Origin and characteristics , .
Merseburg Cathedral, Germany. The spread of Christianity throughout Europe introduced new attitudes towards death and the dead, and for the first time tombs were built in places of worship, that is churches. The first medieval recumbent effigies (
gisants) were produced in the 11th century, with the earliest surviving example being that of
Rudolf of Rheinfelden (d. 1080) in
Merseburg Cathedral in Germany. These early effigies show the deceased (usually a royal, senior cleric or aristocrat) dressed in contemporary clothing. The format proliferated across Northern Europe in the late 12th century as it became popular amongst a growing class of wealthy elites who often commissioned their tombs years before their death; often seeking to cement their historical or spiritual legacy or —especially in early examples— restore a reputation tarnished by political or military defeat. The art historian Marisa Anne Bass described the intention of medieval effigies as representing death "to make present an absence." Historians differ as to the historical influences behind their designs. Writing in 1964, the art historian
Erwin Panofsky suggested that their design was based on Spanish tombs and
mosaic from North Africa. Other art historians have highlighted a primary influences from Classical funerary monuments, particularly those from Etruscan culture. The historian Shirin Fozi recognises the influence of earlier formats, but thought that the idea of placing an "enlivened" representation of the dead above their grave is "too intuitive and too obvious to be read that ancient analogues were necessarily sources of inspiration." According to the English historian Alfred C. Fryer, a "hastily made and lively effigy" of the deceased "in his very robes of estate" became part of the funeral procession, after which the representation was left either above or near the burial spot. They were placed on many types of tombs; at first on
tomb slabs before table or chest tombs (
tumba) became the standard. Later, tombs built into cavities in walls became popular in France and Spain. The early "chest tombs" were typically built from several stone panels, with a cavity (often filled with rubble) to support the effigy. They were designed to give the impression that the body had been placed within it, but the corpse was usually buried in a vault below or beside the monument. Recent excavations indicate that some 14th-century chests acted as containers for the body. However, relatively few medieval tomb monuments have been opened. Notable examples where the body was placed inside the chest include the tombs of
Henry III of England (completed ) and
Edward I (d. 1307), both in
Westminster Abbey, London. When the latter tomb was opened in 1774, the remains were found in a
marble coffin placed on a bed of rubble.
Romanesque (France) in Northern France, now in
the Cloisters, New York. The earliest medieval examples are German; the style was significantly developed by French sculptors during the
Romanesque style between and . By the 12th century, German, Dutch, Belgian, Spanish effigies largely followed the forms and iconography of the French models and had begun to adapt elements of the emerging
Gothic style. Romanesque effigies were typically carved from white marble or
alabaster, and depict the deceased's body and face as they appeared in life, with no marks of illness or death. The faces are idealised rather than accurate portrayals and often show the deceased much younger than they had been at death. The effigies are always recumbent—as if dead, and by the 14th century with hands clasped in prayer. The most common material is carvings on marble, alabaster or wood, with some examples cast in bronze or brass. The faces and hands of the few surviving wooden effigies are made from wax or plaster. The effigies were usually
polychromed to simulate life, but in most cases, the paint has long since worn away. The first secular examples appeared in the 12th century following the establishment of the knightly class. decorated with heraldry and architectural detailing. The earliest examples showing armour date from the 1240s, with the most numerous surviving examples in England. The two most common poses from these English types are knights pulling out their sword or lying cross-legged; particularly English motifs although there are some Polish and French examples. Tombs effigies are the most numerous type of surviving medieval statuary in Britain, with around 250 extant secular effigies from each of the 13th and 14th centuries alone. The most numerous early examples are representations of knights, with over 150 such effigies surviving from the 13th century and almost 200 from the 14th century. Many of those of knights produced during the
Plantagenet reign are known as "dying
Gauls", given they show the deceased reaching for their sword as if they are either about to commence battle or are struggling against death. The 13th-century knightly effigies are less rigid and statuesque than French examples, reflecting what the historian H. A. Tummers describes as a "more worldly and less spiritual outlook". The drawing of the sword is intended to show, according to the art historian Rachel Dressler, their "physical dynamism". Britain's periods of iconoclasm were not as severe as those in northern continental Europe and so the number of surviving number of examples exceeds even that of France. The main period of destruction was in during the 16th-century
Reformation led by
Henry VIII, when many monastic settlements were destroyed, including many English royal tombs. Due to the relative scarcity of appropriate stone material – especially in London and the surrounding counties – wooden effigies became common during the Romanesque period. Given wood's perishability, only five examples survive, all in
oak. File:St Michael's church, Pitchford - oak effigy of Sir John de Pitchford - geograph.org.uk - 3423693.jpg|Carved oak
Tomb of John De Pitchford (d. 1285).
Pitchford, Shropshire. File:TOMB OF THE BLACK PRINCE, CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL.jpg|The cast gilt copper-alloy
Tomb of Edward, the Black Prince, after 1376,
Canterbury Cathedral, Kent File:Dunkeld Cathedral 20090617 tomb Wolf of Badenoch.jpg|
Tomb of the Wolf of Badenoch (d. 1394),
Dunkeld Cathedral,
Perth and Kinross Burgundy , .
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, France The
Dukes of Burgundy, who ruled in present-day Belgium, Luxembourg and northern France during the 14th and 15th centuries, were recognised throughout Europe as patrons of the arts. Through their cultivation of artists such as the sculptor
Claus Sluter and the painters
Jan van Eyck and
Rogier van der Weyden (who is thought to have painted some of their effigies), they became key in the development of
Early Netherlandish art and the wider
Northern Renaissance. The
iconography of Burgundian tombs develops forms and motifs found on monuments for French Kings in the
Basilica of Saint-Denis, near Paris. The now lost
tomb of Joan of Brabant () is probably the earliest example; its rows of mourners positioned below the slab were reproduced in later Burgundian tombs, including those of
Isabella of Bourbon, constructed between 1475 and 1476, where the mourners were directly copied from Joan's monument. The style became influential across Europe with the
tomb of Philip the Bold (d. 1404), built over 30 years from 1381 by the sculptors
Jean de Marville (d. 1389) and Sluter (d. 1405?) for the
Chartreuse de Champmol, near
Dijon, which also houses the tombs of his son
John the Fearless (d. 1419) and John's wife
Margaret of Bavaria (d. 1424). Philip's tomb is described by the art historian
Frits Scholten as "one of the most magnificent tombs of the Late Middle Ages". File:TumbaMariaDeBorgoña.jpg|
Tomb of Mary of Burgundy, 1501. Church of Our Lady, Bruges. The Burgundian effigies are characterised by naturalistic faces, open eyes, angels above their heads, and animals (either dogs or lions) at their feet.
Eastern Europe Several 16th-century Polish tombs contained cross-legged effigies. However, the iconography is believed to differ from English examples, and rather than denoting a knight killed on the battlefield, the pose instead probably symbolizes either the princely status of the deceased or according to the historian Jan Białostocki, "their state of quiet and blessed repose". ==Renaissance==