Shifting Frames: The Mutable Iconography of Canon Tables
In the early Middle Ages canon tables became a visual characteristic and leitmotif of gospel books. When their specific arcade structure was employed in other manuscript contexts ninth tenth centuries, it accordingly referred to gospels. The framing motif expressed unity diversity, standing for testimony story gospels alongside historical truth Jesus salvation promised faithful. Pfafers Liber Viventium, Folchard Psalter Aethelwold Benedictional all embody this direct reference With turn lectionaries missals twelfth century, books fell out fashion liturgical practice. Some few surviving examples also forego tables. Meanwhile, frames reappear, transferred calendars. Here, they visualize time its relation core events life Christ, history church. Stammheim Missal, Claricia Landgrave demonstrate shift. paper thus argues that table structure-always visually pleasing-moved from function meaning medieval period serve as more versatile but always semantically loaded vessel high contexts.
De Gruyter eBooks