Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of Trier
The Gozbert Censer in the Cathedral Treasury of Trier, made in Cologne towards the end of the twelfth century, is one of the most conceptually rich medieval works ever cast in bronze. This article offers a close reading of the micro-architecture of the censer and its numerous inscriptions. The minia...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Oslo Library
2017-12-01
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| Series: | Acta ad Archaeologiam et Artium Historiam Pertinentia |
| Online Access: | https://journals.uio.no/acta/article/view/5783 |
| _version_ | 1797693022390976512 |
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| author | Hiltrud Westermann-Angerhausen |
| author_facet | Hiltrud Westermann-Angerhausen |
| author_sort | Hiltrud Westermann-Angerhausen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Gozbert Censer in the Cathedral Treasury of Trier, made in Cologne towards the end of the twelfth century, is one of the most conceptually rich medieval works ever cast in bronze. This article offers a close reading of the micro-architecture of the censer and its numerous inscriptions. The miniature building comprises topical elements relative to the representation of the Heavenly Jerusalem, including cosmological allusions. The architecture, built on a cruciform ground plan, is crowded with Old Testament characters and scenes presaging the coming of the Messiah and prefiguring the Eucharist. The chain holder shows Christ sitting on a throne; thus, this functional part of the vessel becomes the ultimate summit of the composition. The censer’s inscriptions in leonine hexameters refer to and interpret the figural representations. They thereby link the different pictorial levels of the complex organism, while creating their own spatial and temporal relationship between the Old and the New Testament, as well as within the miniature architecture, which is in itself a symbolical space. The inscription on the lowest rim of the censer invokes the onlookers' prayers for the eternal life of the donor, Gozbertus, and epitomises the function of the liturgical vessel: incense rising as prayer before the Deity – within the liturgical space of the liturgy, as well as inside the church building. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T02:36:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a0bd2d6c01584d64bfd07f11361563b7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0065-0900 2611-3686 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T02:36:32Z |
| publishDate | 2017-12-01 |
| publisher | University of Oslo Library |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Acta ad Archaeologiam et Artium Historiam Pertinentia |
| spelling | doaj.art-a0bd2d6c01584d64bfd07f11361563b72023-09-04T14:47:43ZengUniversity of Oslo LibraryActa ad Archaeologiam et Artium Historiam Pertinentia0065-09002611-36862017-12-012410 N.S.10.5617/acta.5783Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of TrierHiltrud Westermann-AngerhausenThe Gozbert Censer in the Cathedral Treasury of Trier, made in Cologne towards the end of the twelfth century, is one of the most conceptually rich medieval works ever cast in bronze. This article offers a close reading of the micro-architecture of the censer and its numerous inscriptions. The miniature building comprises topical elements relative to the representation of the Heavenly Jerusalem, including cosmological allusions. The architecture, built on a cruciform ground plan, is crowded with Old Testament characters and scenes presaging the coming of the Messiah and prefiguring the Eucharist. The chain holder shows Christ sitting on a throne; thus, this functional part of the vessel becomes the ultimate summit of the composition. The censer’s inscriptions in leonine hexameters refer to and interpret the figural representations. They thereby link the different pictorial levels of the complex organism, while creating their own spatial and temporal relationship between the Old and the New Testament, as well as within the miniature architecture, which is in itself a symbolical space. The inscription on the lowest rim of the censer invokes the onlookers' prayers for the eternal life of the donor, Gozbertus, and epitomises the function of the liturgical vessel: incense rising as prayer before the Deity – within the liturgical space of the liturgy, as well as inside the church building.https://journals.uio.no/acta/article/view/5783 |
| spellingShingle | Hiltrud Westermann-Angerhausen Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of Trier Acta ad Archaeologiam et Artium Historiam Pertinentia |
| title | Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of Trier |
| title_full | Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of Trier |
| title_fullStr | Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of Trier |
| title_full_unstemmed | Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of Trier |
| title_short | Incense in the space between Heaven and Earth – the inscriptions and images on the Gozbert Censer in the cathedral trasury of Trier |
| title_sort | incense in the space between heaven and earth the inscriptions and images on the gozbert censer in the cathedral trasury of trier |
| url | https://journals.uio.no/acta/article/view/5783 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT hiltrudwestermannangerhausen incenseinthespacebetweenheavenandearththeinscriptionsandimagesonthegozbertcenserinthecathedraltrasuryoftrier |