The Illustrated Beatus: A Corpus of the Illustrations of the Commentary on the Apocalypse: Introduction (Illustrated Beatus), Vol. 1
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Overview
This richly illustrated volume introduces the reader to the textual and visual tradition of the Corpus. The life and work of Beatus are considered in their historical, political and theological background; styles and locations of production are analysed; the sources of the textual commentaries and the evolution of particular iconographical forms are examined; and finally the Mozarabic and Islamic characteristics of the illustrations are assessed. The startling colour plates show the range of style and form in examples from the earliest Beatus manuscript, the Silos Fragment, to the late Arroya Beatus and the Rioseco Fragment. The monochrome illustrations show comparative material covering influences from the Islamic Mediterranean to the Carolingian and Gothic styles of the North. A Table of Apocalypse subjects, Map, Bibliography and Index are also included. This richly illustrated volume introduces the reader to the textual and visual tradition of the Corpus of Illustrations of the Commentary on the Apocalypse, considering the life and work of Beatus in their historical, political and theological background.Synopsis
Around the year 776, the monk Beatus of the monastery of Santo Toribio compiled a commentary on the Apocalypse from the extensive library of patristic exegetical literature. This is the first publication to provide a thorough historical context for the origin and evolution of the tradition of Apocalypse imagery. Offering a Corpus of nearly 2000 illustrations, the five volumes of The Illustrated Beatus will show the complete Apocalypse cycle of thirty-two medieval manuscripts and fragments from the ninth to the thirteenth century. Volume I, the introductory text, deals with Beatus' biography and the questions surrounding his text and sources. Various hypotheses about the compilation, function, and development of the illustration cycles are discussed in detail, and the relevant problems and solutions proposed are also elucidated. Including tables, and an appendix of all the inscriptions accompanying the illustrations, a complete bibliography, and exhaustive indexes, these beautiful volumes capture the artistic creativity of the Spanish people.
Booknews
The first of five volumes that will offer the entire corpus of extraordinary illuminations from 26 codices spanning the 9th to the 13th century, which contain portions of the Commentary on the Apocalypse, the Book of Revelation, compiled by the Asturian monk Beatus around the year 776. These illustrations represent the greatest single tradition of Apocalyptic imagery in the Middle Ages. The present introductory volume provides a general overview of the textual and visual tradition of all manuscripts containing Beatus' commentary. Includes 41 color plates and 100 monochrome illustrations. Distributed by Oxford U. Press. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)