History Happy Hour (Zoom)   

On the surface understood as opposing colors, black and white represented the eternal battle between good and evil—but they also played far more nuanced roles in artistic iconography, fashion, and the ideologies that helped medieval people understand their place in the world. Black was the color of both demons and the Benedictine monastic attire; white, eschewed by the ancient world in favor of garishly painted marble, became a medieval symbol of purity. This lecture will explore the multivalent meanings of these “essential” colors across a broad array of media to unpack their complicated roles in the medieval imagination.

Reaching a peak in 13th-14th century Paris, medieval ivory carving stands on the shoulders of ancient Greek and Roman ivories—but what was this unique material used for, and why? Artists opted to use this warm, lustrous material for the covers of liturgical books as well as for boxes carved with scenes of romances. How was ivory acquired, from what animals, and relying on which trade connections? Join us as we examine some exquisite carvings first intended for the medieval eyes of bishops, pilgrims, and besotted noblewomen.

Created during the golden age of manuscript illumination, this 15th-century devotional masterpiece boasts exquisitely painted miniatures, showcasing a wide array of scenes from the labors of the seasons to God dramatically casting Lucifer out of heaven. A feast for the eyes, this lecture will explore the manuscript imagery in depth, European courtly patronage, and the lives of the three brothers (who ultimately died of plague) credited with this masterwork.