{"id":7,"date":"2020-04-18T16:59:17","date_gmt":"2020-04-18T20:59:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/?page_id=7"},"modified":"2020-05-02T09:56:45","modified_gmt":"2020-05-02T13:56:45","slug":"exhibit-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/","title":{"rendered":"The Reformation of Things"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>Objects were central to religious worship in late medieval Christian Europe. From the chalice used to celebrate the ritual of the Eucharist to the rosaries and books of hours that assisted the faithful in their devotions, material things helped to regulate and make tangible the sacred. In the Reformations, objects gained a new salience when many Reformed believers came to see them as the graven images condemned in the Old Testament&#8211;symbols of idolatry.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Inspired by recent scholarship, the students of History 330 (Spring 2020) have approached Reformation-era material culture to investigate the different histories of the sacred that objects tell. In spite of iconoclasm, many late medieval objects survived into modern times. Indeed, they did more than survive. As Caroline Bynum writes, &#8220;The materiality of objects carries forward the experience of people in the past.&#8221; Paying attention to that materiality can help us understand religious continuity and change in a more multifaceted and nuanced way than can the study of doctrines and decrees alone. \u2767<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<div id=\"top\">Sections<\/div>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#late\">1. Late Medieval Visual Culture<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#images\">2. Images of Devotion<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#protestant\">3. Protestant Objects and Protestant Influences<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#female\">4. Female Piety in the Reformation Era<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#new\">5. New Horizons<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div id=\"late\" style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>1. Late Medieval Visual Culture<\/strong><\/div>\n<div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/stainedglass-1.jpg\" alt=\"Stained Glass\" width=\"449\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/stainedglass-1.jpg 449w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/stainedglass-1-269x300.jpg 269w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 449px) 100vw, 449px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>A donor and his sons protected by his patron, a bishop<br \/>\nFlanders, c. 1520<br \/>\nStained glass<br \/>\nDimensions: 2<span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">1 3\/4 \u00d7 19 1\/2 in. (55.2 \u00d7 49.5 cm)<\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/193423\">The Metropolitan Museum of Art<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This pane of stained glass, produced by an unknown Flemish artist ca. 1520, can best be described as a donor portrait: capturing the religious devotion of a wealthy churchgoer. The work was produced in Mechelen, in present-day Belgium, and had an accompanying sister-pane, which depicted St. John overseeing a number of praying women. The donor is depicted at front, cloaked in a luxurious, intricately patterned overcoat in conjunction with his two sons who, like their father, are kneeling in prayer. The standing figure appears to be a bishop, donned in his elaborate miter and equipped with his crosier. Perhaps the pane\u2019s most striking visual feature is the tortuous detail present in the work\u2019s foreground and background; the trees seen through the spaces between adorned columns have individual leaves, and the plush fabrics worn by the figures have depth and vibrancy. This painstaking detail and the presence of the bishop in the work likely reflect the wealth of the donor. Although visually striking, works such as this stirred controversy among early 16th century religious reformers, who believed that lavish material patronage to the Catholic Church\u2014which this window represented\u2014proved largely incongruent with scriptural teachings. The year of the work\u2019s production, 1520, was a significant one for the Protestant Reformation: within the span of that calendar year, the movement\u2019s most prominent German thinker, Martin Luther, produced some of his most famous works, including <em>To The Christian Nobility of The German Nation<\/em>, which directly addressed the notion of transactional Christianity. (Will K.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.metmuseum.org\/CRDImages\/md\/original\/DP144065.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Saint Michael<br \/>\nTouraine, France, c. 1475<br \/>\nLimestone w. traces of paint and gilding<br \/>\n<span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">Dimensions: 33 1\/2 x 17 7\/8 x 12 in. (85.1 x 45.4 x 30.5 cm)<\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/464613\">Metropolitan Museum of Art<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">This late 15th-century French creation depicts Saint Michael slaying the devil manifested as a dragon. Likely commissioned by nobles from Touraine, this painted limestone sculpture perfectly embodies the type of sumptuous idolatry which drew the ire of iconoclasts during the Reformation. Clad in a suit of mail and finely gilded cuirass of plate armor, the warrior archangel of Heaven looks down imposingly, impaling the beast with his spear and the reverent with his stony gaze. His crown and the radiant sun or multi-pointed star on his breastplate (which may relate to a chivalric order) demonstrate a level of glorification reserved for few others, perhaps only kings and God himself, which would be greatly criticized by later reformers. Though significantly damaged, the sculpture still strikes an impressive figure when viewed from below, as intended. The monstrous dragon, with spear point broken off in its mouth, encircles St. Michael\u2019s plated leg, reflecting the medieval belief that dragons used their tails to suffocate foes. Physical representations of combat, especially in this case with the archangel outfitted in armor characteristic of French knights in 1475, reinforce a tradition of \u2018righteous violence,\u2019 like that employed during the Crusades, which likely informed the destructive campaigns against idolatry conducted by Huguenot Calvinists and iconoclasts throughout Europe in the 16th century. (Connor M.)<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.metmuseum.org\/CRDImages\/cl\/original\/DP102941.jpg\" width=\"2978\" height=\"3722\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"artwork__tombstone--row\"><span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">Covered Chalice<\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"artwork__tombstone--label\">Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain &#8211;<\/span> <span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">late 15th century<\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">Silver, gilded with rubies, sapphires, diamonds, and crystals<\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"artwork__tombstone--label\">Dimensions:<\/span> <span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">17 3\/16 x 7 3\/4 in. (43.7 x 19.7 cm)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/471839\">Metropolitan Museum of Art<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The objects in this exhibition are meant to help us further our understanding of our course\u2019s titular concept: <em>Reformations<\/em>. So why have I chosen a chalice from Spain, the heartland of the Catholics and a bastion against the threat of Protestant Reformation? Precisely for this history. The chalice is made of solid silver and precious gems, such as diamonds, rubies, and sapphires: quite a haul. Even subtracting out the added value from the workmanship and labor necessary to craft such an object, the chalice must have been worth a great deal in the raw materials it was made of. That it has survived to modernity without being smashed or melted down suggests its insulation not only from religious hatred but also pecuniary greed. Can this lead us to wonder whether the more open acceptance of Protestant values, and specifically iconoclasm, in German lands might have been primed by economic factors as much as theological reasoning? The chalice was also a symbol of the divide between the laity and the clergy, as only priests were allowed to drink the blood of Christ from the chalice in the ritual of the Eucharist. Were the Spanish less resentful of the hierarchy that elevated priests over commoners? Finally, the chalice\u2019s primary purpose, embellished with busts of Christ and the Latin uttered by archangel Gabriel announcing the forthcoming birth of Christ, seems to be to worship the Son. Yet there are also representations of the saints that might be criticized as idolatrous deifications \u2026 but is the blasphemy so clear? (Giebien N.) \u2767<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#top\">back to the top menu<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div id=\"images\" style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>2. Images of Devotion<\/strong><\/div>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/media.clarkart.edu\/Web_medium_images\/2010.5%20recto.jpg\" width=\"537\" height=\"700\" \/><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: center\">(recto)<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/media.clarkart.edu\/Web_medium_images\/2010.5%20verso.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div style=\"text-align: center\">(verso)<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Giovanni Battista Cremonini, The Agony in the Garden (r); The Crucifixion (v)<br \/>\nNorthern Italy, c. 1595<br \/>\nOil on copper<br \/>\nDimensions: 16 5\/8 x 12 9\/16 in. (42.2 x 32 cm)<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.clarkart.edu\/Collection\/19423\">Clark Institute<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This work by Giovanni Battista Cremonini (ca. 1595) is an oil-on-copper depiction of the Agony in the Garden and the Crucifixion of Christ. Painted on both sides, it would not have been hung on a wall, but likely displayed so that both the Agony and the Crucifixion would be visible to the viewer. This feature distinguishes the panel from most painted art; it was more of a painted object and less of a painting, as it would have stood on a support rather than hanging on a wall in the periphery of a room, and thus have been more prominent. This method of display would also have invited the viewer to walk around it. Cremonini makes effective use of dramatic lighting in both scenes of the panel. In the Agony in the Garden, the only source of light is heaven, from which angelic figures seem to communicate with Christ. The face of Christ is illuminated, but the divine light does not travel far; His sleeping disciples do not share their master\u2019s illumination, and much of the background is completely invisible to the viewer. This represents the absolute saving power of God. In the Crucifixion of Christ, there is no source of light whatsoever. The two onlookers, likely St. Mary and St. John, lack haloes, as does Christ. The total blackness of the background and the absence of divine light emphasize the devastation felt when Christ died, and the absence of a halo emphasizes His human aspect. (Brendan K.)<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.metmuseum.org\/CRDImages\/ep\/original\/DP151337.jpg\" width=\"3867\" height=\"3249\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Francesco Granacci (Francesco di Andrea di Marco), The Crucifixion<br \/>\nCentral Italy, <span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">ca. 1510<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"artwork__tombstone--label\">Medium:<\/span> <span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">Tempera and gold on wood<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"artwork__tombstone--label\">Dimensions:<\/span> <span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">Central panel 19 x 11 1\/2 in. (48.3 x 29.2 cm); each wing 19 x 6 in. (48.3 x 15.2 cm)<br \/>\n<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/438445\">The Metropolitan Museum of Art<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">\n<p>As a piece meant for private devotion, this triptych exemplifies the trend among early modern Christians to worship in their own homes. Standing at less than two feet tall and a foot wide, the triptych could have been transported easily. Its size and elegant design suggest it may have been made for someone wealthy enough to commission such a piece but not wealthy enough to build their own private chapel, as was common among the elite in Florence at the time. Each panel represents a different scene from Christian teaching. The left panel displays the Resurrection, Jesus on the Cross in the middle, and the Second Coming of Christ on the right panel. This work also includes three separate translations of \u201cJesus Christ King of the Jews\u201d on the cross in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. The triptych\u2019s painter, Francesco Granacci, was active in 16th-century Florence. He studied under Domenico Ghirlandaio with Michelangelo, whom Granacci would go on to assist in painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel for a short while. The two were close friends, and their styles were so similar that a painting originally attributed to Granacci was found to be one of Michelangelo\u2019s works. Granacci would continue to paint Catholic images until his death in 1543. (John R.)<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/images.metmuseum.org\/CRDImages\/dp\/original\/DP826407.jpg\" width=\"2433\" height=\"3605\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Otto van Veen, <em><span class=\"artwork__title__inset\"><span class=\"artwork__title--text\">The Martyrdom of Saint Andrew <\/span><\/span><\/em><br \/>\nNetherlands, c. 1595<br \/>\n<span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">Oil (brunaille) on paper; framing line in pen and brown ink, probably by a later hand<\/span><br \/>\nDimensions:\u00a0 <span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">11 1\/4 x 7 5\/8 in. (28.6 x 19.3 cm)<\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/412570\">Metropolitan Museum of Art<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Saint Andrew was crucified on a unique X because he considered himself unworthy of the cross that Jesus died on; it became his symbol. Here he is being prodded by soldiers and saved by angels as chaos ensues around him. The question of whether it was acceptable to worship images such as this one ignited an iconoclast movement during the Reformations, largely led by men of higher rank from the church or state. Despite their often-aggressive efforts, the worship of images and objects never truly went away. An example of this is Otto van Veen\u2019s \u201cThe Martyrdom of Saint Andrew,\u201d an oil sketch on paper completed in 1595. This preparatory sketch was made for the high altar of a church, Antwerp\u2019s church of Saint Andrew. It was, in other words, part of an effort to restore traditional worship after the iconoclast movement in Flanders. It is notable that the Church of Saint Andrew in Antwerp had many portrayals of martyrs. They are a critical part of early Christianity. Perhaps the representation of martyrs served not only as a way to honor those who died for their beliefs but also to remember all the precious art that had been destroyed just a few years before. (Frankie S.) \u2767<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">\n<p><a href=\"#top\">back to the top menu<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div id=\"protestant\" style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>3. Protestant Objects and Protestant Influences<\/strong><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-28 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Huguenot-Bread-Bible-1024x646.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"646\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Huguenot-Bread-Bible-1024x646.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Huguenot-Bread-Bible-300x189.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Huguenot-Bread-Bible-768x485.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Huguenot-Bread-Bible-1536x969.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Huguenot-Bread-Bible-2048x1292.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/div>\n<p>French edition of the Geneva Bible, c. 1590<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/huguenotmuseum.org\/\">Huguenot Museum<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">The Fasquests, a family of French Huguenots, resided in the Dr\u00f4me region of France during the period of the French Wars of Religion. As with many of their Protestant contemporaries, the Fasquests lived in constant fear of persecution and hostility from the French Catholic majority. Due to the ever looming threat of death, the Fasquet family and other French Protestants were forced to practice their religion in secrecy. This Bible dates around 1588-90, placing it within the fourth and final phase of the French struggle between Huguenots and Catholics. It is a French translation of the Geneva Bible and is roughly 8.5 inches long, making it both portable and a fixture within a home. Fasquest family story tells that prior to a search of their home by Catholic soldiers, the Bible was baked in a loaf of bread in order to conceal it. Adding to the air of secrecy around the book, the Fasquests also removed the title page in order to protect the identity of the printer. The story around the Bible represents a microcosm of the French Reformation; Huguenots were determined to practice their faith despite the certain death that awaited them if French officials discovered them. Additionally, the Bible features a record of Fasquest family births, marriages, and deaths up to 1625. (Joshua N.)<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.metmuseum.org\/CRDImages\/aa\/original\/23.135.3_001nov2014.jpg\" width=\"3623\" height=\"3623\" \/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\"><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">Coin (<em>Thaler<\/em>) Showing August I (The Pious) of Saxony<\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">German lands, 1580<\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">Silver<\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">Diameter: 4 cm; thickness: 0.3 cm; weight: 28.3 g (1 oz.)<\/div>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/32848\">Metropolitan Museum of Art<\/a><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">Placing his martial image and coat of arms in the pockets of merchants throughout Europe, August I, Duke and Elector of Saxony created in this silver thaler a petite piece of propaganda meticulously crafted to advance his political agenda. Displayed with sword and full plate armor, the Duke\u2019s commanding figure beckons the Reformed princes of the Holy Roman Empire to recognize his leadership while reminding them of the need for armed readiness to defend the confessional freedoms tenuously secured by the 1555 Peace of Augsburg. Yet, below its surface this coin preserves in silence countless other voices\u2014voices of innumerable, unknown individuals whose collective experiences express a different story of reformation. Did the seamstress buy her cloth from the Lutheran merchant or the Catholic one? Would a peasant part with his hard-earned cash to read the works of Dr. Luther or send it to Rome as a tithe? With innumerable such transactions, the people of Europe composed in this thaler a history as, if not more, important than the imperious message of August. Telling of resistance, acquiescence, and everyday existence in an unsettled world where spiritual and worldly understandings shifted with unprecedented rapidity, they preserve in this coin memories and understandings in a time too often recounted through the perceptions of elite men. (Robert R.)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-26 size-medium_large aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Burtzel-Tablet-with-Biblical-768x1008.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"768\" height=\"1008\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Burtzel-Tablet-with-Biblical-768x1008.png 768w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Burtzel-Tablet-with-Biblical-228x300.png 228w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Burtzel-Tablet-with-Biblical.png 776w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">Hanns Burtzel, Tablet with Biblical Inscriptions<\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">Germany, 1552<\/div>\n<div>Carved stone<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><a href=\"http:\/\/collections.vam.ac.uk\/item\/O198579\/tablet-with-biblical-quotations-relief-burtzel-hanns\/\">Victoria and Albert Museum<\/a>, London<\/div>\n<div>\u00a9 Victoria and Albert Museum<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">This stone tablet was carved in relief by Hanns Burtzel, a German craftsman whose signature \u201cHanns Burtzel vonn Wirtzburg\u201d is carved at the bottom of the tablet. Burtzel likely crafted the object in Wirtzburg (now W\u00fcrzburg) in the year 1552, as labeled on the top of the tablet. Five biblical passages are carved in relief, all in different script styles and sizes, and all in German with the exception of the third passage in Latin. The tablet\u2019s owner, Victoria and Albert Museum, has identified traces of gilding on the relief. The tablet probably resided in a Catholic church, as Wirtzburg remained Catholic throughout the Reformation and became a stronghold of Counter-Reformation activities. By the mid-16th century, Lutheranism dominated Northern Germany, and Emperor Charles V extended decrees (The Interim) which tried to appease rebellious Protestant nobles by compromising on ecclesiastical issues. This tablet sheds light on how Wirtzburg Catholics reconfigured faith during this \u201cInterim Period.\u201d The stone material implies this tablet was a permanent fixture, likely commissioned for a church rather than private use. If this church was Catholic (likely in 1552 Wirtzburg), the inscription of biblical passages is significant, as it invokes a Protestant focus on scripture. Contemporary Catholic carvings were usually visual projects that displayed Jesus, or Mary, or saints, or some other aspect of church tradition. The time-consuming carving process shows that the verses held importance. The tablet\u2019s preservation through centuries of religious wars also suggests its dual Catholic-Protestant appeal. The stone material and ornate gilded script imitates late-medieval Catholic art while venerating Scripture in Protestant fashion. (John L.) \u2767<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\"><a href=\"#top\">back to the top menu<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p id=\"female\" style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>4. Female Piety in the Reformation Era<\/strong><\/p>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/images.metmuseum.org\/CRDImages\/md\/original\/DP155528.jpg\" width=\"3000\" height=\"4000\" \/><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Crib of the Infant Jesus<\/div>\n<div>Flanders, 15th century<\/div>\n<div><span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">Wood, paint, lead, gilt silver, painted parchment, silk embroidery with seed pearls, gold thread, and translucent enamels<\/span><\/div>\n<div>Dimensions: <span class=\"artwork__tombstone--value\">14 x 11 3\/8 x 7 1\/4 in. (35.4 x 28.9 x 18.4 cm)<\/span><\/div>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/en\/art\/collection\/search\/465966\">Metropolitan Museum of Art<\/a><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\">This fifteenth-century crib is from the Grand B\u00e9guinage of Louvain, Belgium, but it is representative of a larger beguine culture often overlooked by Reformation historians. Beguinages were religious communities for chaste lay women who immersed themselves in society as teachers, nurses, and textile workers but also led strict, pious lives, devoting themselves to worship and prayer. Cribs like this were often given to women by their families when they entered beguinages. Beguines rocked and sang to Christ child figurines lying in the cribs. These devotional acts may have symbolized how many beguines forsook having their own children and took on Christ as their true child. The angels watch over Christ in the crib, and the beguines metaphorically did the same. Although the beguine lifestyle was known for its austerity, this crib is elaborately decorated. The luxurious crib may reveal what beguines\u2019 families were willing to spend money on: the devotional object is an ornate celebration of Christ\u2019s birth and their transition into the beguine community. A focus on this crib blurs the lines between Medieval and Early Modern periods of European. For instance, its Gothic architectural elements like the pointed arches highlight the continuity of art movements across historical movements. In fact, beginages in the Low Countries were left largely untouched by iconoclasts in the Protestant Reformation. The Reformations were not defining moments in beguine history, but an increased focus on materiality may shift historians\u2019 attention to overlooked groups like the beguines to understand how the Reformations (subtly) affected them. (Sarah G.)<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-72 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/05\/wcma.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"471\" height=\"587\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/05\/wcma.png 471w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/05\/wcma-241x300.png 241w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 471px) 100vw, 471px\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Alessandro Allori, <em>Portrait of Joanna of Austria<\/em><br \/>\nLate 16th century<br \/>\nOil on panel<br \/>\n<span class=\"detailFieldValue\">Dimensions: 17 1\/8 x 13 11\/16 in. (43.5 x 34.8 cm)<\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/egallery.williams.edu\/objects\/14434\/portrait-of-joanna-of-austria\">Williams College Museum of Art<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This portrait of Joanna of Austria was created in Florence during the 16th century by Alessandro Allori. Though this may not be one of Allori\u2019s most memorable works, the subject of his creation &#8212; Joanna &#8212; was quite an interesting individual. The daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I, Joanna grew up the youngest of fifteen and never met her mother, who unfortunately died during her birth. At just 18, the young woman was married off to a wealthy member of the Medici family, despite her protests, and was forced to move with him to Florence. Upon arriving, she was heavily discriminated against for her Austrian background, and also received criticism for not being able to produce a male heir for her husband. Finally, things began to be looking better for Joanna after she delivered a son (her 7th child), but young Isaac passed shortly after his birth. Just a year later &#8212; during her 8th pregnancy in 13 years &#8212; Joanna fell down the stairs and was forced into early labor, which eventually led to her demise at just 31 years old. This tragic life story of Joanna of Austria proves that although a few powerful women &#8212; such as Queen Elizabeth I &#8212; were able to overcome gender stereotypes and have a prominent role in the Reformation era, the majority of royal women were still seen as little more than child bearers and housekeepers by society, despite their elite status. (George C.) \u2767<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><a href=\"#top\">back to the top menu<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"textLayer--absolute\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"new\" style=\"text-align: center\"><strong>5. New Horizons<\/strong><\/div>\n<div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-33 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Callot-Cleveland-Museum-Japan-Martyrs-727x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"727\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Callot-Cleveland-Museum-Japan-Martyrs-727x1024.jpg 727w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Callot-Cleveland-Museum-Japan-Martyrs-213x300.jpg 213w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Callot-Cleveland-Museum-Japan-Martyrs-768x1082.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Callot-Cleveland-Museum-Japan-Martyrs-1091x1536.jpg 1091w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Callot-Cleveland-Museum-Japan-Martyrs-1454x2048.jpg 1454w, https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/files\/2020\/04\/Callot-Cleveland-Museum-Japan-Martyrs-scaled.jpg 1818w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 727px) 100vw, 727px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Jacques Callot,<em> Les Martyrs du Japon <\/em>(<em>The Martyrs of Japan<\/em>)<br \/>\nFrance, ca. 1627<br \/>\nEtching on laid paper with watermark<br \/>\nDimensions: sheet: 17.1 x 11.7 cm (6 3\/4 x 4 5\/8 in.); platemark: 16.7 x 11.3 cm (6 9\/16 x 4 7\/16 in.)<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.clevelandart.org\/art\/2001.31\">Cleveland Museum of Art<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The typical tale of Jacques Callot is a two-act affair. Act One profiles Callot the witty satirist, cataloguing his ascent to prominence under Medici patronage in Florence from 1609-21, when he excelled in producing lively caricatures of secular subjects \u2013 drunkards, hunchbacks, jesters, and the like. Act Two, spanning 1621 to his death in 1635, foregrounds Callot the stern moralizer. Against the backdrop of the Thirty Years War, Callot, having returned home to serve the court at Lorraine, produced his most famous set of prints, entitled \u201cThe Miseries and Misfortunes of War,\u201d depicting war crimes carried out ostensibly under the banner of creed. This 1627 print, emerging from that context, undermines clean notions of rupture between the \u2018two acts\u2019 and \u2018two Callots\u2019 of his career. This is irony in earnest. The scene recalls news from Nagasaki, in February 1597, that twenty-six Christians had been crucified on orders from the Japanese Emperor Hideyoshi Toyotomi. The Japanese had in 1549 welcomed Jesuit missionaries under Fr. Francis Xavier, hoping to strengthen mercantile and cultural ties with Europe. As suspicions that Catholicism was a euphemism for colonialism festered, the relationship took a violent turn. Europeans were quick valorize the martyrs, casting palms and laurels from afar like the angels in the scene. But Callot\u2019s wry wit \u2013 in a decidedly dark register \u2013 entreats viewers to consider whether their religious zeal to \u2018emulate Christ,\u2019 at home and abroad, could lead only to an endless line of misunderstandings \u2013 crucified victims receding endlessly, senselessly, into the background of history. (Robert D.) \u2767<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#top\">back to the top menu<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Objects were central to religious worship in late medieval Christian Europe. From the chalice used to celebrate the ritual of the Eucharist to the rosaries and books of hours that assisted the faithful in their devotions, material things helped to regulate and make tangible the sacred. In the Reformations, objects gained a new salience when [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-7","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/45"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7"}],"version-history":[{"count":58,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102,"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7\/revisions\/102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/the-reformation-of-things\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}