- Date:
- c. 600 - 1066
Anglo-Saxon art
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What is Anglo-Saxon art?
Anglo-Saxon art encompasses manuscript illumination and architecture in Britain from the 7th century to the Norman Conquest in 1066. It divides into pre- and post-Danish invasion periods.
Before the 9th century, manuscript illumination was prominent, with schools in Canterbury and Northumbria. The Hiberno-Saxon style, characterized by geometric design, bright coloring, zoomorphic interlace patterns, and complicated interlace patterns, influenced manuscript production. Examples include the Lindisfarne Gospels, the Book of Durrow, and the Book of Kells.
Post-Danish invasions, a monastic revival in the mid-10th century spurred architectural interest. Anglo-Saxon architecture, influenced by continental types, featured timber construction and square eastern terminations. The Winchester school of illumination emerged, characterized by classical naturalism and expressive lines.
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When and where was Anglo-Saxon art created?
Anglo-Saxon art, encompassing manuscript illumination and architecture, flourished in Britain from around the 7th century to the Norman Conquest in 1066. Before the Danish invasions of the 9th century, manuscript illumination was the dominant art form, with influential schools in Canterbury and Northumbria. After the monasteries were revived in the mid-10th century, interest in architecture grew, with Anglo-Saxon building influenced by continental types. The monastic revival also led to the rise of the Winchester school of illumination in the second half of the 10th century.
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What materials did Anglo-Saxon artists commonly use?
Anglo-Saxon artists employed various materials and techniques in their artwork. Before the 9th century, manuscript illumination was a major art form, characterized by geometric design, flat areas of color, and interlace patterns found in works like the Lindisfarne Gospels.
Pagan Anglo-Saxon metalwork traditions used bright coloring and zoomorphic interlace patterns. Silver was a prominent material for ornamentation, jewelry, and coinage due to its brilliance and resistance to oxidation. Silverworking techniques included casting, chasing, embossing, engraving, forging, inlaying, and enameling. The Sutton Hoo burial site revealed gold artifacts and imported silverware, demonstrating Anglo-Saxon England's wealth and connections.
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What are some famous examples of Anglo-Saxon art?
Anglo-Saxon art, which flourished in Britain from the 7th century to the Norman Conquest in 1066, can be divided into two periods separated by the Danish invasions of the 9th century.
Before the 9th century, manuscript illumination was the primary art form. The Lindisfarne Gospels, the Book of Durrow, and the Book of Kells exemplify the Hiberno-Saxon style, which integrated Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, and Mediterranean influences.
After the monastic revivals of the mid-10th century, the Winchester school of illumination flowered. The Alfred Jewel, found near Athelney, England, is another famous example of Anglo-Saxon art.
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How did Anglo-Saxon art reflect the culture and beliefs of its people?
Anglo-Saxon art, which flourished in Britain from the 7th century to the Norman Conquest in 1066, offers insights into the culture and beliefs of its people. Before the Danish invasions of the 9th century, manuscript illumination was a major art form. The art was characterized by geometric design rather than naturalistic representation.
The Anglo-Saxons integrated Celtic curvilinear forms with their own abstract ornamentation and zoomorphic interlace patterns. Mediterranean art introduced human figures, but the art retained a love for flat colors and complex interlace. After the monastic revivals of the mid-10th century, a new style emerged from the Winchester school of illumination, characterized by classical naturalism and expressive lines.
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How did Anglo-Saxon art influence later art in England?
Anglo-Saxon art, which flourished in Britain from the 7th century to the Norman Conquest in 1066, significantly shaped later English art. Before the Danish invasions of the 9th century, manuscript illumination was the dominant art form, characterized by geometric design, vibrant colors, and intricate interlace patterns.
After the monastic revivals in the mid-10th century, the Winchester school of illumination emerged, drawing from classical naturalism but with a uniquely expressive style. This "Winchester style" influenced French illumination and Norman art following the conquest of 1066. While smaller parish churches maintained Saxon decorative traditions, Anglo-Norman churches largely abandoned figural sculpture. The Norman preference for timber roofs, rather than the Romanesque stone vaults, further distinguished English Gothic architecture.
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Anglo-Saxon art, manuscript illumination and architecture produced in Britain from about the 7th century to the Norman Conquest of 1066. Anglo-Saxon art may be divided into two distinct periods, one before and one after the Danish invasions of England in the 9th century.
Before the 9th century, manuscript illumination was the major art in Britain. There were two schools of illumination: a somewhat limited one at Canterbury, which produced works influenced by the Roman missionaries who began the Christian conversion of southern England and ensured that models within the classical tradition were used through the 8th century; and a more widely influential school that flourished in Northumbria. Manuscript illumination in northern England received its impetus from a revival of learning initiated in the 7th century by the establishment of monasteries on the island of Lindisfarne and at Wearmouth and Jarrow in Northumbria, institutions that were largely an extension of the Irish monastic system. The Irish monks carried with them an ancient Celtic decorative tradition of curvilinear forms—scrolls, spirals, and a double curve, or shield, motif known as a pelta—that were integrated with the abstract ornamentation of the native pagan Anglo-Saxon metalwork tradition, characterized particularly by bright colouring and zoomorphic interlace patterns. The additional influence, from southern England, of Mediterranean art introduced the representation of the human figure. The characteristics of Hiberno-Saxon art, however, remained basically those of pagan art: concern for geometric design rather than naturalistic representation, love of flat areas of colour, and the use of complicated interlace patterns. All of these elements appear in the great manuscripts produced by the Hiberno-Saxon school: the Lindisfarne Gospels (early 8th century), the Book of Durrow (7th century), and the Book of Kells (c. 800). The Hiberno-Saxon style (q.v.), eventually imported to the European continent, exercised great influence on the art of the Carolingian empire.
The Danish invasions had a disastrous effect on Anglo-Saxon art that was felt until mid-10th century, when the monasteries were revived and interest in architecture grew strong. Some idea of the architecture of the period can be deduced from contemporary descriptions and the excavation of remains. Many of the early stone churches seem to have depended upon the contribution of foreign masons, and Anglo-Saxon building, which consisted mainly of extremely small churches attached to monasteries, continued to be heavily influenced by continental types. By the 11th century, ties with continental architecture, especially that of Norman France, were strong; King Edward the Confessor’s Romanesque Westminster Abbey (begun c. 1045–50, replaced in 1245 by the present Gothic church), for example, was similar in plan to French models, being cruciform with one central and two western towers. Certain features, however, distinguish Anglo-Saxon architecture: the frequent use of timber for construction; a square, eastern termination (a feature revived in English Gothic churches) instead of the almost universal apse, or semicircular projection, behind the altar; and certain distinctive masonry techniques.
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The monastic revival resulted in a vast production of books and the flowering, by the second half of the 10th century, of the so-called Winchester school of illumination. The new style was based on the classical naturalism of Carolingian art, but it was highly individual and unusually vivacious, characterized especially by a nervous, highly expressive line. Masterpieces in both painting and drawing have survived; for example, the Benedictional of St. Aethelwold, produced at Winchester in the 10th century, and a copy of the Utrecht Psalter begun at Canterbury in about 1000. The Winchester style influenced French illumination to the extent that Norman art was reasonably acceptable to English illuminators after the conquest of 1066. See also Winchester school.