The Art Of The Holy Roman Empire

Carolingian and Ottonian Art and Architecture

What you'll learn
Students will learn the key developments, vocabulary terms, and works of art which are associated with Carolingian and Ottonian art.
Students will be able to recognize major Carolingian and Ottonian works of art.
Students will gain an appreciation of the themes that defined Romanesque art and culture in Medieval Europe.
A comprehensive vocabulary list is found at the end of the course.
Requirements
Students who have completed the preceding course "Faces of Rome: Kingdom, Republic, and Empire" will be able to appreciate some elements' continuity, but this course also can stand alone and provide a solid grounding in Carolingian and Ottonian art and architecture.
Description
The Holy Roman Empire was built on the marriage of a powerful military to the Frankish state and blessed by the financial support of the Roman Church and its conversion-by-the-sword it brought for millions in early Medieval Western Europe. This course looks at the visual cues which it took from the world's last great superpower, Imperial Rome, as well as from the Byzantine Empire in the East. The patronage of this solid union between Church and State led to the flourishing of distinct artistic and architectural phenomena. From the collapse of Rome in the West, several royal dynasties emerged which controlled the regional interests of the territories which had formally been under imperial Roman administration. However, none of these dynasties achieved what was given to the children of Charles Martel, the savior of Christianity and European autonomy from the Islamic threat: the divine investiture to unify the lands of Europe- and ideologically, the whole world- as a new empire. In 800 C.E., the Holy Roman Empire came into being as a concept which would direct the course of European politics, and the relationship of Church to State in the West, for centuries through the present day. Although the Carolingian Dynasty did not rule for long, any future ruler would find a necessary precondition of legitimacy to perpetuate the culture and religion of his predecessors. By this means, Greco-Roman and Byzantine visual arts and architecture made their way into Frankish, Gallic, Germanic, and Saxon lands (to name only the major ethnic groups which inhabited the large area of land this covered).

Overview

Section 1: Introduction

Lecture 1 From Warlord to Emperor; Church to Financier

Section 2: Carolingian Art & Architecture

Lecture 2 The Revival of the Roman Cult of State

Lecture 3 Artistic Innovation

Section 3: Ottonian Art & Architecture

Lecture 4 Byzantium and the Ottonians

Lecture 5 Ottonian Architecture with Course Vocabulary Review

High school, university, and graduate students will find both a review of key pieces and developments as well as original research and connections which are exclusive to this course.