Illustration: Small ornamented capital letters from a Latin Passionale, 12th century.
Ornamented letters are such an intrinsic part of the medieval world that it is often seen as being a vital part of the decorative art of the period. This particular and peculiar style was copied and reused in a number of different guises in later periods, particularly within the nineteenth century, where it was revived in a printed context, but also on a much wider and more innovative style within the decorative arts.
Ornamented letters were originally used largely to focus attention on the beginning of a text piece. The habit is still used today with many publications regularly using a large capital letter to start each chapter. However, the scale is much more muted today and does not take in anything like the complexity of the medieval version.
Illustration: Small ornamented capital letters from a Latin Passionale, 12th century.
Ornamented letters were relatively wide-ranging and could include complex foliage, humans and animals, but also that of landscape, mythical beasts and abstract patterned shapes. There was a certain element of fashion involved in the work and therefore different types of capital lettering could appeal to different periods of the medieval. The twelfth century alphabet shown in this article, which derives from a Latin Passionale, shows a series of smaller scale lettering. However, all the examples still show a combination of both rich and luxurious foliage, along with human and animal shapes that are often integrated into the foliage itself.
In many respects, these capital letters are art works in their own right. All would have been hand drawn and hand painted. While all the capital letters would have been larger than the following text, some letters became so involved that they dwarfed the text altogether with the capital letter taking up the giants share of the manuscript page, unbalancing the composition and harmony of the page. However, with such staggeringly beautiful and involved work, it would be forgiven that the artist allowed the initial lettering to dominate the page with its intrinsic gilding and rich colouring.
Illustration: Small ornamented capital letters from a Latin Passionale, 12th century.
The Victorians loved decorative alphabets of all kinds and the range of text fonts multiplied as the nineteenth century progressed. There was a particular fondness for medieval work and pseudo printed ornamented lettering proved popular in such things as prayer books, bibles and ceremonial certificates and awards. That all or at least most of the Victorian ornamented lettering was printed rather than hand painted seemed to matter less than the fact that perceived tradition of medieval ornamented lettering was revived.
The Victorians also used medieval decorated lettering for more fundamental decorative effects including use in textile and wallpaper design. William Morris was particularly interested in the complex foliage effects that could be found in so much medieval manuscript work. In fact, he had a relatively large collection of medieval manuscripts, which he used for both inspiration and sheer enjoyment. At least an aspect of the intertwining of foliage found in this type of lettering, as well as border decoration that often accompanied each page can be seen in some of his textile pieces. His interest became acutely apparent with the painstakingly work he produced at the Kelmscott Press near the end of his life.
Illustration: Small ornamented capital letters from a Latin Passionale, 12th century.
The stylising of foliage, along with human, animal and mythical beast as can be seen in the lettering featured in this article, was also applied to many other forms of medieval interior decoration. It was extensively used in wall painting, stone and wood carving for both religious and domestic properties. Unfortunately, much of the painted work from the period has long since disappeared, but we still have an element of wood carving, more so with stone which has survived the longest. The similarity of source material between so many mediums shows an intrinsic understanding and love for the natural elements of the world, along with the more fanciful mythical aspects. However, it also shows perhaps how close the natural world appeared to many in medieval Europe, with extensive forests and woodland being literally on many peoples doorsteps. It was this connection with nature, in both resources and inspiration that the Arts & Crafts movement saw as being such an intrinsic part of both the medieval world and their own imagined one.
Illustration: Small ornamented capital letters from a Latin Passionale, 12th century.
The medieval practical application of the world around them and its resources tended towards the natural, and was mostly indigenous to local areas and regions. Although there was a complex trade network throughout Europe and with the world beyond, particularly with the Islamic world, localised living was still considered the norm to many. That the Arts & Crafts movement favoured the aspect of the natural and the indigenous perhaps says more about the nineteenth century than it does about the medieval world. However, with a new century that is having to come to terms with finite resources and disillusionment with international brands and marketing, perhaps the elements picked out of the medieval world by such organisations as the Arts & Craft movement, such as honesty to materials, localised sourcing and hand production, will find yet another incarnation in the twenty first century.
Illustration: Small ornamented capital letters from a Latin Passionale, 12th century.
A History of Illuminated Manuscripts
Introduction to Manuscript Studies
Flowers in Medieval Manuscripts (Medieval Life in Manuscripts)
Monsters and Grotesques in Medieval Manuscripts (Medieval Life in Manuscripts)
Medieval Texts and Images: Studies of Manuscripts from the Middle Ages
Understanding Illuminated Manuscripts: A Guide to Technical Terms (Looking At)
Imagining the Past in France: History in Manuscript Painting, 1250-1500
Beasts Factual and Fantastic (Medieval Imagination)
Medieval Calligraphy: Its History and Technique
The Illuminated Manuscript
The Medieval Flower Book
Illuminated Manuscripts
Medieval Herbals: The Illustrative Traditions (The British Library Studies in Medieval Culture)
Scribes and Illuminators (Medieval Craftsmen)
The Book Before Printing: Ancient, Medieval and Oriental
Magic in Medieval Manuscripts (Medieval Life in Manuscripts)
Medieval Warfare in Manuscripts (Medieval Life in Manuscripts)
The Splendor of the Word: medieval and Renaissance Illuminated Manuscripts at the New York Public Library (Studies in Medieval and Early Renaissance Art History)
Bibles and Bestiaries: A Guide to Illuminated Manuscripts
Marvellous to Behold: Miracles in Illuminated Manuscripts
