Early Medieval Art

This module explores the art produced after Rome’s fall in what had formerly been the western part of the empire (includes most of western Europe). The official date given for the fall of Rome is 476 when Odoacer, an Ostrogoth, was declared king. For centuries after this moment, waves of Germanic tribes continued to migrate into what had formerly been Roman territory in Europe.

The study of early medieval art is generally divided into three sub-periods, the first of which consists of the art of the different Germanic peoples who settled in Rome’s former western territories (think western Europe). In the 9th century, the Carolingian empire, under Charlemagne, united much of western Europe under his rule and promoted reform, education, and Christianity. Charlemagne modeled his reign on the Christian Roman emperors, Constantine and Justinian, and some of the art from the Carolingian period recalls that past. After the Carolingians, the Ottonians became the next power in Europe. They considered themselves the successors of the Carolingian empire and, like Charlemagne, imitated the Roman imperial past and its artistic traditions to an extent.