An altar-piece of the Apocalypse from Master Bertram's workshop in Hamburg, (Victoria and Albert Museum. Monograph, no. 25)

AN ALTAR- PIECE OF THE APOCALYPSE

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VI CTO RI A AN D ALBERT MUSEUM

An Altar -piece of the Apocalypse from Master Bertram' s Workshop in Hamburg B y c. M. KA U FFMANN

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LON DO N : HER MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE 19 68

Contents T he Apocalypse altar-piece

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Moster Bertram and the style of the altar-piece

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T he altar-piece and Friar Alexander's Commentary upon the

Apocalypse

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The iconography of the Apocalypse scenes The scenes on the back of the wings The provenance

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D escription of the Apocalypse scenes Notes

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© CrOll'lI (op)'rigbt Monog raph

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Acknowledgements :i\'fany, though by no means aU the scholars from whose help I benefited are mentioned in the footnotes in connection with their special field of study. For further help, for photOgraphs and, in certain cases, for permission to reproduce them, I should like to thank the authorities of the following Institutions: Cambridge, Uniycrsitr L i brar ~'; Dresden, State Library; H ambu rg: Kunsthalle; Staatsarchi v; D enkmalschu tzamt; London: British l\{useumj COli rtaul d Institute; \Va rbutg Institute; l\Hinster, Landesmuseum; Oxford, Bodleian Library; Prague, National Galler),; Vatican Library; \X' Ioclaw, University Library. F o r many va luable suggestions 1 am indebted to my wife .

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The Apocalypse altar-piece ' The Book of Revelation was a very popular subject for illustration from the early Middle Ages until the time of D urer. llIuslrated Apocalypse manuscripts abound and there are numerous examples of Apocalypse wall paintings, sculptures, stained glass windows, tapestries and, latterly, woodcuts, but altar-pieces with series of scenes from the Apocalypse are exceedingly rare and may be counted on the fingers of one hand. Herein lies the main interest of the altar-piece in the Victoria and Albert :M uscum and in this essay an attempt will he made to place it in its historical setting and to discover how and why this almost unique object came into being. The altar-piece was bought by th e lVfuseum as a Flemish work in 18,9 for £50. It was regarded as Flemish unti l 190j when Alfred Lichtwark, the D irector of the Hamburg An Gallery, published it in his pioneer work on .f..rfaster Bertram, the principal painter in Hamburg in the last quarter of the 14th century.!! Lichtwark ascribed the altar-piece in part to .f..1aster Bertram's own hand. This attribution is no longer upheld, though it is clearly the work of one of his followers and was probably painted, as we shall see, in Hamburg in c. 1400 . Unfortunately the painting is no longer in its original state. It is now, and has bee n since before 1859, in the form of a triptych, the front of which consists of a centre piece and two wings. On the back of the wings there are scenes from the lives of the Virgin, St. John the Evangel ist, St. Giles and St. Mary Magdalen . The front of the painting is divided by horizontal and vertical bands containing inscriptions into 45 fields illustrating th e Apocalypse. The story comes to an abrupt end at chapter 16, leaving chapters 17 to 22 untold, which suggests that the painting in its present state is n o longer complete. This supposition is strengthened by the condition of the inscription, which has been cut at some time. Originally each scene had an inscription at the top and on the right. \Xlhere this is extant and legible it rcads from the upper line at the top to that on the ri ght, followed by the seco nd line at the top and on the right. Along the top of the whole painting and down the right side of each wing the inscriptions are now missing (pIs. 1- 5). This means that the inscriptions to the scenes at the top and on the right of each wing are incomplete and make no sense in their present condition. The picture was, like all altar paintings of its time, in tempera on panel. The panel must have become worm-eaten o r damaged in another way, for at some time, probably in the 19th century, the painted surface was transferred on to several layers of canvas. The scenes now placed on the back of the two wings were also transferred from panel on to canvas . As they are now not o rganicall y connected with the front of the wings, it is possible that these scenes were originally in a different position on the altar-piece. On the other hand it could well be that both the back and the front of the panel were transferred on to canvas and replaced in their original position. It was quite within the competence of 18th- and I9th-century restorers to

Figure I Master Bertram. Grabow altar-piece, 1379-83, carved side. Hamburg, KWlSthaile.

split a panel and to save both the back and the front. Duccio's Alaes/a was treated in this way in 1795, and, among the works of Master Bertram's followers, the Buxtehude altar-piece in the Hamburg Art Gallery provides another example, though in both cases the paintings remained on panel and were not transferred on to canvas. The existing evidence is insufficient for a definite conclusion to be drawn, but it is at least possible that the scenes on the back of the wings of the Apocalypse altar-piece are still in their original positions. The question whether chapters 17- 22 of the Apocalypse were originally illustrated on the altar-piece, either in a fifth register or in a predella (compare fig. I), must also remain unsolved. What is certain is that when the painting was transferred on to canvas from its original panel, it was cut down and the inscription trimmed off at the top and sides. The frame is probably original, though it too was cut down. The saw-tooth edge cornice has a 19th-century appearance, but as the circular medallions are finely painted originals (pp. 32, 50), it may well have been made to replace a similar cornice on the original altar-piece.

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Master Bertram and the style of the altar-piece Until 1900 1>.fastcr Bertram was totally unknown except as a name in the Hamburg archives. In that year Friedrich Schlie discovered a document showing that the altar-piece in the church at Grabow in l\'fecklenburg had, until 1731, stood in St. Peter's Church, Hamburg.:! Subsequently, because of its great size, its artistic importance and the fact that it was dated 13 79, the Grabow altar-piece was shown by Lichtwark to have been the principal altar-piece in that church (figs . 1- 5). This altar-piece, it was known from the documents, had been erected in 1383 and was the work of a certain .M aster Bertram of :M inden. The great archivist Lappenbcrg had previousl y published a series of documents concerning l\'faster Bertram,;I but this was the first time that his name could be attached to an existing work. The date of his birth may be estimated as c. 1340, but nothing is known of his early years except that he came from .i\finden in \'Ve stphalia. The documents record hi s activity in Hamburg from 1367, by which date he appears to have been the leading painter in that city. In 1375 he visited Lubeck on an official commission. He was engaged on the altar-piece for St. Peter's Church, H amburg, from 1379, the date it bears, until 1383 when the documents record its erection. This great work consists of a carved screen as well as the painting (fig. I). As carvings are mentioned in the documents relating to Bertram's activities, seve ral authorities have taken him to be a sculptOr as well as a painter, but this interpretation remain s controversial. He was the only painter to receive official commissions between 1367 and 1387, and he remains the sole outstanding arti st in Hamburg unti l the appearance of .i\faster Francke in the early I } th century. Bertram was the head of a workshop, but the size of this workshop and the likely number of his followers is also controversial, depending upon t,he interpretation of guild regulations and practice in 14th-century Hamburg. \',,'e know from the will he made in 1390 that he decided to go on a pilgrimage to H.. ome in that year, but there is no evidence as to whether he actually went. H e is further recorded in the Hamburg archives in 1410 and 1.P4, and he mllst have died there not long before 13 .i\iay 1415, by whkh date his cousins from .i\1inden were laring claim to his estate. These few recorded facts may seem sparse compared to what we know of the principalltalian painters of the time, but in northern Europe it is rare to have so much information concerning a 14th-century artist. For German y, .i\1aster Bertram is one of the earliest painters concerning whom we have both documentar~t evidence and extanr works.5 Alfred Lichtwark ascribed four altar-pieces to .i\faster Bertram, three of which he had acquired for the Hamburg Art Gallery; the fourth was in the Victoria and A lbert .i\fuseum. Subsequently two further paintings and an illuminated manuscript were added to the group, but later scholars have 3

not accepted all of them as autograph. The general conspectus at the present time of the pai ntings concerned may be rendered as follows:

IV'orks I!J -,'- laJltr Btrlralll: 1379- 83 Grabow altar-piece, with scenes from the Old and New Testaments, o riginall y in St. Peter's Church, Hamburg (Hamburg, Kunsthalle). Oak panel, IF X 680 em. e. 1380- 90 A ltar-piece with scenes from the Passion (Han over. Landesmuseum). Oak panel, 12.4 X 458 Col . lV'orkJ 0' his j""mdiate jol101nrJ: before q81 Three leaves from the Missal of J oha nnes de \'V'usthorpe (d . IJ8I ) (New York, Mo rgan Librar y, M. 89z). c.138o- 90 Two panels w.ith scenes from the Life of Christ (Paris, Musee des Arts Deco ratifs). Each 166 X 65 cm. c. 13 90 A ltar-piece from the Abbeyof Harvesteh ude, with the Annun€i ati o n, Nativity (carving), Adoration and Presentatio n in the Temple (H amburg, Kunsthalle). Oak panel, 58 X 142 cm. Triptych with the Sudarium(Castagnola, Thyssen-Bo rnemi sza c. 1400 col 1.). Oak panel, J I X 48 em . c. 1400- 10 Altar-piece from the Co nvent at Buxtehude, with scenes from the Life of the Virgin and the Infanqf of Christ (Hamburg, Kunsthalle). Oak panel, 108 X 386 em. e. 1400- 10 Altar-piece. with the Apocal yp se (Victo ria and A lbert Museum), 137 X 336 cm .l Finally, there are several works in which the influence of Master Bertram ha s been discerned, including an altar-piece from Lund Cathedral and th e wa ll paintings of the Apocalypse in the chapter house of \'Vestmi nster J\bbey.6 T o avoid confusion it sho uld perhaps be added th at the latter are not ico nographically re lated to the Apocalypse scenes o n the Victoria and Albe rt altar-piece. The key to Master Bertram's style may be found in the Grabow altarpiece (figs. 2- 5). Large, monumental figures are si lhouetted against a gold background, the relationship between them indicated by simple, striking gestures. Although sharply ou tlined, the figures ate imme nsely bulky. The sculpturesque modelling of the robes is achieved b y soft highlighting and subtle gradations of tone. T he architectural features, though naturalistic in detail, bear no rel ati onship to the size of the figures an d appear rather like stage settings to clarify the narrati ve. l\1aster Bertram's facial types are aJso readily recognizable. Large heads, prominent noses, thick, pursed lips o n sma ll mouths and large hands are the predominant characteristics of hi s figures . The o ri gi n of this style is obscu re. H amburg can hardly be described as an important arti stic centre in th e mid-14th century, an d there do not appear to be any local roots for Bertram's style. The ultimate so urce of the monumental, sculpturesque figures with softly modelled robes is Ital y, and, in particular, it is connected with the work of Giotto (c. 1266-I 3 37). Th e 4

Figure 2 Master Bertram. Grabow altar-piece, six of the twenty-four scenes on th e front. Hambllrg, KullS/balle.

Italian style penetrated northern Europe at three principal points by the mid-14th century: Avignon, the site of the exiled Papal court; Paris, where it was adopted by Jean Pucelle in the 1320'S; and Bohemia. Whether the Italianate style of these three centres was interrelated or whether it grew up independently in each of them under direct influence from Italy, remains a controversial question. Of the three, Master Bertram's style is most obviously and closely related to that of Bohemia.

Figure 3 Master Bertram. Grabow altar-piece, detail: The Creation of the Animals. HOII/bllrg, KIlIIsthol/c.

Figure 4 The Expulsion. 5. The Annunciation. i\'Iaster Bertram: details from the Grabow altar-piece. Hamburg, KUllsthal/e.

With the reign of Charles IV (1346-78), Prague became the capital of the Roman Empire and artists of many nationalities were attracted to the imperial court. 7 Italianate tendencies may be discerned both in illuminated manuscripts, such as the L iber ViatiClis of John of Stieda (c. 1360-64),8 and in monumental painting, in particular in the work of Master Theodoric (active in Prague 1348-65; fig. 6).9 The stylistic similarities of Bertram's work with that of the Bohemian school of the third quarter of the 14th century have long been recognized, and, indeed, one scholar went so far as to attempt to show that the Victoria and Albert altar-piece was painted in Prague itself.1° More convincingly, Lichtwark demonstrated the similarity between the Grabow altar-piece and the votive picture of Ocko of Vlasim, Archbishop of Prague (c. 1370-5, Prague, National Gallery; fig. 7) which is by a follower of Master Theodoric.u The figures in this painting- both in their facial characteristics and their voluminous robes-are very similar to those of Master Bertram (compare figs. 3-5 and 7). Indeed, Bertram's majestic, bulky figures look as though 7

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Figure 6 l\Iaster Theodoric of Prague St. Matthew, from the Chapel of the HoI y Cross, Karlstein Castle, 1361 -65. Prague, National Gallery.

they might be first cousins to those painted by Master Theodoric (compare figs . 3 and 6). On the other hand, there is no clear evidence as to whether Bertram was in direct contact with Bohemia or whether the Italianate style had penetrated other parts of Germany by the 1370'S. Bertram came from Westphalia, and the Grabow altar-piece has been compared with contemporary works from this area: the altar-piece from Netze, near Niederwildungen (fig. 8) and that from Osnabriick in the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, Cologne.1 2 These two paintings have many similarities in style and iconography with Master Bertram's work, but they may well be later than the Grabow altar-piece and thus show the influence Bertram exerted upon the \Vestphalian school rather than the other way round. It is quite possible that Bertram's style had its roots in \'\1estphalian art, but this cannot be proved from the available evidence.1 3 Of extant paintings that can be securely dated in the period 1360- 75, it is the Bohemian ones (figs . 6 and 7) that provide the closest parallels to Bertram's Grabow altar-piece of 1379. 8

When Lichtwark first published the Museum altar-piece he firmly attributed the scenes of the Virgin and Mary Magdalen on the back of the wings (pis . 6, 7) to Bertram's own hand, but confessed himself less sure about the authorship of the rest of the work. The ascription to Bertram is no longer accepted, but the difference in style between the front and the back is clearly discernible, and it may be that two different hands are involved. H owever, the distinction between the two sides may be partly explained b y other factors . Firstly one must t ake into account the extent of 19th-century repainting which appears to have affected the front, especially the centre panel, more than the back; secondly there is the fact that, as we shall see, the Apocalypse scenes were copied from illuminated manuscripts. The adaptation of a profusely illustrated manuscript accounts for the reduced scale and overcrowded appearance of the compartments on the front, which in itself distinguishes them from the m ore spacious scenes on the back. Whatever the reasons, the fact remains that the stylistic features discussed above in connection with Master Bertram appear much m ore clearly on the back than on the front of the Museum's altar-piece. In particular, these scenes may be compared with the Buxtehude altar-piece of c. 1400 (figs. 10-13). Although no longer widely ascribed to Master Bertram himself, this is a work of considerable quality. It is later than the Grabow altar-piece and, in spite of the basic similarities, it shows considerable change in style. Grace, charm and delight in decoration have

Figure 7 Follower of r. lastcr Theodoric. Votive picture of Ocko of Vlasim, Archbishop of Prag ue: upper half, showing Charles IV kneeling on the left, 1370-75. Praglle, Natiollal GtJ/lfry.

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Figure 8 Westphalian School. Netze altar piece, probably c. 1380, detail: the Annunciation. Netze, near Nieden/!ildllllgen, parish chl/rch.

replaced the more sombre character of the earlier work and this may well betoken a measure of influence from France. The faces are less solemn and more frequentl y smiling, the colours are lighter and there is more decoration, particularly in the costumes. At the same time the austerity of the gold background has been reduced by introducing more prominent landscapes. Because of these stylistic characteristics and its general similarity to the paintings of the "International Gothic" style, the Buxtehude altar-piece has usually been assigned to about 1400 or 1410. This date has been questioned since the discovery of the three leaves from the Missal of Johannes de Wusthorpe (fig. 9), for J ohannes died in 13S1 and the Missal must have been completed in or before that year. 6 Its illuminations represent a sweetened version of Master Bertram's style and it has been suggested that there is a close connection with the Buxtehude altar-piece, thereb y bringing back the date of the latter from c. 1400 to c. 13 So. This is arguable, but it seems dangerous to place too much weight on the slender evidence of the Missal leaves. Apart from the difficulties inherent in any comparison of small book illuminations with large panel paintings, the 10

simi larities between the J\ Ii sSJ l and the Bu xte hude altar-piece are insufficient to alluw al1\" firm conclusion to be drawn concerning the date ()f the latter. l\[aI1\' "f tbe similarities 111<"1\ be accounted for by the joint use uf the pattern book ()f the Master Bertram workshop, and, indeed, tbe ilJuminJtions in th e J\ [issa l are in s')me aspects closer to the earlier paintings of the gro up. A detailed comparison underlines the close relationship between the Buxtehu de a ltar-pi ece and the scenes now o n the back uf the l\fuseum's painting. The ich'llic landscape w itb its p romi nent strawberries (pI. 21) and the architecture (pI. 22) are cle,ul\' paralleled in th e Buxtehude altar-piece (figs. 10 , Il ). The unmistakJble facial trpes wi th their long, thick noses and thick lips are also closely related, as a comparison for example of l\fary Magdalen (p I. 2-1-) with the Virgin in the Buxtehude altar-piece (fig. 13) amph' dem ons trates. Equally, St. l\Iaximin, gi"i ng H oly Communion to the Magdalen (pI. 2-1-) mal' be recognized as a yery close relatiye of the Buxteh ude St. Peter (fi g . 12). These comparisons are closer than any that could be made for the Apoca l\'pse pic tures on tbe front. Howe"er, their generi c similarity is underlined b,' the frame which was clearly produced in the sa me wo rkshop as tbat nn tb e o uter wings of the Buxtehude altarpiece. u Thi s is n ut to suggest that the J\[useull1's painting is by the artist of the Bu xte hude a ltar-piece, but the anah'sis of the scenes on the back lea\'es no doubt that it was painted by someone schooled in the later style of the Master Bertram workshop. The l\poca lypse (i'cle is possibly by a different hanel, but the peculi ar crowded liveliness of these scenes must be discllssed in connection with the models from which they were copied.

Figure 9 Follower of Master Bertram.Missal of J ohannes de \\' usthorpe (d. 1381 ), initial with the Presentation in the Temple. Nell' l'ork, Piaponl Morgan Livral]', M. ,I'y.!. 11

Figure 10 Joachim and Anne at the Golden Gate .

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The Death of the Virgin. 12

Figure: I I The Annunci:uivn to the Shepherds.

Follower ofl\Iastcr Bertrall1 . Bu xte:hude altar-piece, c. 1.j.OO- I O . HIli/lim}"!!" Klilis/bolit.

Figure 13 Virgin.

The Coronation o f the: I-)

The altar-piece and Friar Alexander's Commentary upon the Apocalypse The scenes on the front of the altar-piece have usually been accepted as

straightforward illustrations of the Apocal ypse. The st yle of the painting is treated in some detail in the vast literature on :Mastcr Bertram from Lichtw:1rk (1905) to Platte (1960), but none of these works contains any

hint as to the precise nature of the Apocalypse cycle illustrated. Yet as long ago as '9JI, in his monograph on TV. AjMco(ypu ill ..-lrl, M. R. James drew atte nti on to the fact that both the pjctures and the inscriptions of the altar-piece were dircctl}r derived from illustrated manuscripts

of Friar Alexander's COlI/lllt11/afJ' 011 fbe .. ·lpora!J'PJe. Subsequently the altarpiece was discussed in the literature on Alexander's Commenta ryHi at the same time as the authorities on German painting were treating it in relation to ~ ( astet: Bertram's work. But the findings of the scholats working on Apocalypse illustrations have never, it seems, been brought to the notice of the art historians who in man y ways have dealt so thoroughl y with l\faster Bertram and his workshop. This is a surprising omission, for the composition of the scenes on the front of the altar-piece is dictated by the manuscript illuminations from which they were copied (figs. 14- 2.o).lVfany of the painting's peculiarities, most conspicuously the "double-headed" figures that appear from time to time (pis. 3 and 16), are derived from the manuscripts of Alexander's Commentary. The inscriptions are based on the text of the Alexander manuscripts , in which each sentence of the Bible is followed by several lines of commentary. Hence passages from both the Bible and the Commenta!}' appear in the inscriptions of the altar-piece (see p. 1 and nOte 63). At times, however, the words of the Commentary have been abridged or paraphrased, which suggests that the inscriptions were devised by a theologian who used Alexander's text as a sou rce but did not follow it slavishly. Lastly, it will be seen that the whole purpose and origin of the altar-piece is connected with the nature of Alexander's Commentary. About Alexander himself we are not well informed. In the prologue to certain manuscripts of his work the author is described as a Franciscan C'Alexander de o rdine [ratrum ~1inorum"). At one stage he refers to himself as a la yman C'Jaicus nullius sacri ordinis nullaque liberali arte instructus"), but at the end of the Commentary he clearly identifies himself with the Franciscans ("Propter fratres auteln meos :Minores et proximos meas Praedicatores loquebar pacem de te, 0 Jerusalem"). This apparent contradiction may be explained by the likelihood that Alexander only became a friar in middle life. This is in any case probable, considering that the Franci sca n Order was only established in north Germany from c. 1230, at about the time when he was writing his Commentary, which alone suggests that he was a learned man befo re he became a friar. Various dates are found in tbe different manuscripts of the Commentary: 12.35, 1242, 12.48, and there are references to historical events and to '4

writings of 1248,1249 and 12 )0. The work was probably written gradually, and Alois \'hchtel has suggested that the sections referring to 1248- )0 are a later addition, perhaps by Albert of Stade, a well-known Saxon historian of the period. 16 An exact date for the Commentary cannot be given, but the traditional one of c. 1242 is acceptable as an approximate indication . One of the manuscripts (\'\' roclaw) gives 1271 as the date of Alexander's death. Apart from this th ere is li ttle evidence concerning Alexander. His connection with Saxony is not in doubt, as the historical content of his Commentary is related to various Saxon Chronicles, but attempts to identify his home morc precisely have not met with widespread agreement. J. P. Gilson placed him in the diocese of Bremen and tentatively identified him with an Alexander who was the Srholnslims at the Bremen Cathedral School in 123 7- 8, but this identification has not been generally accepted. 1t Another authority has suggested that he was a member of the Friary at Stade, on the grounds that his work is mentioned in the local chronicle, the AII1Jfllu StadtllJu, written by A lbert of Stade in c. 1250.18 This is certainly possible, but it mllst be admitted that Albert of Stade could easily have obtained a copy of Alexander's Commentary from one of the other friaries in Saxony. T he only safe assumption is that Alexander was a Saxon friar, and that he probably belonged to one of the friaries of the Franciscan province of Bremen, which consisted of Bremen (founded 1241), Hamburg (In7), Luneburg (1235), Stade (before 1240) and Kid (c. 1240).19

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"Blessed is he that readeth and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein-for the time is at hand" (Rev. 1. 3). In these words St. John describes his work as 3. prophecy, but as it is written in allegorical terms the exact nature of this prophecy is open to widdy differing interpretations. Alexander explains in his prologue that he g radua lly came to realize that the Apocalypse prophesies the history of the Christian Church on earth, and his Commentary represents a thorough attempt to explain the Book of Revelat.ion in historical term s. Each vision is related to an event in the history of the Church and every character in the Apocalypse is secn as prefiguring a historical personage. In his explanati on A lexande r follows historical chronology, without deviation, from Early Christian times to the reign of Frederick II (1215-)0). The basic th eme of the Commentary is the struggle of the forces of good agai nst the forces of evil, in other words the 6ght of the Church against its enemies. The first threats to the Church are secn as the R oman emperors, who persecuted the faithful, followed by the early heretics who caused internal dissension. After that, however, the main dangers arc shown as coming from the Ea.st. The principal Apocalypse dragons and beasts are identified with Persian kings and with :M ohammed and his followers, and I

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Alexander shows himself to be well informed about the Iv[oslem world. H e also outlines the struggle of the Papacy against the Empire and in particular Henry IV, Henr y V and Frederick II are cast in vilhinous roles. Yet he lays greater stress on the essential cooperation of the universal church and the universal state against their common enemies, and a succession of Emperors, Cor:stantine, Ju stin I, Justinian I, Charlemagne and Lothar III, js shm,vn as restoring peace to the church. But the decisive belief animating the Commentary is Franciscan, for at the end the Heavenly Jerusalem is identified with the coming of the Friars. This is the ultimate explanation of the whole story: the real founder of the Heavenly JerLlsalem was Christ, but St. Francis, who received the signs of the stigmata, is "the other Christ", and he, together with St. D omi nic, is the founder and upholder of the New Jerusalem. The hope of the world lies in the rapi d multiplication of the Friars, for the y will save mankind by the purity of their doctrine and the sanctity of their example. The literature on the Apocalypse forms a formidable tradition in the history of medieval thought from the time of Bede. There had been commentaries with historical content before that of Alexan der, notably those of Rupert of Deu tz (d. 11 35/ 6) and J oachim of Fiore (after 1195) who fixed the date of the end of the world as 1260. A lexande r was strongly influenced by Joachim, but he was the first to apply the historical method systematicall y and to interpret the whole work in term s of world history. Eight extant manuscripts of his text dating from the 13th to the 15th centuries testify to the popularity of his work in the later :r..1iddle Ages, and his historical interpretation exercised considerable influence on succeeding Commentaries, espec.ially on those of Petrlls Aureoli (1319) and Nicholas of Lyra (1)29)." His Commentary shows Alexander to have been a man of great learning. It bears the influence of the works of the Church Fathers, of previous Apocalypse Commentaries and of Franciscan writings, and shows a knowledge of canonical dec.rees, of various chronicles and of world history. The chronicle of Ekkehard of Aura (d. after 112 5) provided the main source of his historical knowledge, and this was supplemented by the Saxon \Vorld Chronicle and o ther works. The points of similarity with contemporary Saxon chronicles, such as those of Stade, Hamburg and Bremen, have recently been interpreted as a sign of common parentage, rather than of direct influence.:!l An examination of the scenes in the Museum's altar-piece in the light of Alexander's text will serve to illustrate his mastcry of religious thought and of the history of the world as it was known in the 13th century (see p. 33 ff.).

The iconography of the Apocalypse scenes The Apocalypse pictures of the altar-piece were nearly all copied from an illustrated manuscript of Alexander's Commentary (figs. 14-20). The popularity of the Commentary is witnessed by the existence of eight manuscripts, dating from the 13th to the 15th centuries. Five are illustrated, of which three are Saxon, late 13th century (now in the libraries at Dresden, \'V'roclaw and Cambridge) and two Southern French, 14th century (now at Prague and in the Vatican).22 The Prague and Vatican manuscripts contain an abridged and somewhat amended version of the text, which is also found in the three manuscripts that have no illustrations. 23 The pictures in the manuscripts from Saxony (Dresden, \'V'roclaw, Cambridge) are very similar in size and composition, though the Dresden manuscript is slightly earlier than the other two. The Cambridge manuscript contains a longer version of the text and some additional pictures not found in any of the other manuscripts, but many of its illustrations have been lost. Alois Wachtel, the recent editor of Alexander's text, has found that the Wroclaw and Cambridge manuscripts differ slightly from that at Dresden,24 but as far as the pictures are concerned, it is the Cambridge manuscript that differs in de tail from the other two. However, before discussing these minor variations, it should be stressed that the illustrations in all these manuscripts are very similar and are descended ultimately from the same original, which is no longer extant. A ll the Apocalypse pictures of the altar-piece, except the first, are based upon the illustrations of the Alexander manuscripts, but there have been several omissions and changes in the process of adaptation. The reduction in the number of scenes was doubtless dictated b y the need to crowd the illustrations of a long manuscript into the more limited space of the painting. E leven of the scenes, which illustrate chapters 1- 16 of the Apocalypse in the Alexander manuscripts, do not appear on the altarpiece. The largest gap appears after scene 34, when four illustrations to

Figure I4 Friar A lexander, Commentary on the Apocalypse. The Adoration of the Lamb. Saxony, late I 3th century. Cambridge, Ullit1e!'sity LibrOlY, MS. M11I. v.]I,f 22 . (Compare scene 7)

Figure 15 Friar Alexander, Commentary on the Apocalypse. The measuring of the Temple. Saxony, late 13th century. Cambridge, University Library, MS. Mm. V. JI,f 6;. (Compare scene 26)

chapter 14 are mISSIng. Four of the scenes on the altar-piece contain a combination of two or more illustrations in the manuscripts. The most considerable saving of space was achieved b y combining the letters to the seven churches in one picture (scene 3, pI. 1), whereas the y take up seven in the manuscripts. Scene 21 (pI. II) combines the fourth trumpet with St. John and the eagle; the horses immersed up to their bridles in the sea of wrath (scene 36, pI. 17) appear in the lower half of the vintage scene, whereas they occupy a whole picture in the manuscripts; and, finall y, the first and second vials are combined in scene 39 (pI. 2). These omissions and elisions result in a considerable saving of space, but even so the artist of the altar-piece was faced with the problem of fitting horizontally composed illustrations, covering the width of a manuscript page, into the almost square compartments of the altar-piece. To achieve this, each scene had to be compressed, in a very literal sense and this resulted in the overcrowding which is such a distinctive feature of the Apocalypse side of the altar-piece. In most cases the artist solved the problem by simply squeezing the figures into the available space, and omitting those that could not be accommodated. The Adoration of the

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Figure 16 Friar Alexander, Commentary on the Apocalypse. The Angels with the four winds. Saxony, late 13th century. Cambridge, University Library, MS. Mm. V .JI,f }2v. (Compare scene 14) 18

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Lamb (scene 7, pI. 3), when compared with the same scene in the Cambridge manuscript (fig. 1..1.), shows a reduction in the number of figures, while those that remain are 1110re tightly packed into the space round the mandorla . One may also note the m inor changes that appear in the altarpiece: the presence of St. John on the left, and the appearance of the four living creatures round the mandorla, which do not OCCUI in the manuscript. Sometimes the compression is achieved with fewer omissions, as in the scene of the measuring of the T emple (scene 2.6, pJ. 2, compare fig. 1 j), in which the artist of the altar-piece has adhered closel y to the composition of the manuscript. On other occasions he adapted the compositio n to fit into his almost square compartments by moving some of the figures from the sides to the top or bottom. In the scene of the angels with the four winds, for instance, the fifth angel holding the cross has been moved from the far right to the upper corner of the picture (scene 14, pI. 10, compare fig. 1 G). These three examples reflect the close dependence of the altar-piece upon the manuscripts, and indicate the kind of minor changes that occurred . Only the first scene, St. J ohn on the Isle of Patmos, does not occur in the Alexander manuscripts, and this was, as we shall see, derived from a different Apocalypse traditi o n. Another scene, the large :Majesty (scene 4, pl. 4) diners considerably from the illustration in the manuscripts, in which the Elders are seated in st raight rows and there are no circles. Circular compositions of the :M ajesty and Adoration of Christ occu r in the Spanish Beatus Apocalypse manuscripts, and these may haye proviJed the inspiration, even though the y are not very similar in detail. 2S H oweve r, in the lower part of the oute r circle, the artist of the altar-piece has p ortrayed the twenty-four till/Ii churches of Rome from which the cardinal-priests took their titles. These are a feature peculiar to Alexander's Commentary, though they are not illustrated in any of the extant manuscripts. This raises the question whether the altar-piece was copied from any one of the four extant fu l!'y jllustrated manuscripts, or whether it derives from a lost Alexander manuscript. A full comparison is no longer possible, because of the incomplete state of the Cambridge and Dresden manuscripts, but from a detailed analysis of the avai lable pictures one may conclude that, of the extant manuscripts, the altar-piece is most closely related to the one at C:1mbridge. There are eight scenes in which the altarpiece is distinctly nearer to the Cambridge manuscript than to any of the others. The fourth horseman, for example, draws a head out of the mouth of hell in the altar-piece and in the Cambridge manuscript, but not elsewhere (scene II , pl. 9, compare figs. 17, 18). The strong Angel has human feet, whereas they are pillars in the other manuscripts (scene 2.5, pI. 13, compare figs . 19,20), and the sun clothing the woman with the child is shown with a face, which is also peculiar to the altar-piece and the Cambridge manuscript (scenes 2.9, 3 I, pls. 3, 14).:!G

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Figure 17 Friar Alexander, Commentary on the Apocalypse . The fourth Horseman. Saxony, late 13th century. Cambridge, Ullit'ersily Library, MS. Mm. V . jI,! 27v. (Compare scene I I and fig. 18)

Although there can be no doubt that the altar-piece was copied fro m a manuscript of the Alexander Commentary and that, of existing manuscripts, it is closest to the one at Cambridg e, the minor differences between the two cannot be overlooked. W/ e can no longer reconstruct the exact relation of the altar-piece to the Alexander cycle, for we have no means of knowing how many illustrated manuscripts of the Commentary have disappeared in succeeding centuries. F rom the existing evidence it is reasonable to conclude that the altar-piece was copied from a lo st manuscript clo sely related to the Cambridge manuscript, if not from the Camb ridge manuscript itself. In order to understand the nature o f the variations between the altarpiece and its parent manuscrip t, it is necessar y to try to elucidate the place of the A lexander Apocalypse w ithin the venerable tradition o f medieval Ap ocalyp se illustration Y In the W est, the Apocalyp se was an accepted part of the New T estament fro m the time of St. J erom e, and there is

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Fig ure 18 Friar A lexa nder, Commentary on the Apocalypse. The fourth Horseman. Saxony, late 13th centu ry. [f7roc/aJl!, University Library, M.S. I.Q.I9 . (Compare sce ne I I and fig. 17) 20

Figure 19 Friar Alexander, Commentary on the Apocalypse. The strong Angel. Saxony, late 13th century. Ca/l/b,.idg~, Ullil'ersif)' Librar)', !lIS. !Ifill. T '. JI,j. pV. (Compare scene 25 and fig. 20)

documentary evidence to show that it was extensively illustrated in Italy as early as the 5th century. In about 430 the Empress Galla Placidia had the church of St. J ohn at Ravenna decorated with Apocalypse scenes, and we learn from Bede that an Apocalypse cycle formed part of the pictures brought by Abbot Benedict Biscop from Rome to his monastery at \'{fearmouth in c. 680. The earliest extant cycles are contained in the 9th-century Carolingian Apocalypse manuscripts in Trier (MS. 31; 75 illustrations) and Cambrai (MS. 386). These are closely related while two further 9th-century Apocalypse manuscripts, those in Valenciennes (MS . 99) and Paris (Bib!. Nat., Lat. 1132), belong to a different tradition, in which the Bamberg Apocalypse (A. n. 42; Reichenau, c. 1000) may also be included. Meanwhile an independent group of illustrated Apocalypse manuscripts was produced in Spain. These contain the Commentary of Beatus of Liebana (c. 785), as well as the Apocalypse text and some 80 illustrations. They form a large group of manuscripts mainly dating from the loth to the 12th centuries, and largely Spanish in origin. 28

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Figure 20 Friar Alexander, Commentary on the Apocalypse. The strong Angel. Saxony, late 13th century. Il7roc/aJl', Ulliversity LibralJl, !lIS. I.Q.l9. (Compare scene 25 and fig. 19)

21

rr

Figure 2 I The two witnesses, detail from an Apocalypse illustration in the Liber Floridlls, 12th century. Woljenbiittel, Herzog-Augllst-Bibliothek, MS. I Gud.lat . 2°, f. I4·

Outside Spain, Apocalypse manuscripts are rare in the IIth and 12th centuries, but in the 13th century the Apocalypse became one of the most popular of all illustrated books. This sudden increase in popularity was in part due to the historical and prophetic commentaries of the period. The 13th-century Apocalypses may be divided into two uneven groups. By far the more important is the Anglo-French group, consisting of about seventy beautifully illuminated manuscripts originating in England and, to a lesser extent, in France in the period c. 1240-1350. These are all closely related and contain a fairl y constant cycle of over eighty miniatures, which are partially derived from older versions. 29 The second group is that of the Alexander Commentary, which originated, as we have seen, in northern Germany in c. 1240, that is, at more or less the same date as the Anglo-French Apocalypse. The Alexander pictures, therefore, must be seen as part of a general flowering of Apocalypse illustration in the 13th century, after the relative dearth of the immediately preceding period. A detailed comparison of the Anglo-French and Alexander cycles is beyond the scope of this essay, but it is now generally assumed that they had a common parent in a lost cycle, perhaps of the 12th century, which combined elements of the early medieval and Spanish Apocalypse traditions. 30 The Alexander illustrations differ from those of the Anglo-French group in several ways, both in the scenes selected for illustration and in the details of individual compositions. Yet the most immediately striking 22

difference is provided by the Hduuble-headed" figures, each of which represents the rclevant character of the Apocalypse, together with the historical personage with whom he was identified in the commentary (scenes 17,19,20,; 5, .p, 42, pIs. " ~, 16). This literal method of illustrating a biblical commentary is unique in the history of medieval art. Figures with twO faces exist in the art of classical anti<.juity, and in the case of Janus, and subsequently that of the Trinity and the personification of Prudence, this type was transmitted through the :Middle Ages. 31 These figures, however, have two faces rather than twO separate heads and tend to indicate a dual quality rather than two separate persons. A comparison may be made with the double-headed figure representing j\10sesand Christ, or the Old and New Testan1ents in the I Hh-century flor/II! DtliciafllHl, but j\iax Huggler has sugges ted that the closest formal parallel may be found in the Sar/JJt1/!pifgrl, a book of Saxon laws which originated at almost the same time as Alexander's Commentary.32 This work, of which several 14th-centur), manuscripts still exist, contain figures with shadow figures behind them, whose meaning is not always clear. However, it seems equally likely that the creator of the Alexandcr Apocalypse cycle adap ted the formula for depicting twO figures in close proximity, by which the twO heads are shown but the second pair of legs disappears behind the first. This is the way in which the two witnesses are represented in the Apocalypse pictures of the Libtr Floridll!, an encyclopedia of the 12th century (Wolfenblittel, MS. 1 Gud . lar. 2 · , fol. 14; fig . 21) . Yet when all these possible sources have been discussed, the fact remains that the Alexander cycle is the first and only example in medieval art in which the problem of illustrating at o nce a biblical text and the commentary upon it is consistently solved in this way. The altar-piece contains only Jive double-headed figures, whereas in the Alexander manuscripts the y appear much more frequently. The fact that they are uftcn omitted in the altar-piece may be purely fortuitous, but it may equally be due to the influence of the Anglo-French Apocalypse cycle, intcrvening between the painting and its parent manuscript. For in at least tcn instances in which the altar-piece differs appreciably from the manuscripts, the change has been due to the artist taking over features from the Anglo-French Apocalypse. T o begin with, the opening scene showing St. John on Patmos, which follows o n from the Life of St. John on the back, does not appear in the Alexander manuscripts, but is closely paralleled by the ope nin g picture of the Anglo-French cycle (fig. 22, compare pI. I ). Three of the elisions we have already noted as differentiating the altar-piece from the manuscripts: the seven churches reduced to one scene, the inclusion of the horses in the Vintage of the earth (scene 36, pI. 17) and the combination of the first and second vials (scene 39, pI. 2) occur in the Anglo-French group." The presence of St. John, the lamb and the living creatures in the scenes of the second, third and fourth horsemen and of the lamb alone above the altar in the fifth seal arc aJso derived from the Anglo-French group (compare fig. 23 and pI. 8). More strangely the figure of Pope Sylvester, who is mentioned and iIJustrated 23

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Figure 22. Apocalypse. St. J oh n on Patmos. English, hue 13th century. Eloll Collfgf, MS. 177,/ I2v. (Co mpare scene I)

in the Alexander manuscripts, has been replaced in the altar-piece (scene 15) by one of the Elders showing the Lamb to St. J o hn. exacd), as he appears in some of the A nglo- French Apoca lypses (compare Bodleian Library, Auct. D.4.17, f. 15 \.). Unfo rtunatel y the inscri ption to this scene is no longer legible, so there is no means of knowing w hether it contained an y refere nce to Pope Sylvestcr, who has been so mysteriously replaced in th e illustrati on. I ndeed it is no t easy to unde rstand w hy the art ist o r patron of the altarpiece made these changes. In so me instances the Anglo-French Apocalypses contain a more li tera lly correct illustration than the Alexander manuscript. T he dragon slain by St. 1v(ichacl, which has seve n heads according to the biblical text and is depicted as such in the Anglo-French version, has o nly one head in the A lexander manuscript. I n departing from the parent manuscript and following the Anglo-F rench version, the artist of the altar-piece is making an understandable correction. In other sce ne s the reasons for the changes are less apparent, but they may perhaps be explained by the overwhelming popularit y and influence of the AngloFrench cycle. T his was not only common in sumptuously illustrated manuscripts, but appears on such diverse monuments as t he po rtal scu lptures of Rheims Cathedral, the East window of Yo rk l\{inster, the roof bosses in Norwich Cathed ral Clo ister and the famous tapestries in Angers Cathed ral. Fu rth ermore, th e A nglo-French Apoca lypse picture cycle was being

copied in German manuscripts in the 14th and 15th centuries, and it is not surprising that these illustrations should have exerted an influence on the altar-piece in the Victoria and Albert Museum. From the available evidence, therefore, it seems reasonable to reconstruct the genesis of the altar-piece on the following lines. The picture was commissioned and planned b y a Franciscan, or possibly Dominican theologian who wished to have Friar Alexander's Commentary figured upon an altar-piece. He adapted Alexander's text for the inscriptions surrounding each illustration, abbreviating and amending it as he thought fit. In the same way he had the pictures copied from a manuscript of Alexander's Commentary, but had certain changes made. Several of these changes were inspired by the pictures of the Anglo-French Apocalypse, which was gaining in popularity in Germany at the time and which was to influence the future development of German Apocalypse illustration. The attempt to bring the altar-piece cycle up to date can most clearly be seen in the depiction of the fourth horseman as Death (scene I I, pI. 9). This occurs in only a few of the Anglo-French Apocalypses (fig. 24),34 and in the Angers tapestries, but it was not until the printed bibles of the 15th century that a skeleton became the usual form of the fourth horseman. 35 In this respect, therefore, the altar-piece shows a more advanced illustration than most of the contemporary monuments . Clearly its patron was a person of considerable learning, well versed in the minutiae of Apocalypse commentaries and illustrations and with a very clear idea of what he wanted . It remains to be seen whether there is sufficient evidence to discover exactly where the altar-piece originated.

Figure 23 Apocalypse. The third H o rseman. English, c. 1270. Oxford, Bodltiall Library, MS. D ouce 180, p. I J. (Compare scene 10)

Figure 24 Apocalypse. The fourth Horseman. English, late 13th century. British Museu"" MS. Add. 22-19},j. } v. (Compare scene II and figs. 17-18)

26

The scenes on the back of the wings The back of the left wing is devoted to scenes from the life of St. John the Evangelist and of the Virgin; the right contains scenes from the Jives of St. Giles and St. Mary Magdalen. The story of each of these occupies three compartments and the sequence runs from the bottom upwards. St. John the EI'ollgeiist (pIs . 6, 19)

I) 2) 3)

St. John is preaching on the left; on the right he is brought before D omitian. Placed in a cauldron, St. John finds the boiling water refreshing. He is accused of being a magician and condemned to exile; on the right he is on the Isle of Patmos, at first preaching and then woken from his slumbers by the trumpet of the Lord.

These three pictures are very similar to the scenes of the life of St. John which were added as a preface to many of the Anglo-French Apocalypse manuscripts. The great Apocalypse in Trinity College, Cambridge (MS. R.16.2) and that in the Bodleian Library, Oxford (Auct. D.4. I 7), for example, contain a comparable, though more extensive series of scenes. 36 The picture showing St. John in the cauldron, while Domitian looks on, is very closely paralleled in a late 13th-century Apocalypse in the British Museum (Add. 35166, fo1. lv, fig. 25). No further evidence is needed to demonstrate that these scenes, like the first one on the front which is a partial repetition of the upper scene on the back, were derived from a manuscript of the Anglo-French Apocalypse tradition.

Figure 25 Apocalyp e. St. John in the Cauldron. English, c. 1260-70' Brilisb MlIsmlll, MS. Add. J! roo,/ rV. (Compare pI. 19)

27

The V irgin (pIs. 6, 20) 1) 2) 3)

The Annunciation. The Death of the Virgin. The Coronation of the Virgin.

These scenes are very similar to comparable compositions in the works of Master Bertram and his followers, and were probably derived from one of his workshop's pattern books. The Annunciation contains all the features of the Annunciation in the Grabow altar-piece, including the Child descending to the Virgin (fig. 5);37 the Death and Coronation have very close paralells on the Buxtehude altar-piece (figs. 12, 13).

St. Giles (Aegidius) (pIs. 7, 21, 22) 1)

2)

3)

St. Giles and the hind. The Saint, who lived a hermit's life near Nimes, subsisted on the milk of a hind. While hunting, the retinue of Flavius, King of the Goths, chased the hind, but the hounds refused to approach it after it had taken refuge with St. Giles. The King suspected a supernatural explanation for this strange occurrence and summoned the Bishop of Nimes to accompany him to the chase. As the huntsmen closed in, an arrow intended for the hind hit St. Giles. When the King and the Bishop discovered what had happened, they flung themselves at the feet of the holy man and begged his forgiveness. St. Giles refused all offers of gifts, but ultimately agreed to become the abbot of a monastery which the King was to build near his cave. The Mass of St. Giles. King Charles of France was so ashamed of a sin he had committed that he felt himself unable to confess it. He called St. Giles to Orleans and, while the Saint was saying mass, an angel descended to the altar with a promise of absolution. St. Giles then passed on the absolution to the King. St. Giles receives the papel privilege for his monastery. Towards the end of his life St. Giles went to Rome, where the Pope gave him the privilege for his monastery and also two tablets carved with the images of apostles. Having commended them to God for safe keeping, he placed them in the Tiber and took them out of the water on the Rhone, not far from his monastery at S. Gilles.

The legend of St. Giles is based largely on a Latin Life, probably written in the loth century, and popularized in a late 12th-century AngloNorman poem. Successive generations of scholars have attempted to lend historical reality to a legend that includes, within the span of one lifetime, Caesarius, Bishop of Arles (who died in 542) and "Charles, King of France", who may be identified with Charles Martel (714- 41) or Charlemagne (768- 814).38 A more plausible h ypothesis, formulated some years ago, is that the monks of the Abbey of S. Gilles invented the whole story in order to bolster their claim to papal protection against the Bishop of Nimes. 39 This theory is supported by the fact that the Abbey itself was 28

originaily dedicated to St. Peter, and it was only at the height of the struggle against the Bishop of Nimes in the l oth century that St. Giles was adopted as its patron. \X/hatever his o rigin, he had become a popular saint by the 13th century, at which time the illustration of the sto ry of the hind was weB known throughout Europe. The ~Mass of St. Giles was also quite frequently depicted , and the two scenes regularly occu r together in French and Italian art of the I) th and 14th centuries. They appear as companion pieces, for example, in the voussoirs of the right port:tl, south transept, at Chartres. and as part of a larger series in the 14th-century frescoes in the church of St. Nicholas at Civray and in the frescoes of 1370- 9 by Spinello Aretino in S. Francesco, Arezzo.'~o The scene of the papal privilege, o n the other hand, is exceedingly rare. The audience with the Pope- in a different form and without the episode of the tablets in the Tiber- occurs in a 15th-century Florentine 1\1issal (Florence, Bargello, 1\{cssale A.67, vol. I, fol. 2-1-8).41 No comparisons at all of the period before 1400 ha\'e come to light. This lack of parallels for the upper sce ne in the altar-piece may be taken to indicate that the composition was invented by the arcist himself. This is certainly a possible explanation, but in view of the fact that the other two scenes were frequently represented at the time, and co nsidering the medieval artist's customary preference for pictorial models, it is more likel y that the whole sequence was derived from a pictorial source. Th is could well have been a manuscript wi th jl}ustrations of the lives of saints, such as the 14th-century Florentine H ymnal (Florence, Bib!. Naz., II, I.. 212, fo 1. SI"), which contains several scenes from the life of St. Giles ..12 The most complete cycle dedicated to St. Giles, also of Italian origi n, occu rs in a 14th-centur y !tala-Hungarian Passional in the Vatican Librar r (Vat. Lat. 8S4I, fo1. 94-5 ).43 Th is manuscript prese nts a relatively rare parallel to t he scene of the hind in the altar-piece, for it includes the incident of the King and the Bishop kneeling at the feet of the Saint (fig. 26). Comparisons with the French cycles are not as rewarding, and it is tempting to postulate an Italian manuscript as the ultimate source of the St. Giles pictures o n the altar-piece.

Figure 26 Passional (lives of Saints). The King of the Goths and the Bishop of Nimes kneeling before St. Giles. halo-Hungarian, c. 1 HO-~O . T"alirall Library, MS.

r "al.

(Compare pI. 21)

Cal. 8f4 1 , / 91".

St. Mary Magdaltll (pis. 7, 2J, 24) In the literature on :Mastcr Bertram, the jdentification of this saint with .Mary of Egypt has ahvays been accepted without question. The confusion of the two saints is not surprising, for the legend of Maqf Magdalen's life as a hermit appears to have been adapted from the story of Mary of

Egypt's sojourn in the descrt. 4 .1 However, on the altar-piece only the middle scene is relevant to the life of IV(ary of Egypt, and as long ago as 1927 ~{. R. Ja mes revealed the saint's true identity as :Mar>' ~1agdalen.45 Thi s identification was upheld by :Marga Janssen, who was able to read the words JUaria l'fagdale On the first line of the inscription. 46 After Pentecost IVfary :rVlagdalen, together with Lazarus, Martha, :Maximin and the H oly 1vfaries, was seized and set adrift on a ship without sails. The ship miraculously landed in Provence and Mar y Magdalen withdrew to lead a hermit's life in a cave near Aix, where she lived for thirt}f years. The three scenes on the altar-piece illustrate this period of her life. I)

2) J)

A n angel brings her food, and shc is taken up to the top of the mountain by angels, so that she may hear the choir of angels singing. She receives her last communion from St. Maximin. Her death.

T his legend was taken over from the life of St. 1v[ary of Egypt in the loth century. and became popularized in the 13th century by Vincen t of Beauvai s in his JpemhIJ" ,Hisloria/e, and in the Legmda Allrea of Jacobus de Voragine. Yet it was rarely lllustrated. One or other of the scenes occur in German art in the 14th century, for example, in a Silesian manuscript (\'\froclaw, City Librar)r, lvLI243- 4, II, fo1. 56\');17 but it is again in Italian or Italiana te manuscripts of the kind of the Vatican Passional (Vat. Lat. 8541, fol. 103) that the most extensive series of illustrations are found. 48 Indeed, after her detailed study of the subject, Dr. Janssen concluded that the scene of the angel bringing food to the Magdalen is new in Germ an art, and was derived from I talian models . The pictures on the altar-piece differ from previous cycles in that only the years of her life as a hermit are illustrated . The reason for this choice will be discussed in the next section .

The provenance T here is unfortunately no record of the picture's whereabouts before it was acquired by the l\1uscum in 1859. I n his book on l\1aster Bertram, Alfred Lichtwark stated that the altar-piece was bought in Brussels. 4 !l but even this cannot be su bstantiated from the :M uscum 's archives. The quest for the pictu re's provenance wou ld be hopeless, were it not for substantial internal evidence. To begin with, it seems safe to assign the altar-piece to a Franciscan, or possibly D ominican foundation. I t is highly unlikely that any o ther

JO

Order would choose to illustrate on an altar-piece such a basically Franciscan text as rhe Alexander Commentary. It should be remembered that Alexander identified the 1 ew Jerusalem with the coming of the Franciscans and Dominicans, a belief hard ly likely to commend itself to any othet Order. Indeed, it is the Franciscan character of the Commentary, rather than the Apocalypse itself, that explains the raisol1 d'flre of the whole work. Altar-pieces of the Apocalypse are exceedingly rare: fragments of only two others have come to light, both of them Italian. One of these paintings is tOo fragmentary to provide a useful parallel,SO the other is related to the Apocalypse frescoes in the Baptistery of Padua Cathedral and is attributed to Giusto de' ~{enabuoi (actlve 1363/ 4; died 1387/ 91).51 As far as one can judge from the five extant panels, this altar-piece originally contained one il1ustration for each chapter of the Apocalypse, which impljes a less complete cycle than that on the Yktoria and Albert :Museum altar-piece. Its origin is explained by the fact that it was painted for the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Torcello. The Apocalypse seems a logical choice of subject in a church dedicated to its author. On the other hand the key to the origin of the V. & A. altar-piece is provided neither by St. Joh n nor by the Apocalypse itself, but by Friar Alexander and his Commentary, with its specifically Franciscan interpretation of the histoqr of the Church. Further evidence concerning the picture's provenance may be sought in the illustrations on the back. Not much can be concluded from the presence either of the Virgin or of St. John, whose appearance as the author of the Apocalypse is easily explained. But there is no such simple explanation for the other two saints and yet their representation on an altar-piece of such recondite iconography is unlikely to be fortuitous. Geographically, the evidence of the st yle, closely linked with ~1aster Bertram's workshop in Hamburg, and that of the iconography, derived from a Saxon manuscript of a commentary writte n in Lower Saxony, converges on Lower Saxony. It seems reasonable, therefore, to seek the home of the altar-piece iq a Franciscan or D ominican foundation in Lower Saxony. dedicated to St. Giles o r ~1ary ~fagdalen. A search in orth Germany, from Bremen and Hanover to Lubeck and Kid. enables one to exclude the D ominicans and the foundations dedicated to St. Giles. There were no Dominican convents dedicated to St. Giles or to ~hry Iv[agdalen,l:02 while the churches dedicated to SL Giles in, for example, Lubeck and Hanover have no connection with either Franciscans or D ominicans. Indeed, the evidence points directly to Hamburg itself. Not only was Hamburg the home of the :Master Bertram workshop, but it also contained the only friary in the whole of \'Vestcrn Europe dedicated to St. ~1ary ~1:agdalen.r.3 This friar), was founded in 12.2.7 by Count Adolph IV of H olstein, in recognition of the part played by the city of Hamburg in his victor)r over the Danes at the battle of Bornhoved, which took place on Mar)" Magdalen day, ] ulr Hnd, of that year.~4 In the late 14th and I ~ th centu ries Hamburg was one of the leading H anseatic cities, and the wealth of its burghers was reAected in the riches

of its leading religious foundations. :Many generous gifts to rhe Friary of .M ary :Magdalen are recorded in the documents/·5 and in the later 15th century sixteen Ja)' confraternities took part in the activities of its church. 56 Unfo(tunately there is no description of the church or its treasures before the Reformation. The friar y was dissolved in 1529. when it became the hospital of the Hol y Ghost. an almshouse for 2 0 widows. The church stood empty for many yea rs and was not officially re-dedicated as a Luthernn place of worship until 1584. As such it remained until it was demolished in 1808, while the monastic buildings survived until 1839, when they were pulled dow n to make way for the Hamburg Stock Exchange. ft7 The descriptions we have of the Church of St. Mary Magdalen-by von lIovelen (1668)," Adclungk (1696)," Thnmas Lediard (1738),60 and von Hess (1796)G'- all date from well after the Reformation, and contain onl y cursory comments on the paintings in the church. one of them mention s an altar-piece of the Apocalypse, but this hardly invalidates the theory that there was such an altar-piece in the friar}r in the 15th century. It may have disappeared after the dissolution of 1529, or alternatively, it could have been omitted, along with many other works of art, from the I7thand 18th-century guide books. There is thus no documentar y record to support the circumstantial evidence for the hypothesis that the altar-piece originated in the Friary of Mar y :Magdalen in Hamburg. Yct there is nothing in rhe documents to invalidate this theor)', and, if it is accepted, all the problems posed by the iconography fall into place. 62 A friar}" .in particular a friary in the Franciscan Province of Bremen- to o ne of which Alexander himself belonged -is the logical home of an altar-piece illustrating Friar Alexander's Conllflwlory 011 the ApocaIJpJt. Mnr y Magdalen appea rs on the wings as the patron of the friar}'; the hermit stage of her life was chosen for illustration as it accords with the asceticism of the Franciscans. The sce nes from the life of St. Giles-a hermit like the :Magdalen, and living in Provence- were illustrated to provide a dose parallel to those of the patron saint. Proof is lacking, but what evidence there is suggests that this highly complex work of art was produced shortly after 1400 in the workshop o f 1\faster Bertram for the Friar}' of :M ary Magdalen in Hamburg.

Description of the Apocalypse scenes The story of the Apocalypse may be traced by following each register from left to right across the whole width of the altar-piece. 1) St. J ohn preaching on the Isle of Patmos and hearing the voice of the Lord as through a ((umpet. (Re v., I. 9-IJ) The Apocalypse text contains no reference to J oh n preaching, and this scene does not occur in any of the manuscripts of Alexander's Com-

mentary. It is morc closely related to the group of scenes from the life of St. J ohn at the back of the altar-piece, and, like th em, it is derived from the 13th-century Anglo-French Apocalypse cycle. The inscriptions on the scrolls have been restored and are now unintelligible. I nscription: 63 (Line missing) ... [Domit]iano imperatorc rdegatus apocalipsim gllodam die domin ico si bi a domino .. . (line missing) dominis et de beatudine observantium librum istllm .

2) St. J oh n's vision of Christ amidst the seven golden candlestkks. (I. 12- 17)

T he text on the scroll explains that " ]ohn fell at His feet as dead" (Johannes cecidit ad pedes ipsius velud mortuus). Inscription: (Li ne miss ing) .. . [ca]pilli ut lana alba hab entes in dextra stellas vii et in si nistra c1aves mortis et inferni .. . (line missing) .... vesti tum podere, et praecinctum ad mami lJas zona aurea. 3) The seven lenets to the seven churches. (2

~md

3)

The seven angels are dressed as bishops, and Alexander identifies them with seven defenders of the Earl y Christian Church. These arc, respecti,·ely, the Apostle Timothy (Ephesus), St. Polycatp (Smyrna), St. Catpus (Pergamon), I renaeus (Thyarira), Melito (Sa rdis), Quadratus (Philadelphia) and Sagares (Laodicc.). T he inscription has been cut off at the top and o n the right. 4) Occupying the space of four sce nes: The Majesty of Christ. (4. 1- 9) Ale xander describes Chri st as head of the Church, and explains the rainbow round Him as a symbol of His :Majesty over heaven and earth. The twentyfo ur Elders are iden tHied with the twenty-four cardinal-priests of the Roman lilll/i chu rches, and these are illu strated in the lower half of the outer circle. The seven lamps ate taken to sym boli ze the H oly Ghost, and the four Beasts the cardinal virrues. Inscription: (Line missing) ... xxiv Senlores in vestime ntis albis habentes ... (line missing) ... et in circuitu seelis iiii animalia se nas alas. ) The Elders in adoration. (4- 10) The insc ription is illegible. J3

6) Christ enthroned holding the Book with the seven seals. Jesus is consoled by the Elder, who points to the Lion of Juda on the right.

(5· 1- 5) T he angel says: "He is worthy to open the book" (Eius est dignus aperi re librum)j the Elder's scroll reads: Ecce vidit leo de tribu luda ("behold he sees the Lion of the tri be of Ju da"). The other scrolls and the inscription are unintelligible. 7) The Lamb, holding the book with the seven seals, adored by the Elders. (5. 6- 14) Alexander follows tradition in identifying the Lamb with Christ. H e opens the book in the sense that he confides to the Apostles the heavenly rules governing the church. St. J ohn'S scroll is inscribed: Dignus est agnus accipe(re) virttltem ("\Vorthy is the Lamb to receive virtue"). The inscription is largely illegible. 8) The first horseman. (6. 1- 2) He is identified with Gaius (A .D. 37- 41), the first Roman Emperor after the Ascension of Christ. Hi s horse is white because the Roma n Empire had not yet spilled as much blood as in later times. The bow in his hands is aimed at the Jews, whom he persecuted and whose Temple in Jerusalem he destroyed. The first beast is the lion: its scroll reads: peimum animal veni et vide ("The first animal: come and see"). St. John is sayi ng "and I saw, and behold a white ho rse". (6. 2) (et vide et ecce equus albus). The inscription has been cut off at the top and on the right. 9) The second horseman . (6. ) - 4) According to Alexander this is Nero (j4- 68), who may readily be identified as the slayer with the sword. The sw() rd itself refers to the beginning of the persecution of the Christians with the martyrdom of Peter and Pau l, who are shown in the illustration. Nero has a red horse because he set Rome on fire (A.D. 64) to re-en~ct the burning of Troy. The second beast is the bull of St. Lukej its scroll reads: Animal secundum veni et vide. The other scroll is unintelligible. Alexander completes the description of Ne ro by describing his suicide and listing the other emperors who died in 68- 9: Galba, Otto and Vitell ius. This section of the Commentary is conveyed in the inscription. Inscription: (Line missing) ... datus est glad ius guia primam persecutionem intulit Christianis interficiens Petrum Pau lu m . .. (line missing) seipsu111 Otto Romae seipsum imperatorcs per annum et sex menses se invicem interfeecrunt.

10) The third horseman (6. 5- 6), who is identified as Titus (78- 81). His horse, Alexander expbins,is as dark as his origins are obscure. Five small heads with tall, pointed hats are shown being weighed on the scales. They illustrate Alexander's interpretation of the third rider's scales. T itus conguered Jerusalem (A.D. 70) and afterwards weighed the Jews and sold J4

them into slavery at thirty for one Denar, just as they had sold Christ for thirty pieces of silver. Alexander goes on to equate five Jews with one pound and this parr of his Commentary is literall y illustrated in the picture and quoted in the inscription. The third beast is the angel of St. :Matthew; its scroll is inscribed: animal tercium yeni et vide. St. J ohn's scroll is unintelligible. Inscription: (Line missing) ... diteos veni et vide exivit unus in equo nigro id est Tytus imperator qui tenet stateram ... (line missing) tres bilibres sunt vi librae et v Iudei accipiunt per unam libram.

11) The fourth horseman: Death follo wed by Hell. (6. 7- 8) This is D omitian (8 1- 96) persecuting the Christians. The fourth beast is the eagle of St. John; its scroll is inscribed: animal quartum veni et vide. The inscription ha s been cut off at the top and on the right.

SECON D REGISTER

12) The fifth seal; the sall is of the slain faithful under the altar. (6. 9- 1I) Alexander explains that during the persecution altars were set up in the catacombs and mass was said over the bodies of the martyrs. He collates this episode with the third persecution of the Christians under Traja n ( 1°9), who is shown in the picture wielding a sword. The Commentary contains a long list of martyrs; the praying king is perhaps Alexander of B yz~tn­ tium who had rebelled against Roman rule. His scroll is inscribed: . .. vindicas sanguinem nostrum ( ... "dost tho u avenge our blood?" 6.10). Inscriptio n: Ag nus aperuit Vm et vidit J oha nne s sub altare D ei animas interfectorum propter verbum Dei et clamabant voce magna dicentes usquequo Domine non vindicas sanguinem nostrum de hi is qui habitant in terra et datae su nt illis sustinc re adhuc modicum donec impleantur conservi et per istud designa ntur Christianis Trayani qui terciam persecutionem fecit ecclesiae. 13) The sixth seal: the stars fall after the earthquake and the kings of the earth hide themselves. (6. 12- 17) The kings are identified as Phil ippus and :Marcus, legendary figures who were martyred under D ecius (249- :; 1). The scroll reads: Reges et alii dicunt manti bus cadite sllper nos (" The Kings and the others said to the mountains fall on us." 6. 16). lnscripti on: Agnus :l.peruit VIm et terraemOtus factus est et sol factus est niger . .. luna est sicLit sanguis et stellae cecideILInt super terram et caelum recess it sicut liber involutus et reges terrae et divites ... et liber absconderunt se in spelunci s dicunt montibus cadite super nos et abscondite nos a facie sedentis super thronum et agno. 14) The four angels holding the winds of the earth; another angel tells them not to hurt the earth and the sea. (7. 1-3)

j5

The four wicked angels are identified w ith four emperors who persecuted the Chris tians and prevented the spreadin g of th e true faith: Severus (19j- 2I1), Maximian (28G- joj), Maxe ntius (joG- 8) and Licinius (jo824). The good angel is Constantine (;06- ; 7) who became a Christian in the sixth year of his reign. His scroll reads: Notite nocere terrae, mari et arboribu s (" Hurt not the earth, neither the sea nor the trees". 7· 3). rnscrip6on: A pocalypsim vii ubi J oha nnes vi dit iiii angelos id est ii ii reges malos ... (line missing) . .. iiii ve ntos terrae ne Aarent id est pe r iiii partes regni eorum praedicatores ... (line m issing). 1 5) The multjtude stand before the Lamb; one of the Elders speaks to

John . (7· 9- 1 7) The previous scenes, show ing the opening of the first six seals, were in terpreted in the light of the Early Chri sti ans' str ugg le aga inst Satan 's age nts, the emperors of Rome. Thi s sta ge of the sto ry came to an end in the previous picture with the appearance of Constan6ne. The present scene represents the ending of the official persecution and the toleratio n of public Christian worship. The next gro up of scenes, jlJustrating the seven trumpets, are seen by Alexander as represe nti ng the intern al strugg le of th e church against the early heretics. The inscription and the scroll are illegible. 16) The seve nth seal: seven angels with seve n trumpets. (8. 1- 2)

The inscriptio n is jUegible. 17) Another angel casts the censer filled wi th flre into the ea rth . (8 . 3- 5)

Thi s angel is Pope D amasus I (366--84) who opposed th e Arian heretics. H is mitred head appears behind the head of the angel. This method of showi ng the releva nt character of the Apocalypse together with the historical personage with whom he was identified in the Commentary is peculiar to Alexander illustrations and does not occur in any other Apoca lypse cycle. Jnscription: Angelus (? stetit) ante altare ... ut a tempo re apostolorum consuetudo erat habens thuribulum est D amas us papa cui data su nt incensa mu lta ut daret de oratio ni bus super altare ... (two lines illegible). 18) T he first trumpet: hai l an d fire mingled wi th blood . (8 . 7) The first ange l is the Emperor Valens (364- 78) who embraced the Arian heresy. The inscription is illegible.

19) The second trumpet: the b urning mountain cast into the sea, a third part of the sea's creatures and of the ships are destroyed. (8. 8- 9) The second angel is the heretic 11acedonius, whose head is shown. As the flaming mountain was cast into the sea, so Macedo niu s was condemned at the Council of Constantinople (,81). The sea rep rese nts bap6sm; the destruction of the creatures signifies that this sacrame nt was destroyed by jG

the heresy of lvfacedonius, who rejected the belief in the H oly Ghost. Inscription: ii s id est ~Maced o niu s cednit et mons ignem id est excellens doctrina perfidiae ipsis missus est in mare id est in populum et facta est iiiia pars sanguis id est carnales qui ante fuerant spirituales nam ipse docebat spiritum sanctum se rvu m esse Parris et mortua est in mari tercia pars guae habebant animas id est maiorem sapie ntiam inter alias et tercia pars navium interiit ut cpiscopi et alii praelati .

20) The third trumpet: the star falls and the waters are made bitter. (8 . 1 0 - 11)

This is the heres), of Pelagius (condemned in 40 2.) whose head is shown behind that of the ange l. He made the waters bitter when he declared baptism to be superAu ous . lnscription: Tercius angelu s id es Pelagius haereticus advenit in ardens stella id est doctrina ipsius in heresi feruen s cecidit in Auminum id est in corda hominum in fide Auctuantia et multi homines mo rtui Sllnt de aquis bibcntes de corruptis Pela gii doctrinis quia homines in Trinitate credentes ab auxilio D ei avertit docens homines sah"ari in fine gratia Dei. The fourth trumpet: a third part of the suo, the moon and the sta rs are smitten . (8. 12- 13) 2.1)

The fourth angel is the heretic ElIt)'ches who was exiled from Constantinople at the Council of Chalcedon in 451. The eagle is crying "',(/oe, woe, woe to the inhabiters of the earth" (8. 13) (vae, vae, vae habitantibus jn terra; the last word has become "torsa"). St. John' s scro ll reads: Johannes vidit aquila ... Inscription: Quartus angelus id est Eutices haereticus cecinit et obscurata est Il11 a pars diei id est D eum ... (line missing) Christum tantum modo esse hominem aff1rmabat ... (line missi ng). THIRD REGI S TER 2.2)

The fifth trumpet: the star falls from heaven and the locusts with men's faces and crowns come out of the abyss. (9- 1 - 11)

Alexander identifies the fifth angel with the Vandal King, Genseric (42.8-477), who was also an Arian heretic. The locusts are the Vanda ls conguering North Africa (429) and persecuting the Catholics. Inscription: Apoca lypsim I X Quintus angelus id est J esericus rex: cecinit et vidit ignes stellam de caelo cecidisse in teream et data est davis putci abyssi et aperuit puteum et ascendit fumu s et obscuratus est sol et aer et exierunt locustae de puteo in tcrram habentes coronas aureas facies hominum capillos mulierum loricas ferreas caudes scorpionum . 23) The sixth trumpet: the sixth angel is told to loose the fOllr angels

bound to the Euphrates. (9. 37

I j- lj)

Alexander identifies this episode with the first schism between the \'Vestern and Eastern Churches (-t82- j 19). The sixth angel is Bishop Laurence who was set up as anti-Pope by the cnstern faction in 498. The four angels of discord are the main parricipants in the struggle: the Ostrogothic King Theodoric, ruler ofltaly, Pope Symmachus, and the Byzantine Emperor Anastasius I and his anti-Pope, Laurence. The angel is told: "Loose the four angels which are bound in the Euphrates" (Solve quatuor angelos qui alJigati sunt in Eufrate. 9· 14)· Inscription: viS angelus id est Laurencius cecinit et audivit J ohan nes vocem de altari quod est ante oculos Dei dicentem vi O angelo solve II Il or angelos qui alligati sunt in Eufrate id est in Romano imperio videlicet Theodoricum Anastasium imperatorem Laurencium et Symachum tamquam si diceret Laurencio permitce omnes re solvi in errorem priusquam tu papatum resignes et haec erat vox Pascasii . 24) The armies o f horsemen with breastplates of fire riding on horses

with lions' heads and tails like se rpents. (9. 16- 21) This is the discord resulting from the sch ism between the churches: a third of mankind was killed in the sense that they lost the truc faith . St. J oh n'S scroll is inscribed: J ohannes vidit equest rcs exercitum ... ("J ohn saw the horsemen of the army ... "). Inscription: Johannes vidit in visione equos et qui sedebant supe r eos habebant lo riats . .. (line missing) sunt caudae equorum similes serpent.ibus habcntes capita et potestas (line missing). 25) The angel with the sun for a face . John writing and then ordered to eat the book. (10. I- II) The stro ng angel is the Byzantine Emperor Justin I (~ 18 - 27) who reunited the \'\festern and Eastern churches. His face shines like the sun because he fights for truth, the rainbow round his head is a sign of reconci liation and peace. But J ohn is forbidden to write because the Ostrogorh Theodoric is still alive. The voice speaking to J ohn is that of the Emperor Justinian (527-6~) whose general Belisarius destroyed the Vandal empire in Africa . The scroll is inscribed: noli scribisse ... ("do nOt write ... "). Inscription: Apocalypsim X angelus iste amictus nube ... in capite eius facies sicut sol pedes sicut columpnae ignis Guorum unum supe r marc aliul11 supe r terram posuit in manu liber quod Johannes de manu suis reccpit et ... (largely illegible). 26) The angel tells John to measure the temple. (II. 1- 2) St. John is identified with Pope Felix IV (526-30) who measured the temple in that he published regulations gove rning the building and consecration of churches. The Pope is shown in the temple, holding the rod . The instruction not to include the forecourt in these measurements refers to his prohibiting the celebration of ]\'fa ss in private houses. The scroll is 38

inscribed: surge metire templum Dei et altare ("Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar"). The insc ription is illegible. 27) The two witnesses are killed by the beas t from the abyss and ascend to heaven . (11 . 3- 12) Although both witnesses are shown as Popes with keys, the text identifies them as Pope Silverius (H6-7) and the Patriarch 1\ienas. The beast from the abyss is the Byza ntine general Belisariu s who occupied Rome in H6. Under the influence of the Empress Theodora, he banished Silverius in the following year o n the grounds that he had supported the Goths. The voice calling the witnesses to heaven is that of Bishop J\mator, who provided Silverius with money in exile. The scroll is inscribed: Dictum est nobis ascendite ... ("\'
jO) Michael fights the dragon . (H. 7- 8) Thi s is the battle between Chosroes II and Heraclius which ended in the total defeat of th e Persians in 627. The remaining part of the inscription is illegible. 3 I) The drago n persecuting the woman and those that are faithful to her. (H. 13- 17) Despite their defeat the Persians continue to harry the Christians. Inscription: l\{ulieri quam draco id est Cosdras persequit datae sunt alae aquilae ut volaret in desertum id est in Byzanthium quae tunc erat civitas deserta et

39

o

draco misit iussu oris sui flumen id est populum post l1lulierem et adiuvit terra id est populus terrae mulierem quae de illo exercitu erat obsessa et absorbu it flumen et iratus draco fecit proelium cum seminae muLieris. p) The beast from the sea is worshipped. (I , . 1- -\)

This is Siroes, son of Chosroes II, who was K.ing of Persia in 628. The smitten head of the beast is explained by the legend of Heraclius' defeat of Siroes in single combat on a bridge over the Danube. The scrolls 3rc indecipherable. Inscription: ApocalypsimXTII Bestia haec de mad ascendens similis pardo habenspedes ursi os leonis capita septem cornua decem et dyademata haec bestia filius erat Cosdrae quem adorabant habitantes in terra et datum est illi vinccrc iUos et erat unum de capitibus eius occisum in mortem et plaga eius curata. 33) The beast with two horns like a lamb's. Those who do not worship the first beast are killed. (l). 11- 18) The horned beast is Mahomet (d . 632). The two horns represent his claim to possess wisdoll1 and holiness. The fire from heaven is the ho ly scripture from which he took much of his tcaching, though it was wrongly applied. The Saracens in the illustration wear turbans. The scroll is illegi hle. Inscription: Haec bestia de terra ascende ns habens cornua duo similia agni ... (line missing) et fecit ig nem de caelo descend ere in conspectu hominum et seduxit habitantes .. . (line missing). FOURTH REGISTER

)4) The Lamb on Mount Zion adored by one hundred and fortr-fout thousand; the harpers in heaven . (q. 1-4) Chapter 14 is interpreted as a g lorification of chastity. The harpers are Benedictine monks, led by Abbot Petronax who restored the Abbey of Monte Cassino (7 '7). The one hundred and forty-four thousand have the names of the Lamb and of the Father written o n their foreheads (habentes nomen agni et nomen patris suis scriptum in frontibus suis; cf. 14. I). Inscription: Apocalypsim XIlTI ubi J ohannes vidit supra montem Syon agnum stantem et cum eo centum xliiii milia habentes nomen eius et nomen Patris eius scriptum in frontibus suis et audivit vocem tamquam vocem tonitrui aquarum multarum et tamquam tonitrui magni et vocem quam audivit sicut cytaroedorum cytarizantium in cytari . Three scenes of the Alexander manuscripts illustrating 14.. 6- 12, in which the first three angels are identified as St. Boniface, Gregory II and Gregory III, are omi tted in the altar-piece. ll) The harvest of the earth. (14. q - I6) The crowned figure with the sickle seated on the cloud is identified with Pippin, King of France (7l ,-68); the white cloud that supports him repre-

40

sents the bishop and clergy of France. The angel who orders the harvest is Pope Stephen II (7)2-7) commanding Pippin to fight the Lombards. His success led to the beginning of the temporal power of the papacy, for he presented Stephen II with the territories he conquered. The Pope's scroll is inscribed: :Mitte fakem tuam et (mete) ... ("Thrust in thy sickle and reap". 14. 1 ~). Inscription: Pippinu s rex Franco rum sedit in nube id est in amplia dignitate mittit f:t1cem id cst regiam potest:ltem in messe id cst in Langobardos et metit id est affiigit cos crudeliter per gladium quia venit hora ut affiigerent et angelus exiens de templo clamans ad sede ntem in nube ut metere t messem erat papa Stephan us.

36) The vintage of the earth. Blood comes from the wine press up to the bridles of the horses. (14. '7- 20) The angel with the sickle is Charlemagne who became King of France in 768. The second angel ordering the vintage is Pope Hadrian 1(772-9) asking Charlemagne to fight the Lombard King Desiderius. The Pope's scroll is inscribed: .M itte fakem tuam et vindemia botros ... C'Thrust in thy sickle and gather the clusters . .. " . 14. 18). Insc ripti on: Angelus exiens de altari habens potestatem supra ignem est Adrianus papa ... (line missing) ... in lacum irae Dei et exivit sanguis de lacu extra civitatem id est ... (line missing). 37) The faithful with harps on the sea of glass. (1). 2-4) Alexander identifies the harpists with the newly baptized Saxons whose country Charlemagne incorporated with his empire. Their scroll was originall y inscribed with the words of their so ng: .M agna et mirabilia .. . ("Great and man'ellous are thy works ... " l~. 3). Inscription : Johannes vidit eos qui vicerunt bestiam stantes super mare vitreum mixtum ignc id est Saxones baptjzati sta re super baptismum habentes cytharas D ei cantantes canticum M.oysi et canticum agni magna et mirabilia (? iudicia) tua Deus om nipotens ... (partjally illegible), 38) The seven angels with seven vjals emerge from the temple; the ox in a cloud above. (I). )-8)

\V'i th one exception, the angels are seen as the instruments of God's justice, whereas the seven trumpeting angels were the servants of Satan. Inscription: Apocalypsim XV J ohan nes vidit vii angelos habentes vii plagas novissim3s de templo vcstiros lapide (largely illegible). 39) The first and second vials. (16. 1- 3) The first angel represe nts Charlemagne pourjng the wrath of God upon the pagan Saxons; the second is Pope Leo III (79)-816) pouring the wrath of God on to the rebellious Roman s. Leo HI was forced to Aee from Rome in 799 and to seek Charlemagne's help at Pade rborn . 41

The scroll and the inscription are no longer legible.

40) The third via l. (16. 4- 7) The third vial is Charlemagne again, now as Emperor, who came to Rome in 800 at the Pope's request. The angel in the cloud is the Duke of Spoleto who remained loyal to Leo III throughout the rebellion. Inscription: iiii ange lus id est Karolus imperator ... (largely illegible).

41) T he fo urth vial poured upon the sun . (t6. 8- 9) The fourth angel is the Roman Patrician Crescentius Nomentanus who set up the anti-Pope John XVI in 996. His head appears behind that of the angel. The sun, upon which the vial is poured, represents the true Pope, Gregory V (996- 9). The inscription is illegible.

42) The fifth vial poured upon the scat of the beast. (16. 10- 11) This is Ihe Emperor Otto III (98,- 1002) pnuring the wrath of God upon the anti-Pope John XVI, who was captured and mutilated whcn Otto returned to Romc in 998 . Inscription: v angelus id est Otto imperator tercius effudit phyalam . .. (line missing) et Crescentills (latgely illegible). 43) The sixth vial poured upon the Euphrates to clear the way for the kings from the East. (16. 12)

The sixth angel is Pope Gregnry VII (107,- 8l) and he pours his vial on to the empite of Henry IV (IOl6- 1106). Gregory opposed Henry IV over the imperial investiture of bishops and excommunicated him in [076. The kings from the East a.re interpreted as the bishops for whom the way is dear after being freed from imperial investiture. Inscription: vi angelus id est Gregorius papa vi i effudit phialnm suam in Eufraten id est in Romanum imperatorem Hinricum iiii et exsiccavit aquas euis id est populos de Romano imperio quem fere omnem imperii populum ab eius sequestravit lit praeparetur via pristinae regibus id cst episcopis quam a Constantino ab ortu solis in ... 44) Unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast and the false prophet. (16. ,,) The dragon and the beast are seen as the kings of Babylon and Persia. Inscription: Johannes vidit de orc draconis id est regis Persarum de ore id est de verbis bestjae jd est regis Babilonis et de ore pseudo prophetac qui tunc surrexerunt in mundo tres spiritus immundos in modum ranarum procedente ad reges terrae congregare illos in proelium ad dient magnum Dei magna erat dies quando propter dampnationem istorum laud atus est Deus. 4j) The seventh vial: a great earthquake, the cities fall and a hail of sto nes fall upon men. (16. 17- 21)

42

The seventh angel is the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I (1081 - 1118) who asked for help from Pope Urban II (1088- 99) against the Saracens. The nrst crusade began in 1095. The inscription on the scroll is unintelligible. Inscription: vii angelus id est Alexius imperator effudit phialam id est cor suum per verba in ... (line missing) ... tremor id est homines tcrreni com mati sunt in civitate (line missing). The illustrations to chapters 17- 22 are missing on the altar-piece. In Alexander's Commentary chapters 17- 19 are paralleled by the first crusade (1095 - 9) and chapter 2 0 by the Concordat of Worms, the meeting of Lothar m and Innocent n at Bari in I 137 and the second crusade (114687). In chapter 21 the new Jerusalem is identified with the coming of the Franciscans and D ominicans and this, as we ha,-e seen, provides one of the keys to the Commentary_

43

Notes I No. 5940- 1859 Tempera on panel transferred on to canvas; centre piece. 137 X 168 em. including frame; wings, each, 137 X 84 em. including frame. A brief summary of the main conclusions of this monograph appeared In the Jahrbuch de,. Hamburger KlIlIslrallllJlhmgen, (1967), p. 59 . .2. A. Lichtwark. lUtisler Bertram, 1905. pp. 394- 403 . 3 Oflizieller Berir/Jt tiber die Verhalldlllllgen du KlIlIsfhistoriscbm KOllgress ill Liiberk, September 1 900 , p. 31. The story of the re-discover y of l\1astcr Bertram is told in detail by Lichtwark, op. cit., 17 If.; the p osition of the altar-piece in St. Peter's church is discussed op. cit., p . .2.1 f. 4 J. IvL Lappenberg, " Beitriigc zur ii,ltcren Kunstgeschichte Hamburgs", Z ejtschrift dtsVtreillJ Jlir HallJ/mrgische Gtschichte (= ZHG), V (1866), esp. pp. Z4)-5 . In recent years the d ocuments have b ee n discussed b y: J. C. Jen se n, ZHG ., XLIV (1958), pp. '4' - Z03; Max Hasse, Norddwtsrlj, B,itrag' z"r Klmstguchirhte, III (1964), p. 285 fr.; J. K. von Schroeder, I17estJalm, 43 (1965), pp. 191-200. Jen se n interpreted the documents as indicating that Bertram was a sculptor as well as a painter and that his worksh o p must h ave been small, acco rding to the rules gove rning guilds; Hasse opposed b oth these interpretations. Von Schroeder ha s added some interesting information concerning the artist's famil y. G The principal works on Master Bertram si nce Lichtwark are as follows. The most usefu l among them are asterisked, page numbers indicate refe rences to the V . and A. altar-piece. Alfred Rohde, Dos Hamburger Petri (-GraboJI-'er-) Allar ,wdlU eisler '&rtra", "'all fo.liIJdm, 1916, pp. 34-5 r; *G. Heubach, " Die Hamburger :M alerei unter Meister Bertram und ihre Beziehungen zu B ahmen" , jabr/meh des KWlSlbisl. IfIsl. del' K. K . ZmtralkollJl}li.fSiolJ pir DmkJJlalpflege, X (1916), pp. ')4- 7; (V. & A. altar-piece by two of Bertram's assistants); V. C. Habicht, Die lUillelalter/icbe l'Jalerie Niedersarbsms, I (1919). pp. 118- 23; *V. C. H abicht, Nieder.fiirhsisehe KIIlIst ill EJJg/alld, 1930, p. 50 ff.; ibid., R eperlorillm pir KIIlIslwissmschojl, LIT, (193 I), pp. 181,18),189; F. A. Martens, M , ister Bertram, 19)6, p. z8 f. (V. & A. altar-piece b y three different hands); Alexander D orner, Areister BertroJJl t'oll1'Iilldm , 1937, p. 46; A. Stange, DtIIlscbe 1Ilalerei del' Galik. II, 1936, Cap. IX; III, 19;8, p . '97 f.; 'Helga Rensing, 1\J, i.rl'l" Bel"lral/l (unpublished thesis, Munich, 1952), pp. 92.- 5; *Hans Platte, lUeisler Bertram (Bilderhefte der Hamburger Kunsthalle, I), ?1960, p. 20; Paul Portmann, lIfeisler Bertram, 1963 (Grabow altar-piece only); U7estj/iliscbe Afalerei des I4. jahrh/(flflerl.f (exhibition catalogue), Landes-

museum, Mun ster, 1964, pp. 55 - 63. For the Johannes de \Vusthorpe Missal see John Plummer, PierpOllt ftrorgan LibralJ', R eport 10 lbe F e/lows, 1958- 9, p. 22 ff.; Pau l Pieper, jahrbllch der Hamburger Kflllstsa",mlllllgm, (1967), p. 35 ff.

44

I am indebted to Dr. Plummer and Dr. Pieper for these references. Unfortunately the latter article appeared after the present monograph had gone to press. See also the compariso ns in Platte, op. rit., figs . 6670 . For the \'\!estminster frescoes, see A. Dorner, " Ein Schuler des 1\1eister Bertram in England", Jahrblfch per prmss. KTfIISlsaJIJIIJI., j 8

(1937), p. 40. 7 A . D voiakova, J. Krasa, A. 1\1erhautova, K. Stejskal, GOlhie Al/lraJ Painting in Bohemia and J.Ioral'ia, 1}00-73, 1964, p. 80 f. (with bibliography). For a brief sur vey of Bohemian panel painting, see A . :M atejcek and J. PeSina, CZech Gothic PIJinling, I}J O- I4J O, 1950. On this subject I have benefited from discussion with Dr. Z . Drobna and Dr. L. Kesner of Prague. A succinct account of the spread of the Italian st yle to northern Europe is given by E. Panofsky, Early Nether/lllldhh Painlillg, 19B, p. 24 If. 8 Prague, Nat. Mus. Library 1\{S. xiii. A . 12; H. Swarzenski and J. Kvet, C ZechoJIO/'akia : ROIIJanesqur aud Gotl)irIllllllJillaled l' lll1l11srripts(UNESCO), 1959, pis. xxix f. These manuscripts were discussed by M:. Dvorak, Jahrbuch del' KUllslhisl. S(ulJIlIl., XXII (Vienna, 1901), pp. 35-126, esp. p. 59 If. (reprinted in his Gnalllmelte Alifsiitsr ZNr K,mslgeschirhle, I, 1929). D vorak's work retains its fundamental importance even though his conclusion, that the Italianate style reached Bohemia via Avignon, has not been genera lly accepted, see O. Kletzl , Alarbllrger Jahrbllch fli,. KUIlSI1J'issmsrhajt, VlI, 1933, p. 0 If. 9 Antonin Friedl, l'lasltr T/Jtodoric, 1956. J. P esina had demonstrated a stylistic connection between Theodoric and Tomaso da l\fodena; Ftslsrhrift Karl 1.U. Swoboda, 1959, p . 223 fr. Another point of view, argued mos t forcibly b~t J. Krofta, is that 1\faster Theodo ric came to Prague from France or Flanders, see UIIII,,;, VI (1958), p. 2 ff. (in Czech), briefly summa ri zed in us PrillJitijs de BohhJJe (exhi bition catalogue), Brussels and Rotterdam, 1966, Introduction and nos. 29-33. This is a tenable hypothesis, sustained at present b y insufficient evidence. 10 Alfred Rohde (1916), see above, n. 6. I I Lichtwark, op. ril., p . 63. 12 \Y/. 1\{eyer-Barkhausen, " n as Netzer Altarbild", Jahrbllrh der pret/H. KIIIIJ/Ja!IJlII/., 50 (1929), pp. 233-55; Kathe Klein, " D er Passionsaltar aus Osnabruck", Jli'allraf-Ricbarlz-Jabrbllcb, II/III (19JJ- 4), pp. I j 564; lf7e.rtjtili.rche l'falerei des 14. Jahrhllllderis (exhibition catalogue), Miinster, 1964, pp. 43-55, pIs. 15 - 42.. See also the comparisons made by Platte, j\fe/ster Berlram, figs. 59- 70. 13 A. Stange (op . cil., If, 1936, p. 139) adduced the evidence of the altarpiece in the church at Schotten in Hessen to show that Bertram's artistic origins lie in the \V'estphaija-Hessen region rather than in Bohemia. However, the Schotten altar-piece is more convincingly dated c. 1390 than c. 1370 (see H . Deckert, R . Freyhan, K. Steinbart, Religiose KlIlISt aus Hessm 1II1l1 Nassau, Katalog del' .AlIssteJhlllg,l\1arburg, 1932, No. 143 , pIs. 189-2°4). 45

14 Stange, op. cif. , II, 1936, figs. 176- 7. Compare also the frames round the compartmen ts of the Hanover altar-piece, ibid., figs. 172-5 . 15 The Alexander illustrations have been dealt with most full y by l\1:nx Huggler, "Der Bilderkreis in den H andschriften der A lexander Apokal ypse", AnloniaJln"" IX (Rome, 1934), pp. 8)-ljo; ,69- )08 (V. & A . altar-piece, pp. 269- 76). Alexander's theories have been analysed and the text of his Commentary edited b y Alois \'V'achtel, (1) FroJJziskallische Sflldim, 24 (Munster, 1937), pp. 201- 59,305 - 63; (2) Ed., AllxaJldlr l'Iillorifa E::.::posifio ill AporaIJrpsilJJ (Mon. Germ. Hi st., Quellen zur Geistesgeschichte des l\'[ittelalters, I), 1 95~. Earlier literature on A lexander includes: J. P . Gilson, "Friar Alexander and his historical interpretation of th e Apocalypse", CollufO/ua FrollciHallo, II, 1922, ed . C. L. Kingsford and others, p. 20; A. Kleinhans, AlltoniaJIIIIJJ, IT (1927). pp. 289- ;;4; G. Prausnitz, Zmtralbloll fiir Bibliolb,kJ.·estll, 44 ( 19)7), pp. )21 - 37; H. Grundmann, ibid., 4) (19,8), pp. 713- 2.; . See also Peter Brieger, English Art 121 6- IJ 07, 1957, p. 159. Finally, it must be said that the nature of the Apocalypse cycle of the altar-piece was noted by A. D orner in his article on the \'Vestminster wall paintings (see above, n. 6). 16 Wachtel (,), p. xxv If. '7 Gilson, op. cil., p. l); but see Wachtel (2), p. vii If. 18 Kleinhans, op. cil., p. 29~ ff. 19 On the o rga nization of the Franciscans jn Saxony, see Lucas \Vadding, Am/alu Afinortfm, IX, 3rd cd. 1932, p. 284; Patricius Schlager, "Verzeichnis der Kloster der Sachsischen Franziskanerprovinz", FrallzisJullliscbe StHdien, I CIV[Unster, 1914), pp. 230-42; Leonhard Lemmens, Niedersiicbsisrhe FrolJziskaJJerklO'sler illl l'Iitlelnller, 1896. 20 For a brief survey of Apocalypse interpretation see H. T . Andrews, " Revelations", A. S. Peake, A COIIIIIIMlnry OJI lhe Bible, 192.0, pp. 92.643; a more detailed study is that by \VI. KamIah, ApokaIJ'P.re fOld Gurhichlstheologie, 1935. On Joachim see R. Freyhan, JOllrnal of tbe fl7arbm',g and COlfrloll1d Il/sli/II/lS, XVIU (19~ 5), pp. 211 - 44. though not all his conclusions are acceptable. 2. I \\1achtel (2), p. xxxiv fr. deals with Alexander's sources. 22 The illustrated manuscripts of Alexander's CommentaIY arc as follows: i) Dresde n, Saxon State LibraIY, !:vIS. A.II? Saxony, second half lJth century. 109 fols., 64 pictures (some pictures missing; othe rs were damaged by water in 194~ ): ii) \'qroclaw (fo rm ed )' Breslau), Universiqr Libra!)', l\'[S. I.Q.19. Saxony, late 13th century, 136 fols., 83 pictures (complete series). iii) Cambridge, University Library, j\I[S.l\1m. V . 31. Saxony, late 13th century. 20~ fols ., 71 pictures remain ou t ofa n10re extensive series. iv) Prague, Cathedral Chapter Libraqr, MS. Cim. ~. Avignon, second quarter 14th century (c. 1336? The original binding contained letters of L ucas de Flisco, recorded in Avignon from 1308; died there 1336). 151 fols., 83 pictures (complete series); facsimile edition b y A. Frind, ScriplHIII Super AporoIJrpsilJl (IIf" imagil/iblls, Prague, 1873.

:q

24 25 26

v) Vatican Librar y, J..1S. Vat. Lat. 3819. ?Southern France o r Ital y, 1316- 34. 227 fols.; onl y 3 pictures completed, gaps left for 78. These manuscripts are discussed at length by Huggler, op . (il., and \,(fachtel (2), p. xii fr.; see above n. 15. The Alexander manu scrip ts without illustrations are: i) Ch:110ns sur .Marne, Bibliothcque Communale, :MS. 68, 14th century. ji) Wolfenbuttel, Herzog-August-Bibliothek, MS . Aug. 4° 55-4, 14th century. iii) WolfenbUttel, Herzog-August-Bibliothek, MS. Aug. 4° 3°.9.1, I ~th century. \'\fachtel (2), p. xxxii. \V. Neuss, Die Apoknb'Pse du HI. johaJlllu ill de,. allspallischm Imd all(hrist/ierlJtIl Bibtl-IIIlIslraliol1, 1931 , figs. 99,126. The other scenes in which the altar-piece resembles the Cambridge :MS. more closel y than the other manuscripts are: scene 8: The Lion is shown in the sky and not on the ground. 14: The four angels holding w.inds are without haloes . 20: St. ~iichael holds the lance without assistance from Herac1ius. 34: Both scrolls are horizontal. 3T God is show n in a segment in the sky.

.

)J

'7 M. R. James, Tb, Apora6'P"' ill Arl, '93 I. 28 See above, n. 25. 29 Several of the manuscripts have been published In full under the auspices of the Roxburghe Club: Bodleian Library, MS. Auet D-4-17, ed. H. O . Coxe, 1876; Trinity College, Cambridge, MS. R.16.2, ed. M. R. James, 1909; Bodleian Library, :MS. D ouce 180, ed. 1\'L R. James, 1922; D yson Perrins Collection, :MS. 10, ed. 1\'1. R . James, 1927. A new editio n of the Trinity College Apocalypse, ed. P. Briege r, is in the press. See also L. Delisle and P. :M eyer, L'Apo(ajypse til Prallfais 11/( XIII, Ii!dr, 1901, and A. G. and W. o. Hassall, Tb. DOlla Aporalypu, 1961. G. Henderson, 'The English Apoca lypse 1', jOIlrt1al oj the If''arburg and COlfrt(Jldd IJlsli/lltu, XXX (1967), was in the press at the same time as this monograph. 30 The main obstacle to an evaluation of the prototype of the 13thcentury Apoca lypses is the shortage of 12th-century Apocalypse cycles. One of the few sti ll extant is that contained in the Liber Floridlfs (\Xlolfenbuttel, :MS. 1 Gud. lat. 20, fols. 9" - 1~"), a 12th-centur), encyclopedia, and this is incomplete. Huggler's cotJ.c1usion (op. (il., p. 276 if.) that the Alexander illustrations were largely deriveJ from the Anglo-French cycle is not acceptable; the difference between them is considerable and it is just as likel y that Alexander preceded the AngloFrench Apocalypse as the other way round. A COmmon parentage for the two cycles is a much more plausible hypothesis and one supported by Professor Peter Brieger and Mrs. Teresa Mroczko (Warsaw) who

47

31

32

Jl 34

35 36 37

38

39 40

are bOth working on the subject and for whose help I am most grateful. A recent discussion of this subject is that by Irving Lavin, Art BIII/elill, XU (19j9), pp. 19- ;8 . For this and for other references I am indebted to Dr. ~'[jrella Levi d'Ancona. The two-faced Trinity is discussed by A . Heimann, JOllmal of lb. Jl7arbllrg Jllslillll" II (19 38-9), p. 48 if. Huggler, op. (il., pp. 287- 96, discusses the origin of these figures at some length . See also A. Straub and G. Keller, Hortll.r DdiciarilllH, 1899, pI. x.xii ; K. von Arnica, Die Dre.rdmer Bildtrbolld.rrbrifl du So(b.rm.rpiegeIJ, 1902, e.g . pI. ] 22.. See, for example, M . R. James, Tb. Trillity Col/'g' Apocalypse, 1909, fols, 2v, 18, 18v . For example, Brit. Mus., Add. 22493, fol. 3'"; Magdalene College, Cambridge, :MS. 5; Florence, Laurenziana, i\ shburnham 415, all 13th century, see Brieger, Ellglisb Art, p. 218. Cf. also a 14th-century German Apocalypse: H. von der Gabelentz, Die Biblia Pallpt"'JI' IIl1d Apokab'p.re dtr GroSJbtri..0gl. Bibliotbtk til Il7eilllar, 19I2, pI. 29. Fran z Juraschek. Das Rfi'fsd ill D,f'ru Gollusrhall, 1955, figs. H, 2.5 . See above, n. 29. For the origin of the St. John cycle see James, Trillity Col/'g' Aporalyps" p. 14 if. The descending child in the Annunciation, common in the qth century, is rare in the 14th century. The earliest examples are all Italian, for example Pacino di Bonaguida, Tree of Life (Florence , Accademia. c. 1320-30). see R. Offner, r 1 Corplls of Flol'm/ille Pailllillg, Section III, Vol. JT, part r, 1930, pis. II ja, b, and especially D. M. Robb, Art Bldl,lill, XVIII, 1936, p. jZ;. Aela Salle/orlllJ/, Sept., I, pp. 284-- 304; r lllaluta Bollalldialla, VITI, pp. 103-20 (10th-century Lif'); G. Paris and A. Bos, La r 'i, de S. Gillts d, GllillalllJle de &rl1tl'ille, 1881; F. Brittain, 51. Gilu, 1928. Ethel C. Jones, Saillt Gillts, 1914, p. 31 if. \Villiam H. Hinkle, "The :Master of St. Giles", jOllflltll of Ibt IFarbllrg aJld COllrtall1d IJlsti/lfta, XXVITI (1965), esp. pp. 136, 144. The Civray frescoes are discussed by J. Thirio n, COllgris Arrbiologi'l"t. ClX (19' 2).

p. 34' f. 4 I G . Kaftal, Irollograp'D' of tbt Saillt.r ill TII.rrall Pail//illg. 19 52, p. 454-

42 43 44 4j

46

47 48 49 48

r.,

fig. jH Oifner, Corp"s, Section Ill, Vol. VIT, 1917, p. 66 f., pI. xxii. Kaftal, lor. cit. Meta Hameo, Tb. Ntluui-LipOrz Bibl" Washington, '949, esp. p. 64. Hans Hansel, Di, Maria-Magdelalla-L.g""I., 1937, PP' 74 f., 99 f. The Apo(abrpse ill Latill: j\[S. TO ill the eollutiOJJ of D)'JOJJ Perfil/.r, F.S.A., 19 27, p. 39· :Marga Janssen, Afaria l'fagdalmo ill der abmdlti'ndisr/HIJ KIilISI, unpublished thesis, Frciburg, 1961, pp. 2jO- 3. E. Kloss, Schl,sisrb. Bflrhll/almi, 1942, fig. 92 . Harrsen, op. cil., p. 6j. Lichtwark, op. ril., p. 394·

)0 Erbach von Fu.rstenan, L'Arl', VIIl (190)), p. 16 f., figs. 8, 9; S. Bettini, Giuslo de' Afmahlloi e I'Arie d~' Trutnlo, 1944. p. ]42, figs. 16770 . ~l

Two panels are in the :M useo Correr, twO in the Accademia, Venice, and one in the :M useo Civico, Torcello. \x/ith o ne exception they are each 95 X 61 cm. See M. C. Lorenzetti , L'Arl', XXX (19'7), p. 49 ff.; Bettini, up. (il., p. 93 f., figs. 116- 1 8, 120 f.. ibid., I.e Pill"re di Gimlo de' J.'1mobffOi "el Bat/islero dtl DllolJlo di Padm'o, 1960, p. 41. For the attribution to Jacobello Albercgno (Longhi) and a bibliography see Europiiisrbe KIIIIS! ""' 14 00 (exhibition catalogue), Kun sthistori sches l\{useum, Vienna, 1962, os. 1 - 2.

F The only D o minican convents in the area under consideration were those at Hamburg, Lubeck and Bremen . See P. vo n Loe and B. ~1. Reichert, Qllelltlllfllfl Forsrhlfllgm t"r Curbirble dt! DOlllillikDlurordtJlJ ill

DtIIl.rrb/tJlld, IV, Slalislisrbu fibtr die Ordmsprot'illZ Saxollia, 1910, under 13°3· 53 Victor Saxer, Le elf/Ie de Alarit Afadt/eine til Ocritlt11/, 1959, see p. 22 0 and index. On the o rganizati on of the Franciscans in Saxony see above, fl. 19. 14 B. Studt and H. Olsen, Halllburg, Gtsrbirhle till,r Sladl, 1951, p. 36 f. 51 Documents up to] 336 have been published by the Staatsarchiv, Hamburg, Ha/Jlburgi.rrbts UrleJlJldmbllrb, Ill, 1953, and a list of donors may be found in Patricius Schlager, " Das Nekrologium des Hamburger Franziskanerkloster", Btilr(i"ge zur Gt.rrbirhle dtr Siirhsi.rr/Jm Frallziskalltrprol'il1Z, III, 1910 (also published separately, 191 0). Bur neither in this necrologium nor in the relatively few unpublished documents in the Hamburg Archives is there a mention of any altar-piece, though these must have existed. Gifts to the friary were usuall y in money, sometimes in kind; stained glass windows are mentioned occasio nall y. but not paintings. :Man y documents have clearly no t survived: see Otto Beneke, "Die Graber zu Sr. :Marien .M agdalenen", ZHG., V (1866), pp. 59,-6l). 56 Nicolaus Staphorst, Hafllblfrgisrllt Kirrbtllgtsrhirhle, I, pt. 2, 17250 pp. )7' - 5; Beneke, op. (il., p. 594 ff. 57 Henning von Rumoh r, DOllie, KirrlJelf !fI1f1 K/bJler ill SrbluJPig [-lo/sltill m1d Halllburg. 1962, p. 276 If.; G. . Barmann, Halllblfrgisrl;e Dt11k.1l'IItrdigktiltl1 fiir EillvtillJ/irbe !",d F,.,lIJde, 2nd ed., II, 1820, p. 5 I. The date of the dissolution of the friary is usually given as 1531, but according to a document of that year in the Hamburg Archives (Heiligen Geist H ospital: Kloster St. Mariae Magdalena<, I, no. 38) th e friars vacated the building on Mary Magdalen da), Gull' H), 15'9, in exchange for a pension of 20 marks per annum. 58 Konrad von H ovelen, Hall/burg . .. Ho/ltit mid A/ltrlblill/s-Gediirbtf1iss~, Lubeck, 1668, p. 94. 59 \Y/. H. Adelungk, Die amlorh nrhandene l-Iall/bllrgisrhe Allliqllilaelm odtr A/lerl/)l(lIIsbediir/Jll1isse, Hamburg, 1696, p. 32. 60 Thomas Lediard, Tbe Gtrmall Jp], London, 1738, p. 238 f.

49

61

J. L.

von Hess, Topographisrh-polilisrh-hisloriuJH Btsrhreibllng der Siadt

Hambllrg, Hamburg, 1796, I , pp. 33)-8.

62 .A possible alternative might be provided by a chapel or a fraternity dedicated to Mary .Magdalen or to St. Giles connected with one of the Saxon friaries, but these seem to have been rare. In the friary at Stade, there was in 1500 an altar dedicated jointly to St. Francis and ~ifa[y ~fagdalen. As it was dedicated to two Saints one would expect St. Francis to be depicted on the altaI-piece with the Magdalen, jf she appears at all. See O . J..:.'arpa, ed. Die KIIIJJldmkJllale dts La/Jdts Nitrdersarhsm: Siadt Slade, 1960, p. 130. I am indebted to Dr. \'(ljrtgen the Archivist at Stade for sending me a transcript of the relevant document. 6, To trace the genesis of the inscription on the altar-piece it is necessary to consult both \Vachtel's edition of the Alexander Commentary (sec above. n. 15) and the inscriptions on the illustrations of the extant Alexander manuscripts. Nole: A. Stange, Krilisrhu r"trzeitb"iJ dtr delllsrbm Tafelbilder l'or Diirer. T, '967, (sec esp. pp. '73 If., 187 If.), appeared after this monograph

had gone to press.

)0

THE PLATES

Plate

I

The front: left wing

Plate I z

12 22 34

13 23 35

3 14 24 36

Plate

2

Plain

The front: centre

4

5

15 25 37

26 38

27 39

P late 3

The front: centre

Plale J

6 7 8 16 17 18 28 2<) ~o 40 41 42

Plate 4

The Majesty of Christ (scene 4)

Plate 5 The front: right wing

Plale J 10 20 32

II

19 31

43

44

45

9

21

33

Plate 7

The back: right wing. St. Giles and St.l\Iary Magdalen

Plate 8

The third Horseman (scene 10)

Plate 9

The fo urth H ors em an (sce ne 11 )

Plate

I I

The fourth Trumpet: a third part of the sun, the moon and the stars are smitten (scene

2 I)

P late

12

The armies of horsemen (scene

2-})

Plate 13

The strong Angel (scene 25)

-

Plate 14

The dragon persecuting the Woman clothed with the sun (scene 3I)

Plate 15

The Beast from the sea (scene 32)

Plate 16

The harvest of the earth (scene 35)

Plate 17

T he vintage of the earth (scene 36)

Plate 18

Unclean spi rits like frogs come out of the mouths of the D ragon, the Beast and the False P rophet (scene 44)

Plate 19

St. J ohn placed in the cauldron

Plate

20

The death of the Virgin

Plate 21

St. Giles and the hind: the King of the Goths and the Bishop ofNimes kneel before the Saint

Plate

22

St. G iles receives the papal privilege for his monastery

Plate 23

An angel brings food to Mary Magdalen and she is taken to the top of the mountain

:Mary Iagdalen receives her last communion from St. Maximin

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