The details of Greek ornament become the fillings of the
frames and panels of the large initials.
The Cistercian illuminators, or rather calligraphers, while they
constantly repudiate the golden splendour and monstrous follies of their
rivals, absolutely excel in this same ornamental draughtsmanship. What,
for example, could be finer than the pen-drawing of the great Arnstein
Bible in the British Museum (Harl. 2800)? The ornament is mostly in a
red ink, with flat-coloured blue, green, or yellow backgrounds, but it
is not to be surpassed. No, the interlacements and coils, foliages and
panels of the twelfth century are absolutely among the finest examples
of ornamental lettering ever conceived. Illuminating seemed at this
epoch to be more and more closely following the details of contemporary
architecture, and so paving the way to the next great variety of the
art, which is looked upon by some writers as the real beginning of
medi?val illumination.
It must be admitted, however, that the excellence limits itself to the
ornament. The human figure is wretchedly incorrect--even barbarous. It
may be asked why is this? How is it that while the decorative portion of
an illuminated book is beautiful in the highest degree, both in line and
colour, and yet occasionally the artist seems not to have the remotest
idea of the true shape of hands and feet or any part of the human body?
Of course the usual explanation offered is that monastic education did
not permit the study of the nude, and hence the monkish ignorance of
figure drawing.
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