Praise to both husband and wife, When they live in love.
Their soul and body are on a par
For every hour, Lord, bless!
And in complete happiness, let their life pass.
There is no doubt, blessed is the one
Who honors virtue in himself, As in the one who has chosen one, And who took a wife for joy, A friend in life and fate.
(Walter von der Vogelweide, translated by Wilhelm Lewick.)
In the Soviet historical film Black Arrow (1985) based on the novel by R. Stevenson, there is a touching scene, which, by the way, is not in the novel itself: the minstrel sings a song for the bride and groom, Lord Gray and Joanna Sedley: wife …”Although, apart from music and poetry, practically nothing happens in the frame, this scene makes a very strong impression. It was written on the verses of the 13th century German minnesinger Walter von der Vogelweide "Desires and longings days …" and is very characteristic of the knightly poetry of those years. It is significant that many knightly effigies are paired. They depict both spouses. That is, the words "to be together in life and death, in illness and in health …", which the Catholic priest uttered during the sacrament of marriage, for many were not at all empty and in their wills they indicated to create an effect not only for themselves, but also for their own spouse. Or, on the contrary, the wife, after the death of the knight-husband, wanted to be immortalized in the sculpture lying next to him.
Thanks to this, we know a lot not only about men's, but also women's outfits of that time, although in this case we are interested in the first ones. And not English, not French or Spanish effigies, with which we got acquainted quite often, but with Germanic effigies. And not just Germanic (in part, we also considered them in some "knightly articles" on "VO"), but effigies of the period 1050-1350.
In the preceding material, a certain "backwardness" of German chivalry from English and French has already been noted. But effigies, and at once paired, appeared in Germany even earlier than in England and France. And then they spread very widely and became an obligatory attribute of the burial of any member of the nobility. Therefore, a lot of them have survived. It is also important that, unlike France, no one in Germany particularly destroyed them, although many effigies were seriously damaged and were destroyed during the Second World War. Many effigies in Germany adorned cathedrals, in particular, such were the effigies of Eckehard (Eckhard) II - Margrave of Meissen and Count Hutitsi from 1032, and the Margrave of the Eastern Mark of Saxony from 1034, who became the sole ruler of Meissen in 1038, and his wife Uta Ballenstedt … Their statues are in the Naumburg Cathedral in the center of the German town of Naumburg (Saxony-Anhalt) and, according to art critics and historians, are perhaps the most memorable example of early medieval art.
Uta and Eckerhardt (large).
Uta and Eckerhard. Sculptures in the Naumburg Cathedral. Pay attention to the very typical sword on which Eckerhard is leaning, and the very small triangular shield, which is not at all characteristic of this time. The fact is that he died on January 14, 1046, and his wife died on October 23 … of the same year!
Among the early effigies is the famous sculpture of St. Maurice in the Cathedral of St. Catherine and St. Maurice in Magdeburg. And the most interesting thing is that this saint is portrayed as black and with negroid features … only in Germany! Its history is as follows: in 287 A. D. Emperor Maximian (c. 250 - c. 310 CE) ordered the Theban legion of Roman Christian soldiers in Egypt, led by Maurice, to travel to Agaunum, now modern Saint-Maurice-en-Valais in Switzerland. What the emperor ordered Maurice's legion to do there is disputed: they had to either participate in pagan rituals or persecute and kill local Christians.
A faithful Christian, Maurice refused to obey the emperor's orders. In response, the legion was punished with decimation, with some legionnaires having to kill others. Everyone refused to do this, and then, by order of the emperor, the entire legion was executed. The earliest written accounts of this incident appeared nearly 150 years later, when the Church declared Maurice a saint for disobeying the imperial orders. Later, Maurice became the patron saint of the Holy Roman Empire, and an altar was erected in the Vatican dedicated to his memory.
Until the middle of the 13th century, St. Maurice was portrayed as a white-skinned warrior, dressed in armor of the corresponding era. But after the reconstruction of the Magdeburg Cathedral in 1240-1250, when it was damaged by fire, he suddenly turned into an African. Why the unknown artist deliberately changed the race of Maurice is unknown. It is possible that since he and his people were from Thebes in Upper Egypt near Nubia, they were considered "Ethiopians" who, in the medieval European world, were believed to have lived on the African continent, and all "Ethiopians" are … Negroes! Whatever the reason, this change was the first artistic depiction of a black African in medieval Europe. It is interesting that he is a "negro" only in Germany. In churches in Switzerland, France and Italy, he is depicted as white.
Interestingly, St. Maurice is shown wearing multi-layer chain mail armor, and the chain mail headpiece is worn separately from the hauberg and he is equipped with a bib. Over the chain mail, he is not wearing a surcoat, but something like a cape with a lining of metal plates, the presence of which is indicated by the heads of the rivets. Chain-mail mittens are braided to the sleeves.
Effigia Heinrich the Younger, d. 1298 Cathedral of Magdeburg, Germany. Please note that he has a typical coat of arms, but there are no coat of arms images on his rectangular ellets, which does not correspond to their purpose at all!
Plane tombstone on a plate. Before us is Graphene von Leuchtenberg, d. 1300 Baden Cathedral, Germany. As you can see, this knight was quite satisfied with pure chain mail armor, over which he wore a surcoat with numerous sewn wedges along the hem.
Berthold V von Saringen, d. 1218 Effigia was made in 1354 (City Museum of Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany) Armament very typical for the German knights of that time: a detachable Bretach nosepiece, chains leading to a sword, dagger and helmet, a pleated "skirt" and bulging knee pads over chain mail shosses.
Heinrich Bayer von Boppard, d. 1355 (Bode Museum art museum as part of the Museum Island ensemble in Berlin). The deceased is wearing full chain mail armor, with wide sleeves and surcoat, also with wide sleeves. The sword sling and the basilard dagger are very clearly visible.
Johann II von Kazenelnboden, d. 1357 Ebermach Abbey, Germany. Obviously rich was a knight and followed fashion. He wears a bascinet helmet with a visor on the upper loop (an early version of the fastening was taken on knight's helmets), and on the day of a spear strike, a completely closed “big helmet” with a large wing - “crest”, which also showed his coat of arms. The torso is gracefully wrapped in chain mail and on top of it is a short jupon, on which there are only two functional chains - one to the handle of the dagger and one with a "button" serves to fasten the "big helmet" behind his back. The knee and greaves are already all-metal, but the sabatons are still chain mail. The rich belt and trimmings of the jupon and armor indicate that he was not shy of adornment.
And finally one of the paired effigies: Gudard d'Estable with his wife, 1340 Abbey de Marsili, Yonne, Burgundy, France. As you can see, his armor is very similar to the German samples, or rather, the German samples are similar to his armor. Solid-forged greaves have already appeared, but the sabatons are still chain mail.
Sculpture "Sleeping Warrior" approx. 1340-1345 “Warriors at the Holy Sepulcher”, Notre Dame Museum, Strasbourg, France. He is wearing a bascinet helmet with a detachable aventail, a "big helmet" temporarily thrown behind his back. The torso is still protected by chain mail, but metal bulging shoulder pads and knee pads have already appeared. Gloves - plate, with plates riveted on the skin. The shield is round. Apparently for acting as an infantryman.
Another "sleeping" and, apparently, a rank lower than the first, or poorer. Above the knees there are only quilted trousers, a helmet - "iron hat" ("chapel-de-fer") with a cruciform reinforcement of the dome, chain mail with short and wide sleeves. As a weapon, a massive felchen (falchion). It is interesting that on his left hand, under the shield, he has a tubular bracer, but on his right, it is clearly made of strips of thick plantar skin. For some reason, he didn't have enough money for two identical funds …
This is how they are, the effigies of the Holy Roman Empire, and you see how much they told us today …
P. S. But this photo did not appear here by accident. It's just that a number of VO regulars in their comments suggested placing along with articles the photos of the authors of certain materials … "at work". Well - here is the first such photo. You will see such a person in one of the cathedrals of Europe this year, do not hesitate - this is the author of "knightly articles" busy looking for effigies!
