Romanesque Art Period and Its Characteristics Essay

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

Romanesque art is a period in the European direction, which is based on the flow of ancient art after the early Christian period. The era of Romanesque art dates back to the 12th century before the emergence of the Gothic style. Moreover, Romanesque art was also influenced by other different trends.

Thus, Byzantium and its architecture had a key influence on the development of this direction. In particular, this concerned iconography and mosaics, which, to a large extent, were inspired by famous buildings in Byzantium. Moreover, church officials, referring to the example of Byzantium, revived sculptures made of stone. There were many reasons for this, such as the fire resistance of the stone, the strength of this material, and the large capacity.

Romanesque churches are characterized by the presence of semicircular arches, doors, and arcades, while the buildings have massive pillars and walls with several windows. During the invasions, monasteries remained the only refuge of civilization, and so large Romanesque churches were erected under the cover and for the needs of the monasteries (Charles et al., 2016).

They were built during the wars, the chronicles of which are full of references to the fires of the old basilicas. By reconstructing them, church officials tried to protect the buildings from this kind of disaster and at the same time adapted them to the needs of the monastery. Thus, for reasons of fire resistance, wooden buildings were replaced with stone churches.

In this way, it becomes clear why the wood was replaced with stone. Throughout the Romanesque period, the cities were engulfed in bloody wars. The villages, along with their inhabitants, were forced to seek shelter, which was served by churches. Since stone is considered a fairly strong material that is difficult to destroy, people hid in churches, in fortresses. Moreover, during the wars, the opponents burned many settlements. Wood is a highly flammable material that allows the fire to spread at a high rate. Thus, replacing wood with stone significantly reduced the number of deaths in the fire.

Reference

Charles, V., & Carl, K. (2016). Romanesque art. Parkstone International.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2022, October 23). Romanesque Art Period and Its Characteristics. https://ivypanda.com/essays/romanesque-art-period-and-its-characteristics/

Work Cited

"Romanesque Art Period and Its Characteristics." IvyPanda, 23 Oct. 2022, ivypanda.com/essays/romanesque-art-period-and-its-characteristics/.

References

IvyPanda. (2022) 'Romanesque Art Period and Its Characteristics'. 23 October.

References

IvyPanda. 2022. "Romanesque Art Period and Its Characteristics." October 23, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/romanesque-art-period-and-its-characteristics/.

1. IvyPanda. "Romanesque Art Period and Its Characteristics." October 23, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/romanesque-art-period-and-its-characteristics/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Romanesque Art Period and Its Characteristics." October 23, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/romanesque-art-period-and-its-characteristics/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1