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“Grant peine et grant diligence:” Visualizing the Author in Late Medieval Manuscripts

Iacobellis, Lisa Daugherty
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5153-9335
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1500504999935605

Abstract Details

2017, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, History of Art.
Author portraits, those initial introductions to the creator of a text that are usually located on the very first folio, are ubiquitous in medieval illuminated manuscripts, yet this subject has not been the focus of a systematic art historical survey. For this reason, few are aware of the evolution of this genre over the course of the Middle Ages, moving beyond the early static figures of authors posing with their works, or seated writing on scroll or codex. This dissertation expands our understanding of this tradition, focusing on a limited selection of examples drawn from a variety of popular formats for author portraits that were employed in the fourteenth century. In particular, this study addresses representations of contemporary scholars - authors shown dreaming of their subject matter, accompanied by personifications or objects representing the content of their text, diligently engaged in translating an important work from Latin into the vernacular, or meeting privately with the recipient to deliver and discuss their work. Each category is explored through close examination of one outstanding example, and includes an analysis of the entire manuscript, in order to place the image within its textual, socio-political, and art-historical context. Although each case study embodies a different role for the author, as a group they reflect changing perceptions of authorship in the Late Middle Ages, and the increasing understanding of and respect for both the physical and intellectual labor required. These depictions of scholastic authors provide visual evidence of the interest in the author as an individual that Alastair Minnis, in his seminal work, Medieval Theory of Authorship, ultimately associated with the implementation of the “Aristotelian prologue” type, an introductory tool employed in education and commentary which encouraged reflection on an author’s life, reputation and working methods. The images suggest a narrowing of the gap between ancient Roman auctors and late medieval scholars, as well as a sharing of influences and ideas with contemporary literary figures. At the same time, they provide clues about the complex collaborative relationships among authors, readers and members of the professional book trade, including project managers, scribes, rubricators and illuminators. A critical evaluation of these innovative new approaches to author portraits invites further careful scrutiny of the images as a genre, and not just as a seemingly minor part of the overall program of miniatures that accompany a text.
Karl Whittington, PhD (Advisor)
Barbara Haeger, PhD (Committee Member)
Christian Kleinbub, PhD (Committee Member)
429 p.
Art History; Medieval History; Middle Ages
manuscript illuminations; author portraits; medieval manuscripts; dream visions; presentation scenes; Master of the Bible of Jean de Sy; fourteenth-century manuscripts; Nicole Oresme; Jean de Vignay

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Iacobellis, L. D. (2017). “Grant peine et grant diligence:” Visualizing the Author in Late Medieval Manuscripts [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1500504999935605

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Iacobellis, Lisa. “Grant peine et grant diligence:” Visualizing the Author in Late Medieval Manuscripts. 2017. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1500504999935605.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Iacobellis, Lisa. "“Grant peine et grant diligence:” Visualizing the Author in Late Medieval Manuscripts." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2017. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1500504999935605

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1500504999935605
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.