Eggsquisite Eggsamples of Gothic Art 1150-1499 Quiz

Answer: Tempera

To say that tempera is a hard-wearing type of paint would be an understatement. Works using this paint, a combination of binder and pigment, still exist that date as far back as the 1st century CE. Tempera paints are made by combining distilled water and pigment to a creamy consistency and then gradually adding small amounts of egg yolk until the pigment is uniformly distributed throughout the paste; further additional small quantities of water may be added afterwards to thin the paint to the artist's requirements.

When dried, tempera paints are totally rigid proving unsuitable for use on flexible surfaces such as canvas. For this reason it is usual to find paintings of this type finished on wooden panels. Tempera paints are only suitable for single use applications as the yolk thickens over time, and even adding additional water at this stage changes the chemical composition of the paint rendering it totally unusable. Surprisingly, although tempera paint appears to dry quickly on the palette, it can take between six months and a full year to dry completely.

Answer: St. Thomas à Becket

Master Francke is a Gothic period painter about which very little is known. Active in northern Germany during the early fifteenth century, his surviving works include the altarpiece commissioned by a German merchant guild that was trading with the English at around this time, the Altarpiece of Saint Thomas à Becket. The altarpiece depicts scenes from the Passion of Christ and scenes from the life of Saint Thomas, the murdered Archbishop of Canterbury to which the altarpiece is dedicated, and from which the panel shown here is taken. Master Francke was a principal exponent of the International Gothic style that was dominant in the northern Germany during the fifteenth century.

The panel in my selection was one of the first from the altarpiece to be painted by Master Francke; it shows in some graphic detail it must be said, the Martyrdom in 1170 of the Archbishop by knights who believed that they were carrying out the wishes of the English king, Henry II.

The piece is painted in tempera on an oak panel measuring 99cm by 90cm which is currently housed in the Hamburger Kunsthalle or Hamburg Art Museum in Hamburg, Germany. Other panels from this artwork include a wonderful but simple scene of the Nativity, and a scene depicting the Adoration of the Magi, both of which are also located within the Hamburger Kunsthalle.

Answer: Bohemia

Bohemia, a region that lies within the Czech Republic, historically also encompasses areas of Germany, Austria and Poland although in the period in which the Master of the Trěboň Altarpiece was active, it covered the entire area of today's modern Czech state. The area has become synonymous with artists, the term 'bohemian' used to describe those unorthodox, free-spirited souls that produce such wonderful pieces such as the Roudnice Madonna, featured here because it is this author's personal favourite work from the Gothic period.

The beautiful artwork pictured was painted circa 1400 using tempera paint on a wooden panel. The Roudnice Madonna measures 90cm by 68cm and can be seen on display at the Národní Gallery in Prague.

Answer: Jean Fouquet

Despite the fact that Jean Fouquet was, without doubt, the most famous painter of his day there are very few historical records that provide any information about his life. Considered by some at that time to be a blasphemous work, there has been much debate as to whether the artist was attempting to portray the king's lover as the Virgin with the child Jesus. This, the central figure painted on the right hand panel of the Melun Diptych, is believed to be the courtesan, Agnés Sorel (1422-1450) who is widely recognised as the first 'official' royal mistress, and mother to the three daughters of the French king Charles VII. Sorel was adored by her king but made a number of powerful enemies at court any number of which are believed to have murdered her using mercury as a poison shortly after she had given birth to her fourth child by the king.

Commissioned for the tomb of Etienne Chevalier, French Ambassador to England in 1445 and the treasurer to the king, the two panels of the Melun Diptych are painted in tempera on wooden panels each measuring 91cm by 81cm. You may notice that the figure of the child is pointing towards the opposite panel suggesting that the prayers being offered by Chevalier in that illustration, not shown here, will be answered. The panel featured here is under the custodianship of the Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, the Royal Museum of Fine Art, in Antwerp, Belgium. The left hand panel which features Chevalier and his patron saint, Saint Stephen, can be found in the collection of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, or Berlin State Museum, Germany.

Answer: The image was to be displayed on holy days.

During the medieval period, any image of a religious nature painted with a golden background was considered to be of great importance and was to be displayed principally on holy days. In the medieval church, as she remains today, Saint Veronica was an important figure. According to legend, Veronica, whose feast day falls on the 12th of July, was believed to have offered her veil to wipe the sweat and blood from the face of Christ as he made his way to his crucifixion. After Christ had touched her veil and had wiped his face, his image became imprinted upon the cloth which was later known as the Sudarium. The Sudarium became an important relic within the medieval Roman Catholic Church and was the object of pilgrimage to Rome during the middle ages. The original veil is believed to still exist and in the custodianship of the Vatican. If true, this relic is one of the most treasured possessions of the Catholic Church; so much so that in 1629 Pope Urban VIII decreed that any person making a reproduction of the veil was to be excommunicated.

The unknown artist referred to simply as the Master of Saint Veronica was active in the area surrounding the northern German city of Cologne during the first two decades of the fifteenth century. This piece which was painted in circa 1420 and titled 'Saint Veronica and the Holy Kerchief' is painted using tempera paints on an oak panel. The piece measures 78cm by 48cm and can be seen at the Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlugen, Alte Pinakotek, or Bavarian State Paintings Collection in Munich, Germany.

Answer: King Richard II

Produced as a form of portable shrine to accompany persons of importance on their travels, a diptych is a pair of panels that open to depict a sacred scene of importance to its owner; a larger form consisting of three panels is known as a triptych. Painted in a style known as the International Gothic in tempera on an oak panel, the 'Virgin and Child with Eleven Angels' is the right hand panel of the Wilton Diptych; the work takes its name from the English house in which it was formerly preserved. Careful examination reveals that each of the angels accompanying the Virgin and Child are wearing the badge of the white hart. This symbol was adopted by King Richard II as his personal emblem in 1390 and so, although nothing is known of the fine artist that painted the panels, it is certain that both panels, measuring 37cm by 27cm each, were painted after this date.

The accompanying left hand panel, not shown here, depicts King Richard II being presented kneeling in prayer accompanied by his patron saints; Saint Edmund, Saint Edward the Confessor and Saint John the Baptist. Both panels are considered to be the finest existing examples of the style in England and are currently under the protection of the National Gallery in London, England.

Answer: God

The artist known as Master Bertram of Minden was born in circa 1340 and came to prominence in the northern German city of Hamburg, at that time a member of the Hanseatic League, in around 1367 and over the following years developed into one of the most important artists in northern Germany. Between circa 1379 and 1383, Master Bertram produced his masterpiece, a work which had its home in St Peter's Church Hamburg, known as the Grabow Altarpiece. Unlike the greater number of his contemporaries, a relatively large amount is known about the life of this artist records of which include details of his land ownership, his wills and his family which include his brother and his daughter.

The Grabow Altarpiece consists of a series of four wooden panels, the outer pair of which tells the story of the world from the Creation up until the murder of Abel by his brother Cain. Separated into twenty-four fields of equal size, this image painted with tempera, appears in the fifth field and shows the figure of God in the act of creating the mammals, birds and fishes - the preceding field shows the creation of the plants and the following panel the creation of man. Although the creatures in the field appear child-like in execution they are surprisingly accurate, but the artist seems more concerned with using the creatures to frame the figure of God rather than showing them in a more natural manner. The Grabow Altarpiece at 180cm in height and 720cm in width remains the largest and most important altarpiece surviving from the 14th century and can be seen at the Hamburger Kunsthalle in Hamburg, Germany.

Answer: Yes

Religious works of the Gothic period were rich in symbolism. This extended beyond the purely liturgical message to include more practical day to day concerns. In an age of illiteracy, pictures and colour were used to educate and inform and in the case of this work the predominance of red and reddish hues indicate that this work was to be displayed on weekdays.

Nothing is known of this artist's personal life, but the quality of his surviving works places this Bohemian artist, also known today as the Master of Wittingau, firmly in the upper echelons of those artists active during the this period. The Master of the Trěboň Altarpiece worked from a studio in the area around the city of Prague during the decade spanning 1380 to 1390. The painting has been finished in a style known to have been used in France during this period but displays no further influences of any other painting styles in use on the continent at this time. Painted in tempera on a spruce panel and measuring 132cm by 92cm it is currently under the stewardship of the Národní Galerie, or National Gallery in the Czech capital, Prague.

Answer: Triptych

Lorenzo Monaco, his name means Laurence the Monk, is believed to have been born in the Italian city of Siena circa 1370, his real name being Piero di Giovanni. During 1391 he joined the Camaldolese Monastery of Santa Maria degli Angeli after taking his vows of holy orders. The monastery of which he was a member was renowned across Italy for the quality of the illuminated manuscripts produced there by his fellow monks. Lorenzo Monaco was principally a painter of altarpieces and frescoes, a fine example of the latter can be seen and enjoyed at the Bartolini Chapel of Santa Trinití in the city of Florence; the city in which he spent the greater part of his professional life as an artist. Monaco is considered to be one of the finest exponents of the International Gothic style in Italy during his lifetime and is cited as an important influence on the work of the artists Fra Angelico and Masaccio. The exact date of Lorenzo Monaco's death is not known but it is believed that he died in Florence circa 1425.

Although not his first painting with this title, this piece was completed during 1422 in tempera on wooden panel measuring 115cm by 177cm. The central part or panel of this altarpiece, made for the church of Sant' Egidio in Florence, is the part completed by Lorenzo. Of particular interest in this work are the exotic figures of Turks and Mongols present at the Nativity. It was beginning to become fashionable during this period for non-Europeans to be depicted in Christian art.

The detailing on the upper part of the altarpiece, which includes images of Major Prophets, were painted and added to the altarpiece by the artist Cosimo Rosselli at the end of the fifteenth century. This piece is in the custody of the famous Florentine Uffizi Gallery.

Answer: Perspective

During the final decades of the thirteenth century, the Florentine artist Cimabue was the most famous artist of his generation. Little is known of his life but those records that do exist reveal that he was born in Florence in circa 1240, died in the city of Pisa in 1302 and that his level of expertise in the field of painting also extended to the production of mosaics and stained glass. Cimabue has also been credited as being the teacher of that other great early renaissance artist, Giotto. His crowning achievements in these other fields include a series of frescoes, now sadly in relatively poor condition, in the Upper Church of San Francesco in Assisi, stained glass for the cathedral at Siena and mosaics for the Baptistery of Florence.

Painted in tempera on wooden panel during 1285 and 1286, the Maestà di Santa Trinità, was painted as an altarpiece for the church of Santa Trinità in Florence. The main body of the work represents the figure of the Madonna and Child seated upon a throne and framed each side by angels. Beneath the plinth upon which the Madonna is seated are a series of arches framing the figures of the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah at each side and Abraham and King David immediately beneath the throne itself. It is in the painting of this central arch that this early attempt to create spatial depth or a sense of perspective has been made. As tradition demanded, the altarpiece which was to be displayed on holy days is finished predominately using gold and golden hues. The Maestà di Santa Trinità is 385cm in height, 223cm in width and is currently housed in Florence's famous Uffizi Gallery.