was in the show and duces translated texts from
the period in ends with a brief treatment of the formal
presented
the manner in which it is taught in the order to illuminate the place of Constanti relation of metal revetments to the low
classroom was A quick survey and the impact of its fall on its citi relief gesso decoration that covers the back
disheartening. nople
courses on Late art zens. These two essays are followed
of graduate Byzantine by en ground of a number of painted panels (as
offered in the United States over the last tries describing the works bearing portraits well as monumental icons). He concludes
five years discloses that most are of the Byzantines and their neighbors. Rul that the gesso in locations
found
organized technique,
or a ers from and Romania are from the Holy Land and Mount
thematically, by medium, by city; large Serbia, Bulgaria, ranging
number address issues of cross-cultural in represented in the first gallery of the exhibi Sinai to Italy, "poses with the
singular acuity
teraction trade, gift exchange, or as tion, yet the catalog does not adequately of reciprocal between
through problem exchanges
the result of war and subsequent cohabita address the origin and rise of these sibling Italian and Byzantine art in these regions
tion. I could not find a single seminar that states, which were
frequently at odds with from the thirteenth century onward" (p.
explicitly addressed the aesthetics of Late Byzantium. 249). Although manuscript illumination in
art. Ambitious exhibitions like A lengthy essay entitled Set the Late Byzantine has often been
Byzantine "Religious period
this one extend an
opportunity to educate
tings of the Late Byzantine Sphere," written viewed as a poor relation to works produced
 EXHIBITION REVIEW: GERSTEL ON BYZANTIUM 339

before the Latin John Lowden, of the fourteenth century). A number of for chrism is speculative; more based
occupation, likely,
in his essay
"Manuscript Illumination in By entries also contain assertions that are un on its size, it was used as a container for
zantium, 1261-1557," reassesses the impor founded or For example, water or wine.
highly speculative. holy
tance of books in the late period. in an account of the Icon of the Forty Mar on and the West, the
Among Essays Byzantium
other things, the late period witnessed the tyrs of Sebasteia from Sinai (cat. no. 225), strongest section of the volume, are intro
rise of scribes who, like monumental artists, the author compares the bathhouse de duced a fine of scholarship au
by piece
abandoned Lowden in the upper corner to thored
increasingly anonymity. picted right-hand by Anne Derbes and Amy Neff. Al
raised other the notion of the silver-and-gilt incense or
important points: burner lamp in though the role of the mendicant orders in
a renaissance, which, the the S. Marco She concludes that artistic in the eastern Medi
Palaiologan given Treasury.21 developments
retention of traditional styles and forms, he "the image on this icon suggests that the terranean is alluded to in a number of la
sees as a "Counter-Renaissance," and the Venetian work, often called an incense bels within the
exhibition, in
particularly
emergence of new texts for illustration. He burner, may be a miniature bathhouse for relation to works of Cilician Armenia, their
also addresses the economic dimensions of use in conjunction with the elaborate cere exact role is never out. In this essay,
spelled
illuminated manuscripts; the materials used monies of the bath" (p. 369). Equally dubi "Italy, the Mendicant Orders, and the Byz
for book the repair of older ous is the suggestion made, in connection antine the authors discuss the pres
production; Sphere,"
manuscripts; and instances in which newly with the Vatican Sakkos (cat. no. 177), that ence and mission of mendicant friars in the
illuminated pages were added into older the elaborate robe belonged to Gregory East, their devotional practices, religious
books. A brief introduction to liturgical tex Palamas, for which there is no evidence. In images that they favored, and institutions
a discussion of the of the Virgin assess
tiles, written by Warren Woodfin, adduces Icon Galak that they founded. The authors the
earlier Byzantine as well as Late from Sinai (cat. no. 215), the influence of Byzantine on the for
Byzantine totrophousa imagery
texts to clarify the function and symbolic author claims that this type of Virgin "is not mation of Franciscan such as
iconography,
of the embroidered silk cloths seen often in Byzantine art." This, however, the appropriation of the Man of Sorrows
meaning
used for vestments is not the case. In the late period, of
and church ceremony. images image for the purposes of affective worship
Writing about Saint
Cyril and the Belozersk the nursing Virgin appear often in monu (see, for example, cat. nos. 203, 204) or the
in Russia, Irina Solov'eva ex mental use of the genre of the vita icon to promote
Monastery painting.
icons and textiles associated with that The last section of the catalog concerns the cult of mendicant saints. Another
plores topic
institution and its founding saint. The final the interaction of Byzantium with other cul of interest is the creation of visual hybrids
essay in this section of the volume, written tures, beginning with the Islamic world. The that appear to synthesize Western and East
Damianos of the monastery first essay, by Scott Redford, and ern themes in a single work. are
by Archbishop "Byzantium Examples
of St. Catherine, Mount Sinai, offers the the Islamic World, 1261-1557," investigates cited from both Sinai and Armenia. It is un
reader a on the func the of clear, however, whether the introduction of
religious perspective exchange luxury
objects through dip
tion of icons, seeing them as the visual ana lomatic gifts,
war
booty, trade, and inter such figures
as the
grieving Mary Magdalen
to the spiritual ex or
logues journey undertaken marriage, along with the effect of such the Madonna of Mercy indicates direct
the monk, as in the Heav on artistic and the Franciscan influence or influence
by exemplified changes production secondary
of Saint John Klimakos. of Western commercial activities which had close ties to
enly Ladder expansion through Cyprus,
The entries on icons are in the Levant. Redford outlines both Sinai and Cilician Armenia. There may
catalog richly helpfully
illustrated, details of the larger the development of an artistic koine that was be, indeed, a
tendency in this exhibition to
including
In the case of the miniature mosaic in as well as in works the lens of
panels. expressed luxury objects overinterpret through
icons, these details allow the reader to scru humbler wares and the importance of a Franciscan patronage and production. In a
tinize the production technique of this ex shared court culture in which certain sym catalog entry on the fresco fragment with
art form. The inclusion of photo bols, of territorial or cultural Franciscan friars from the Kyriotissa Monas
acting regardless
graphs and descriptions of the reverse sides boundaries, conveyed similar meanings of tery in Constantinople (cat. no. 274), the
of a number of icons
provide valuable infor status. An essay by Thelma K. Thomas stud author, on the basis of a cross-media com
mation on function
and workshop. This is ies the Christian communities in to the
indigenous parison "bulging-eye style" of the Ar
of particular importance for the Sinai icons, Egypt, Syria, Armenia, and Ethiopia. senal Old Testament (cat. no. 272), at
which are often decorated with a character Thomas contrasts in Cairo tributes the frescoes to "French artists
developments
istic pattern of wavy red and black brush and Jerusalem and considers monasteries influenced by Byzantine models and tech
strokes. The entries on these latter icons outside urban such as St. The of an or
Italian artist
settings, Antony, niques. possibility
address the of assigning various near the Red Sea coast, and Deir Mar Musa artists, however, deserves further consider
complexity
styles to artists from various locations. Many al-Habashi, north of Damascus. For these ation." The following sentence "In
begins,
of these entries modify attributions first two monuments, Thomas relies on these frescoes . . ."
heavily painted by Westerners.
made by Kurt Weitzmann and reflect recent recent workby Elizabeth Bolman and Erica (p. 464). In asserting the exclusive role of
advances (of the last decade) in decoding Cruikshank Dodd. She unfortunately pays Western artists in this monumental pro
the Cypriot, and little attention to the significant the author a
Armenian, Coptic, Syrian, religious gram, disregards large body of
"Western" strains that
comprise the painting and artistic traditions in Armenia and Ethio scholarship that argues that the Kalender
sec
style generically termed Crusader. pia. More generally, the entries in this hane frescoes were, in fact, painted by Byz
As in other sections of the the tion of the catalog are often antine artists who are also associated with
catalog, poorly
entries on in quality. Noteworthy
icons vary matched to the essays. the decoration of the thirteenth-century
are written treats at the
those by Yuri Piatnitsky, Jannic Although Redford's essay luxury frescoes in the chapel of St. George
Durand, and Georgi R. Parpulov. A number hisessay is followed, for the most Chilandar on Mount Athos.24
goods, Monastery
of entries are
fairly brief and purely descrip part, by representations of Constantinople/ In "Venice and the Byzantine Sphere,"
tive, perhaps in deference to the fact that Istanbul in various media. The entries on a Maria focuses on
Georgopoulou primarily
many of these works have been and a bottle (cat. nos. 257, 258) that Crete, from the perspective of both the col
displayed dagger
time and again in numerous exhibitions. follow Thomas's essay would have fit more onizers and the indigenous population. A
The on the after Redford's. The on the to the sub
short entry the Pafsolype icon, profitably entry large part of her essay is devoted
first object displayed in the exhibition (cat. bottle, which repeats and simplifies informa ject of icon painters in post-Byzantine Crete,
no. 90), was written without direct examina tion from an entry of Stefano Carboni in who worked both in forma alia latina and in
tion of the work, and readers should be the exhibition catalog for Glass of the Sul forma alia greca. Organized into workshops,
aware that some of the information given, tans,22 fails to cite a recent volume these named traveled
by painters through
including the dating of the two panels, is Rachel Ward that presents the state of re Greece and Italy and created works for both
incorrect (most likely, only the central search for this precious medium.23 The as Orthodox and Catholic patrons. An interest
can be attributed to the second half sertion that this very bottle was used section of her essay treats the
panel large ing expatriate
340 ART BULLETIN JUNE 2005 VOLUME LXXXVII NUMBER 2

Greek of Venice, its role in sence of a clear definition of Late Byzantine of Orthodox Christians. The
community experience
in the as an index not
founding churches city, and the in style that might have served by Metropolitan did provide much assis
troduction of Greek philosophical and liter which to compare works created outside the tance toward that end. Confronted with for

ary texts to the Republic. imperial borders. The reluctance to define

eign alphabets and multiple images of the
In an excellent essay, "Byzantium and the Byzantine style gives rise
to the
impression,
same
unvarying figures, many viewers had
Rebirth of Art and Learning in Italy and noted above, that Byzantium as such is little choice but to focus on the aesthetic
France," Robert Nelson traces the effect of from the show and the cata of the objects, on
largely missing qualities commenting
Byzantine scholars, such as Manuel Chry log, having been diluted into an
amorphous brushstrokes or details of r?pouss?, not
soloras (ca. 1350-1415), and Greek books, Eastern Christian amalgam. The lack of a comprehending the deeper meaning and
such as Ptolemy's Geography,
on humanistic detailed historical treatment
the period of is significance of these objects.
studies in Italy. Addressing the intellectual another lacuna. Smaller problems, such as In the final analysis, the show itself em
motivations to collect
and preserve Byzan inconsistencies in the rendering of names bodies the very question of whether or not
tine manuscripts, of or of Greek as "works
along with the impact inscriptions (for example, Lips/ icons should be classified of art."
Greek letters on the Italian Renaissance, Livos; Stiris/Steiriotes; Ohrid/Achris), can For the Byzantines, whose own views on
concentrates on two great to the involvement of so many were informed
Nelson cardinals be attributed image theory by Platonic
of the fifteenth century: Bessarion (1403 authors, whose work, in many cases, had to
philosophy and Christian theology, the an
1472) and Francesco (1444-1483). be translated for this edition. There are mi swer to this was articulated
Gonzaga question only
The entries in this part of the catalog, writ nor mistakes in Greek, after centuries of cultural and
including differing introspection
ten by Nelson, Carmen C. Bambach, Georgi standards of abbreviation for such titles as doctrinal disputation. For them, as for mod
Maria and Mother of God, as well as er ern Orthodox viewers, the contemplation of
Parpulov, Georgopoulou, typographical
Scher, are of cali rors (see, for example, cat. nos. 52, 143, the image, no matter how it was painted or
Stephen uniformly high
ber and tightly coordinated with the theme 148). The references to the framed, was a means to the sacred
multiple Oxford approach
of the introductory essay. In contemplating Dictionary of Byzantium rather than to schol and for the sacred to them. For
approach
Pisanello's of Emperor are on
studies John VIII arly articles and monographs surprising the Metropolitan Museum of Art, fixed

Palaiologos and his retinue (cat. nos. 318A, in a work of this caliber, as is the advertis the aesthetics of icons and wrapped in its
B), Bambach shares the state-of-the-field a number own the answer
ing of of unpublished doctoral museological concerns,26 is
on the two pages from the artist's dissertations, some of which were unfin also clear. In a blockbuster show where no
analysis
sketchbook preserved in the Mus?e du ished at the time of the catalog's publica alternative perspective is offered, icons are,
and the Art Institute of Chi tion (see, for example, cat. no. 49 n. 4). of art. And
Louvre, Paris, indeed, purely works for many

(Fig. 6). This section of the catalog References to published works within the of the im
cago viewers, captivated by the beauty
forms the blueprint for a much entries are uneven, with a schol
larger show catalog significant ages, maybe that's sufficient. From
that one hopes will be realized in the fu studies often omitted.25 Despite these prob arly point of view, though,
a
period of such
ture. lems, the overall of the volume is demanded a different type of
editing complexity
In the volume's final essay, Maryan W. good. That
so few mistakes
appeared is a exhibition.
Ainsworth dissects the transmission tribute to the staff that oversaw its produc
carefully
of Byzantine and style to northern tion. SHARON E.J. GERSTEL is associate
subjects
of Byzantine art was Byzantium: Faith and Power was
conceived, professor of medieval art at the
Europe. Knowledge University of
both direct, as in the of from its beginnings, not as a mu Los Angeles
commissioning typical California, [Department of Art
Cretan icons for the Flanders market, and seum show but as a blockbuster exhibition. Los Angeles,
History, University of California,
indirect, as in the circulation in the north The success of The Glory of Byzantium, with 100 Dodd Hall, Los Angeles, 90095-1417,
Calif.
of engravings and woodcuts based on its record-breaking crowds, multiple ucla. edu].
Byzan print gerstel@humnet.
tine images. That Byzantine icons traveled ings of its catalog, and laudatory reviews,
to the north is documented in the invento had taught the Metropolitan that the great
ries of private collections, such as that of empire of the East was not only chic but Notes
Jean, duc de Berry. Conversely, northern also profitable. And the timing for the cur 1. The other exhibitions at the Metropolitan
artists traveled to Italy, where rent Museum of Art were Age of Spirituality, Novem
they may have show proved auspicious. With the de
viewed firsthand icons or Italo struction of religious monuments in Kosovo ber 19, 1977-February 12, 1978; and The Glory
Byzantine
works. Noteworthy is Ainsworth's headlines, the Amer of Byzantium, A.D. 843-1261, March 11-July 6,
Byzantine dominating newspaper 1997. The exhibitions were published as Kurt
discussion of the types of icons that circu ican public was eager to examine cultural
Weitzmann, ed., Age of Spirituality: Late Antique
treasures at the center
lated, primarily images of the Virgin (specif that have
long been and Early Christian Art, Third to Seventh Century
types attributed to the hand of Saint of national strife
and religious violence. (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art,
ically
and of Christ, such as the Man of the surprising success of Mel Gib 1977); and Helen C. Evans and William D.
Luke) Moreover,
son's The Passion Wixom, eds., The Glory of Byzantium: Art and
Sorrows. The author also explores how Byz of the Christ, which had
Culture of theMiddle Byzantine Era, A.D. 843
antine-style icons could be used for religious dominated movie box offices in the weeks
1261 (New York: Metropolitan Museum of
and political to the exhibition's
propaganda. Finally, Ainsworth prior opening, suggested Art, 1997).
studies the issue of copying icons that the public was ready and willing to ab
important 2. Helen C. Evans, "Byzantium: Faith and Power
and how various styles and aspects of reli sorb a show dedicated to the
display of holy in Byzantium: Faith and Power,
(1261-1557),"
derived from or icons, many of them dealing with Christ's 5. For her discussion of historiography, Evans
gious painting, Byzantine
could coexist. The and Crucifixion. But setting aside relies on George Ostrogorsky, History of the
byzantinizing images, suffering
insightful catalog entries that follow, all writ the presentation of artistic masterpieces Byzantine State (New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers
ten illustrate and expand on from empires the Metropolitan University Press, 1969), 2, originally published
by Ainsworth, long past, as Geschichte des Byzantinischen Staates (Munich:
the points made in her
essay. underestimated the complexity of the mate
Beck, 1940), 2. The English version is a re
The essays in this catalog, as well as a rial and perhaps its audience. Viewers who vised edition of Ostrogorsky's original text,
number of the entries, a were not infused from childhood with the which appeared as a volume in the Handbuch
provide helpful
for scholars interested in the of Leo and Constantine der Altertumswissenschaft. For a more detailed
starting point writings Tolstoy
or who were study of Wolf, see Der Vater des deutschen Byzan
study of this period. Like the catalogs for Cavafy unfamiliar with the
tinistik: Das Leben des Hieronymus Wolf von ihm
the exhibitions Age and The Christianity of the Balkans and the Middle
of Spirituality selbst erz?hlt, trans. Hans-Georg Beck (Munich:
this one will serve as a East were a
Glory of Byzantium, surely at disadvantage. In addi
Institut f?r Byzantinistik und neugriechische
standard reference tool for both scholars tion, those raised in religious traditions in
Philologie, 1984).
and students. And yet, like the exhibition which sacred art plays little or no role were 3. Andrea Chronica per extensum de
D?ndolo,
not a sufficient
itself, the catalog is not without certain likely to possess framework
scripta, ed. Ester Pastorello, Rerum italicarum
First them is the ab to imaginatively reconstruct the devotional Scriptores, n.s. (Bologna: Nicola Zanichelli,
shortcomings. among
 EXHIBITION REVIEW: GERSTEL ON BYZANTIUM 34I

1939), vol. 12, pt. 1, 279, line 21. I thank An exhibition Treasures of Christian Art in Bulgaria, sents an argument in an article that I have
thony Cutler for providing me with this refer Markets of Trajan, Rome, May 22-July 15, written based on her reading of a preliminary
ence. 2000. See Valentino Pace, ed., Treasures of draft. The article, Sharon Gerstel, "An Alter
4. See also the work of Johannes Meursius Christian Art in Bulgaria (Sofia: Borina Publish native View of the Late Byzantine Sanctuary
(1579-1639), Nicholas Alemannus (1583 ing House, 2001), 208-9. Screen," will appear in the volume Thresholds
1626), and Leo Allatios (1586/87-1669), who 13. Following the Metropolitan exhibition, the of the Sacred: Architectural, Art Historical, Liturgi
were all responsible for editing Byzantine Sinai material was exhibited at the Benaki cal and Theological Perspectives on Religious
texts. Museum in Athens under the exhibition title Screens, East and West (Washington, D.C.:
5. See, among others, Hans Belting, Likeness and Pilgrimage to Sinai: Treasures from theHoly Mon Dumbarton Oaks, forthcoming).
Presence: A History of the Image before theEra of astery of Saint Catherine, July 20-September 26, 21. See Evans and Wixom,
2004. The catalog for this exhibition re Glory of Byzantium,
Art, trans. Edmund Jephcott (Chicago: Uni 250-51, cat. no. 176.
the essay by Archbishop Damianos,
versity of Chicago Press, 1994); and Robin printed
the Soul: Icons, Death Masks together with new essays by the curator Anas 22. Stefano Carboni and David Whitehouse, eds.,
Cormack, Painting
and Shrouds (London: Reaktion Books, 1997). tasia Drandaki ("The Sinai Monastery from Glass of the Sultans, exh. cat., Metropolitan
The significance of this issue in the context of the 12th to the 15th Century") and Titos Museum of Art, New York, October 2, 2001
the Western visual tradition was addressed in Papamastorakis ("The 'Crusader' Icons in the January 13, 2002, 242-45.
David Freedberg, The Power of Images: Studies Exhibition"). The catalog entries from the
23. Rachel Ward, ed., Gilded and Enamelled Glass
in theHistory and Theory of Response (Chicago: Metropolitan were reprinted without emenda
tion, although the order was changed to re from theMiddle East (London: British Museum
University of Chicago Press, 1989).
flect the new installation. See Anastasia Press, 1998).
6. On this issue, see comments by Slobodan Drandaki, ed., Pilgrimage to Sinai: Treasures 24. See, most recently, Branislav Todic, "Thir
Curcic, Zaga Gravrilovic, and Dusan Korac in
Serbian Studies 11, no. 2 (1997): 2, 9-10, 21. from theHoly Monastery of Saint Catherine (Ath teenth-Century Frescoes in the Parecclesion in
ens: Benaki Museum, 2004). the Tower of St. George in Chilandar," Chi
7. The important study by Ms. Hess is unfortu 14. George Soteriou and Maria Soteriou, Eikones landarski Zbornik 9 (1997): 69, with collected
nately not cited in the catalog. See Kristine tesMones Sina, vol. 2 (Athens: Institut Fran?ais bibliography.
Hess, "The Saint's Presence and the Power of
d'Ath?nes, 1958), 180-81. 25. For the Book of Job, copied by Manuel Tzy
Representation: A Reliquary Box Depicting
the Life of St. John Pr?dromos" 15. Annemarie Weyl Carr, "A Palaiologan Funer kandyles at Mystra (cat. no. 33), see Justine
(master's the
sis, Pennsylvania State University, 2002). ary Icon from Gothic Cyprus," in Acts of the M. Andrews, "Familiar Foreigners: Artistic In
Third International Congress of Cypriot Studies, novations in a Fourteenth-Century Illustrated
8. Ihor Sevcenko, "Alexios Makrembolites and
" ed. George Ioannide and Stelios Chatzestylles on Job," Arte M?di?vale 14
His 'Dialogue between the Rich and the Poor,' Commentary
Zbornik radova VizantoloSkog Institu?a 6 (1960): (Nicosia: Hetaireia Kypriakon Spoudon, (2000): 113-21; for the Poganovo icon (cat.
2001), 600-619. no. 117), see Bissera V. Pentcheva,
209, line 3, 221. "Imagined
16. See, most recently, Francesca Flores d'Arcais Images: Visions of Salvation and Intercession
9. Immanuel Bekker, ed., Nicephori Gregorae By
and Giovanni Gentili, eds., 77 trecento adriatico: on a Double-Sided Icon from Poganovo,"
zantina historia: Graece et Latine, vol. 2, Corpus
Paolo Veneziano e la pittura tra Oriente e Occi Dumbarton Oaks Papers 54 (2000): 139-53; for
scriptorum historiae byzantinae, 7 (Bonn: E.
dente (Milan: Silvana, 2002). the staurotheke of Cardinal Bessarion (cat. no.
Weber, 1830), 788.
17. Vitalien Laurent, ed., Les "m?moires" du Grand 325), see Anthony Cutler, "From Loot to
10. Fortunately, some visitors were able to view
Changing Modes in the Italian
Eccl?siarque de l'?glise de Constantinople Sylvestre Scholarship:
the exhibition Restoring Byzantium: The Kariye to Byzantine Artifacts, ca. 1200
Camii in Istanbul and the Byzantine Institute Res Syropouhs sur le concile de Florence (1438-1439), Response
Concilium Florentinum documenta et scrip 1750," Dumbarton Oaks Papers 49 (1995): 237
toration, which was held at the Miriam and Ira
D. Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia University, tores, ser. B, vol. 9 (Rome: Pontificium Insti 68. Many other references could be added.
tutum Orientalium Studiorum, 1971).
New York, April 14-June 12, 2004. See 26. In his introduction to the catalog, the direc
18. Laurent, "M?moires" du Grand Eccl?siarque Syro
Holger Klein, ed., Restoring Byzantium: The tor of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Phi
sec. 46, trans. Cyril Mango,
Kariye Camii in Istanbul and the Byzantine Insti poulos, 250-51, lippe de Montebello, states, "In 1997 the land
tute Restoration (New York: Columbia Univer The Art of theByzantine Empire, 312-1453: mark presentation 'The Glory of Byzantium'
sity, 2004). Sources and Documents (Toronto: University of
focused on the art and culture of the Middle
Toronto Press, 1986), 254.
11. For a similar work, though littie known, see Byzantine era.... 'Byzantium: Faith and
Pierre-Louis Gatier, "Un chapiteau byzantin 19. See, for example, Michael Baxandall, Patterns Power (1261-1557)' now seeks to enhance
de la Fondation Pi?rides," Report of theDepart of Intention: On theHistorical Explanation of Pic public appreciation of the exceptional artistic
ment of Antiquities Cyprus, 1990 (Nicosia: De tures (New Haven: Yale University Press, of an era too often consid
accomplishments
partment of Antiquities, 1990), 187-88. 1985), 58-62. ered primarily in terms of political decline"
12. This work was most recently featured in the 20. The author (p. 145) unfortunately misrepre (p. x).