From the second quarter of the 12th century, the Iberian Peninsula was a place of political combustion. With the founding of the Almohad Caliphate and the separations of the kingdoms of Castile and León and of Navarre and Aragón, the regions now known as Spain were in a moment of deep territorial change and adaptation. In the case of the Crown of Aragón, the testament of Alfonso i âthe Battlerâ (r. 1104â1134) had left the kingdom in an agitated state. This king deposited the Kingdom of Aragón in the hands of the monastic orders of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, the Templars, and Hospitallers. Amid this political turmoil, and after the political forces rejected the kingâs last will. Ramiro, the deceased kingâs brother was forced to leave his monastic life to marry and produce an heir. It was in 1136 that Princess Petronila of Aragón was born (died 1173), after which her father, known as Ramiro ii âthe Monkâ (r. 1134â1137), resumed to his monastic life. At that point, it was necessary to decide how to handle the difficult situation of the Crown of Aragón, which now only had a female heiress. In 1150, Petronila wedded Ramon Berenguer iv (1113/14â1162), Count of Barcelona. Petronila was indeed queen of Aragón, but she never acted as such, since Ramon assumed governance over these two territories, as a prince in Aragón and a count in Catalonia, until his death.1
The Crown of Aragón was first unified with the Catalan counties under Alfonso ii (r. 1164â1196), the son of the aforementioned Petronila and Ramon. The reign of Alfonso ii âthe Troubadourâ began after a consort period led by nobles and ecclesiastical figures, as the young prince had not been old enough to rule when his father died.2 At the end of Alfonsoâs reign, two manuscripts
Moreover, the manuscripts are among the few preserved judicial lay manuscripts with illuminations.3 This makes them an outstanding visual source for medieval royal courts and feudal ceremonies, because of their display of vestments, gestures, and social dynamics. At a stylistic level, two hands can be clearly differentiated in the illuminations of the lfm, hands that have recently been referred to as âAâ (more archaic in style) and âBâ (with a more âadvanced styleâ).4 However, upon examining the vestments in the illuminations, it can be speculated that another âhandâ or âstyleâ was involved.5 Hand B was probably second to work on the manuscript, after and often over some of the more linear-style illuminations of hand A.6 Also attributable to Hand B are greatly detailed illuminations like folio 1r of the manuscript (Figure. 12.1), where King Alfonso ii is seated in front of Ramón de Caldés, the jurist responsible for the compilation of the volume. A group of people stands behind the king as he converses with Caldés. This is likely the hand that created folios 78v (Figure. 12.2) and 93r (Figure. 12.7). For the other style, hand Aâs participation can be noticeable, who most likely worked on the manuscript before hand B. In the past, scholars have often referred to these depictions as âarchaicâ in that they
The illuminations of the lfc are, by contrast, stylistically more homogeneous. They show seated kings and counts in the context of feudal ceremony, with each action contained in a frame-like quadrangular window. In these illuminations, the modifications among the scenes are minor, giving the impression that they emerged from a more regular process of production.
1 Primary Clothing Pieces in the lfm and lfc
To analyse the decorative programmes of the two aca manuscripts, it is necessary to first make a statement regarding the relevance of vestments and garments as communication tools that allowed beholders to recognize and categorize the represented figures.8 Even more than they are today, in the Middle Ages garments were a social spectacle and a way of differentiating oneâs rank. The lavish contents of royal treasuries demonstrate the attention and importance bestowed upon vestments in royal courts.9 By the 13th century, vestments became a far more distinguishing social factor compared to money itself, a shift attributable to expanding cities and related developments that allowed a growing bourgeoisie to accumulate wealth like never before.10 Amid these changes, âfashionâ became an ever-changing factor through which the traditional elites could distinguish themselves.11
Between the 11th and the beginning of the 13th centuries, the European dress code experienced an unprecedented regularity, albeit under the undeniable persuasion of Byzantine dress and, on the Iberian Peninsula specifically, with the continued affect of Mozarabic vestments.12 On the peninsula,
A commonly used garment, present in the lfm but not the lfc, was the pellizón, also referred to in documents as pellicia (figures. 12.1, 12.2, 12.3, 12.7). It is a long, ankle-length garment, leaving only the feet visible, generally with wider sleeves than the gonela. In the lfm, kings and counts â i.e. persons of higher social position â are clad in the pellizón, while their subjects wear gonelas. A piece only present in the lfc is the gonela amaetada (Figure. 12.4a),14 a rather noteworthy vestment that consists of a gonela divided in two lengthwise, with a cape usually in the same pattern. Since there are no representations of kings in the gonela amaetada, it can be deduced that this was likely not a ceremonial piece but one worn only by noblemen.15 This might be attributable to the fact that the production of such patterned pieces was less expensive than that of solid-coloured garments.16
Regarding vestments worn by women in these two manuscripts, the range is more limited than that of their male counterparts, consisting of a long pellizón, which in the lfm covers the shoes as well in an unusual way that gives the women almost column-like figures. Married women are always represented with a veil covering their heads. Meanwhile, the future bride on folio 78v (Figure. 12.2) of the lfm has her head uncovered, leaving visible her long
A significant piece worn by women and men alike in the manuscripts is the pellote, a sleeveless overgarment that covers only part of the shoulders and sides and the very front of the chest, falling over the hips. In the lfc, it is floor length (Figure. 12.4b), covering even the womanâs shoes, but men also wore it as a knee-length piece, like the pellote of Fernando de la Cerda, preserved in the monastery of Las Huelgas, Burgos.18
Another clothing item worn by women and men was the three- or four-string cape, the manto, with a semi-circular cut and held over the shoulders by lacing the strings through buttonholes at the sides of the chest (figures. 12.2, 12.4a, b, 12.5a). This garment, besides being among the most embellished because of its visibility,19 allowed the wearer to adopt a particular gesture in social settings, namely holding the manto by the strings with one hand while conversing, hunting, or engaging in other activities.20 This is a pose that was repeatedly represented in manuscripts in the late 12th and throughout the 13th centuries.
2 Garments, Royal Insignia, and Politics
Having considered the different types of vestments shown in the manuscripts, it is now possible to attend to the various intentions behind the portrayals of royal power in the lfm and lfc. In the level of care and detail with which the illuminations of the lfm were made, it is evident that the illuminators intended to clearly distinguish the ranks of the represented figures. Although it is often difficult to identify the specific fabrics depicted in these illuminations, silk garments can be differentiated by their patterning and by the use of costly colours such as red with gold and pearly trim,21 as on folios 1r or 93r (figures. 12.1, 12.7). In these cases, the outstanding detail with which such
However, it must be noted that the lfc does not always demonstrate consistency in these respects. Taking the examples of folios 22v and 64v (figures. 12.5a, 12.5b) of the lfc, it is apparent that the illuminators did not portray kings with the strict aim of exalting them. On folio 22v, Alfonso ii is shown without any royal insignia whilemaking an agreement with the viscount of Castrobono, Arnaldum, regarding the castles of Sancto Martino, Cheralt, and Miralles.22 On folios 64v (Figure. 12.6b) and 62r (Figure. 12.3), Alfonso ii and Pedro ii are easily recognizable by their crowns and their gonelas. The latter are not solid in colour but patterned with horizontal stripes, which could indicate their constitution of a more expensive material, as previously discussed concerning the representation of silk in manuscripts. On folio 64v (Figure. 12.5b), Pedro ii wears a crown while Poncius de Verneto is establishing a fiefdom at the town of Ortolanes.23 Meanwhile, on folio 62r (Figure. 12.3), a crowned Alfonso ii concedes the fortresses of Volon and Anguils to Pere de Montesquieu.24 On folio 25r (Figure. 12.6 a) of the lfc, Alfonso ii is represented without a crown, while for the same document in the lfm he is represented with what seems to be a crown or a coronet (figures. 12.6a, 12.6b), making it easy to recognize him as the king.
It is notable that, in the lfc, the differences among individuals and their authority are not revealed through vestments, symbols, or gestures. The royal figures can only be identified in the two cases in which the kings are depicted with crowns (fols. 62r and 64v). Moreover, in the manuscript vestments are used as a unifying element. They do not differentiate the king from his subordinates but rather position all on the same level, with only the tituli distinguishing the king from any other nobleman depicted.
As scholars have asked, if both the lfm and the lfc were created under Alfonso iiâs initiative for the same purpose, namely in response to the need
The necessity to compile written documents would seem obvious in the context of the restructuring of the chancellery of the Crown of Aragón after the union of the kingdom of Aragón and the Catalan counties. But the seemingly superfluous addition of images to the manuscripts prompts the question of who the target audience was and, relatedly, what other functions these manuscripts served besides the compilation of written information. It is possible that the manuscripts accompanied the king or his counsellors to political or judicial meetings, functioning also as a symbol of the improved chancellery and thus as a visual message regarding the efforts of Alfonso ii and Pedro ii to create a new, well-structured judicial chancellery for the Crown of Aragón.28
The illuminations, since each is a figurative representation of the written document that it accompanies, could have assisted in easily locating a specific document, serving as a kind of marker for the most relevant items in the manuscript. This makes more sense in relation to the lfc, as it has fewer images and the kings Alfonso ii and Pedro ii are represented in the majority of them. The great number and frequency of figurative images in the lfm would make them less effective âbookmarks.â Moreover, the nature of these images of counts and other noblemen, such as folio 83bis-r, is more historical than simply judicial. In this way, the lfm can be understood as a recollection of the history of the Crown of Aragón as much as a political and judicial tool.
3 Folio 93r of the Liber Feudorum Maior
After considering the vestments of both manuscripts as well as the questions of audience and use, we turn to folio 93r in the lfm (Figure. 12.7). Discovered later, in 1944, alongside other folios of the manuscript that had been reused on bindings in the aca.30 The folio depicts a circular form, at the centre of which two crowned figures are seated, each enclosed in an arch, on a structure made of several steps. The figure on the left has long grey hair that falls over his shoulders and a medium-length beard. In his left hand he holds a red sceptre, while he raises his right hand towards the figure next to him. He is seated atop a white structure that, when compared with the seat of the other figure, has an extra blue cushion. This other figure pulls on the three strings of a cape with the left hand; the right hand is raised, with the open palm facing upwards. Around them are seven pairs of men engaged in conversation, all dressed in either green or light-yellow pellizones and capes. It is impossible to know with certainty which document this image corresponded to, but several interpretations have been made. Ernest MartÃnez Ferrando issued a first take on the matter when he discovered that the parchment folios had been used on other volumes as a binding element.31 He suggested that folio 93r could be a representation of King Alfonso ii and Queen Sancha of Castile surrounded by their court, maintaining that such a majestic image would only have
Nonetheless, the interpretation accepted by most scholars is that of MartÃnez Ferrando, namely that the two central figures are Alfonso ii and his spouse Queen Sancha of Castile.34 This identification is also based on the fact that the two figures are crowned and the figure opposite the king has feminine features in the body and face; moreover, the grey-haired figure resembles other depictions of Alfonso ii in the lfm.35
However, the vestments of the supposed Queen Sancha â when compared to other examples within the two manuscripts, along with further contemporary examples â are not consistent with those normally worn by a married woman, and they are even farther from the usual vestments of a reigning queen. First of all, the length of the overgarment, the pellizón, leaving the ankles and shins visible, is very unconventional. Indeed, married women and queens were never represented revealing their lower legs in any way; their vestments leave visible either only the tip of their shoes or not even their shoes at all, as can be seen on folio 15v of the Tumbo Menor de Castilla, in which Alfonso viii of Castile and Leonor of Plantagenet are depicted, as well as in the earlier image of King Knut and Queen Emma on folio 6r of the Liber Vitae.36
If the same comparison is made to the lfm, a compelling example is found in the image of the woman on folio 102 (Figure. 12.9). This folio, like folio 93r, was found in 1944 in the binding of another book. While it too lacks any text, it is clearly an image of a woman because of the long pellizón that covers even the figureâs feet, hanging all the way to the ground. This suggests that the image was intended to illustrate a document that mentioned an unmarried woman, also given that her long hair is tied into a braid. The comparison of these two images is quite powerful, highlighting the fact that folio 102 shows one of the lfmâs few female figures who are seated with their feet completely covered.39
Another effective comparison can be found on folio 11r (Figure. 12.10). One must bear in mind that this folio was never finished, so only the main shapes are visible. Nonetheless, the figure of Queen Petronila on the left is easily recognizable by her cream-coloured pellizón that goes all the way to the floor, covering her feet. This detail, despite the fact that the features of the hair and face are uncompleted, makes very clear that this figure represents a woman.
Based on these comparisons, it is reasonable to conclude that the person seated next to Alfonso ii is not a woman but a man. He could be, in my view, the kingâs son, the future Pedro ii âthe Catholic,â shown in the act of implementing his fatherâs desires as continuator of rulership over the Crown of Aragón. We could be looking at an image of the transference of power and the designation of a future king, as construed in the Crown of Aragón: at the end of the 12th century, Aragonese kings adhered to succession by primogeniture and did not hold coronation ceremonies.41 In the miniature, both figures are wearing crowns, and indeed Aragonese kings had crowns and other regalia like sceptres or globes made for their own use.42 It is possible, then, that Pedro is represented here wearing one of these minor crowns while his father was still king.
Besides the vestments, there are other compelling details that support the interpretation of the two central figures of folio 93r being Alfonso ii and Pedro ii. The former has his palm facing upwards, symbolic of either a demand or an offering of continuation, as Françoise Garnier points out in her work on medieval gestures.43 Specifically, this gesture was often used in the Middle Ages to signify a direction to be followed, which in this case referred to Pedroâs rule as
Alfonso is poised with his feet, in pointed shoes, turned symmetrically outwards. This stable and balanced position was often used not only for figures of authority but also for wise or virtuous figures, such as Christ and the Virgin in majesty. While, Pedroâs gesture of crossing the ankles is not quite as standardized, from the second half of the 12th century it was a frequent attribute of figures holding authority, whether temporal or spiritual. This posture, alongside other signs of authority, as Garnier observes, would make clear that the figure was powerful.45
The practice of the ruler naming his successor is also evoked on folio 11r (Figure. 12.10). Here, Petronila, the mother of Alfonso ii, is seated opposite her young son. She delegates the reign of Aragón to him, ratifying Ramon Berenguer ivâs testament. She thus acts as both a legitimizing force and a transmitting apparatus, both for Ramon Berenguer iv and for Aragón; she makes her son omne regnum Aragonis integriter, which means giving him control over the Aragonese territories and people, along with all the rights accompanying reign.46 Again here, though the image is unfinished, the figure of Alfonso is easily recognizable thanks to the vestments. Moreover, in the context of the manuscript itself, this illumination corresponds to the text on the same folio, which describes Petronila delegating the power invested in her to her son Alfonso. To contextualize the relationship between the transfer of imperial power and the role of women as transmitters of legitimacy, as well as the importance of the imperial family for dynastic promotion in general, we might look to the Byzantine Empire and especially the Palaeologus dynasty (1261â1453).47 Therefore, in light of folio 11r, folio 93r may well be a representation of the type of designatio potestas that was performed by the kings of the Crown of Aragón until the beginning of the 13th century, when the coronation ceremony was adopted by most of them.
Since by the time Alfonso ii died, in 1196, Pedro ii was only 18 years old, it is appropriate that he be represented in a youthful manner. As noted above, Alfonso ii was never ceremonially crowned, nor were his predecessors, including his mother, Petronila. There was no need for them to be crowned or anointed in a ceremony, as their royal power did not need to be âsecuredâ by the Church. Folio 93r represents not a crowning ceremony but a designation of future power, a designatio maiestas, in the act of naming Pedro ii the successor of Alfonso ii.51
4
There is another element of the miniature that points towards an interpretation of its central figures as Alfonso ii and Pedro ii. The two figures are seated atop a pedestal-like structure that has six steps, corresponding to the description of the Throne of Solomon in the Old Testament. The iconography of Solomon and his throne circulated primarily in the Mediterranean region, being employed by Byzantine and Muslim sovereigns as a means of graciously representing a ruler.52 It was in the 13th century that the usage of this iconography and its relationship to royalty saw a mayor development. Solomonâs figure was mainly used by medieval kings to link themselves to the idea of wisdom, thus forging a connection between royalty and sapientia.53 In biblical tradition, as recorded in the Book of Kings, kings who sought an association with Solomon did so to be regarded as kings who governed their people with wisdom and who differentiated between good and evil rather than focusing on earthly riches.54 In the lfm, the visual association of Alfonso ii and Pedro ii with the Israelite king could have been driven by a keen ambition to compare themselves â as the first two Aragonese kings to rule over Aragón and the counties of Barcelona â to the righteous king of Jerusalem Solomon. The harmonious and righteous event that was Solomonâs succession to the throne, as described in the Old Testament,55 was reason enough for the kings to eagerly emulate him in a manuscript such as this.56
A compelling fact about Solomonâs throne is that, of all the features that have been attached to it throughout centuries, only the six-stepped pedestal is truly based on the biblical text; other details, like the series of lions sometimes mentioned, appear solely in rabbinic commentaries.57 This is why allegorical representations of Solomonâs throne are much more common than attempts
Like his biblical precedent, Solomon, Alfonso ii was a representative of courtly knowledge and of the celestial bodies, as well as of the wisdom that these bring to the person who ponders over them.
5 Activities at Court
The seven paired figures that surround the central couple have been regarded as the lords of the castles received by Almodis in her bridal dowry or, when the couple is interpreted as Alfonso ii and Queen Sancha, as members of the royal court.61 These 14 figures are a very intriguing element that can be understood, within the premise of this paper, as representing a performance of disputations. Disputation was a medieval cultural and pedagogical practice, deeply
A related possibility is that the couples are shown engaged in the so-called jeu parti. This consisted of a lyrical composition, made of six strophes, in which a troubadour announces a problem and proposes two solutions, one of which his âopponentâ would take up in a sung argumentation in an attempt to persuade a judge.64 Similarly, the seven couples in the image may be immersed in a tenso (called debat in the north of the Peninsula) a practice, emerging in the South of France between 1125 and 1150, in which every participant defends an opinion or fact.65 This type of dispute became the educational method of choice as the attention to dialectic began to develop in the 12th century.66
Regardless of the precise activity depicted, these pairs of people represent the interest that Alfonso ii had in lyrical interactions and courtly performances of knowledge and the arts. Indeed, his surname âthe Troubadourâ is indicative of his interest in forming a well-cultivated court. He became a protector and promoter of troubadours, and this drove his court to reach a refinement never before seen in Aragón and perpetuated by Pedro ii.67
Adding to this reading concerning the evocation of knowledge and wisdom is the fact that the two royal figures, along with their court of 14, are situated inside a sphere outlined in yellow. This geometrical shape is a visualization of unity, including in knowledge and learning.68 In the context of the lfm,
6 Conclusions
When King Alfonso ii began his reign, the need for a well-organized chancellery became pressing. The lfm and, a few years later, the lfc are results of that necessity. The illumination of the manuscripts exemplifies the use of vestments in medieval society to express rank and social status. The various images of Alfonso ii and Pedro ii in the lfm and lfc clearly indicate how vestments were used to portray ideas of rank equality or differentiation between the kings of the Crown of Aragón and the Catalan, Aragonense, and Occitan subjects.
Folio 93r of the lfm, probably the most interesting image of the entire manuscript and certainly one of the most monumental, has been studied as a whole, with its details being somehow overlooked for over 70 years. Through considering the details of the vestments in the miniature, a number of compelling interpretive possibilities arise: the mode of dress, along with the physical features, of the figure seated next to Alfonso ii indicate that the figure is a man. This is confirmed by comparing the figure with other men portrayed in the lfm. The manner in which the central figures are interacting with each other betrays a message of command and acceptance, a transmittal of power from a king to his heir.
This action takes place atop a structure that is strikingly similar to the Throne of Solomon, as described in the Old Testament. This throne, specifically set on six steps, became in the Mediterranean context symbolic of the wisdom and righteousness of the person seated on it â a righteousness and wisdom that, as the originators of a new dynasty, Alfonso ii and his son Pedro ii were eager to be associated with. Folio 93r depicts a ruling king, Alfonso ii, who sought to consolidate the dominion that his father, Count Ramon Berenguer iv, had won by marriage; it depicts Alfonsoâs desire to continue this control through the succession of Pedro ii.
The miniature has a multi-layered significance with respect to Alfonso ii and his son Pedro ii, as it represents how they wished to be perceived not only as individual kings but also as a dynasty. With the two figures seated, one old and one young, it encapsulates the idea of continuity, of royal heritance, atop the steps of the throne of the wise king Solomon. It is a representation of the well-cultured, wisdom-oriented royal court that surrounded and shaped Alfonso and later Pedro, with the seven pairs of men shown in discussion.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Professor Michele Bacci and Professor Marta Serrano-Coll for their wise comments and guidance throughout the research and writing process. My thanks also to Dr Kayoko Ichikawa and Richard J. Burrows for their support.
For more about the period before the union of the Aragonese and Catalan territories, see: Antonio Ubieto Arteta, Cómo se formó Aragón (Zaragoza, 1982); Thomas N. Bisson, Història de la Corona dâAragó a lâEdat Mitjana (Barcelona, 1988); José Angel Sesma Muñoz, La Corona de Aragón (Zaragoza, 2000).
Esteban Sarasa Sánchez, âPresentación,â in Alfonso II Rey de Aragón, Conde de Barcelona y Marqués de Provenza. Documentos (1162â1196), ed. Isabel Casabón (Zaragoza, 1995), 1â6, esp. 4.
Adam J. Kosto, âThe Liber feudorum maior of the counts of Barcelona: the cartulary as an expression of power,â Journal of Medieval History 27 (2001), 1â22, esp. 2.
Shannon L. Wearing, âThe Death of the Patron: Agency, Style and the Making of the Liber Feudorum Maior of Barcelona,â in Romanesque Patrons and Processes, eds. Jordi Camps, Manuel Castiñeiras, John McNeill, and Richard Plant (London, 2018), 327â336, esp. 330.
There are some elements that might point to a third hand or workshop, one closer to style B based on the slenderness of some of the figures and their facial features. See footnote 38. Overall, the manuscripts contain illuminations at four different stages of completion. For a chemical analysis of the miniatures and pigments, see: Georgios Magkanas, Héctor Bagán, and José Francisco GarcÃa, âEstudio de las miniaturas y del texto del Liber Feudorum Maiorâ (December 2018). Available at:
Isabel Escandell Proust, âUna nueva aproximación al âLiber Feudorum Maiorâ,â in El arte español en épocas de transición, coord. Comité Español de Historia del Arte (León, 1994), 91â104, esp. 95.
Wearing, âThe Death of the Patron,â p. 330. On folios 83v and 109r, for example, the work of both hands can be appreciated.
Here I use the terminology present in the primary sources, i.e. the Aragonese and Catalan words for each piece of clothing.
Juan Vicente GarcÃa Marsilla, âEl lujo cambiante. El vestido y la difusión de las modas en la Corona de Aragón (siglos XIII-XV), Anales de la Historia del Arte 24 (2014), 227â244, esp. 233. For more from this author on the relevance of medieval costume, see: GarcÃa Marsilla, âFashion is not a whim. Messages and functions of clothing in the Middle ages,â VÃnculos de Historia 6 (2017), pp. 71â88.
GarcÃa Marsilla, âEl lujo cambiante,â p. 234.
Ibid.
Carmen Bernis Madrazo, Indumentaria medieval española (Madrid, 1956), p. 15. For more on Islamic elements in medieval Christian vestments on the Iberian Peninsula, see: MarÃa MartÃnez, âInfluencias islámicas en la indumentaria medieval española,â Estudios sobre patrimonio, cultura y ciencias medievales 13â14 (2012), 187â222.
Bernis Madrazo, Indumentaria medieval, pp. 16, 20.
aca, Liber Feudorum Ceritaniae, CancillerÃa Reg. 04, fol. 7v.
Carlos Miguel Polite Cavero, Alberto Carnicero Cáceres, MartÃn Alvira Cabrer, GuÃa de indumentaria medieval masculina, 2010, Available at:
Raymond Van Uytven, âShowing off Oneâs Rank in the Middle ages,â in Showing Status: Representations of Social Positions in the Late Middle Ages, eds. Wim Blockmans, and Antheum Janse (Turnout, 1999), 19â34, esp. 33.
Liber Feudorum Maior, cartulario real que se conserva en el Archivo de la Corona de Aragón ii, ed. Francesco Miquel Rosell (Barcelona, 1947), p. 269.
Patrimonio Nacional de España, Colecciones Reales, Textiles y TapicerÃa. Available at:
Isidra Maranges i Prat, La indumentà ria civil catalana, segles XIII-XV (Barcelona, 1991), p. 17.
Bernis Madrazo, Indumentaria medieval, p. 22.
Margaret Scott, Fashion in the Middle Ages (Los Angeles, 2011), p. 13.
Liber Feudorum Maior, ed. Miquel Rosell, ii, p. 128.
Pedro el Católico, Rey de Aragón y Conde de Barcelona (1196â1213) Documentos, Testimonios y Memoria Histórica i, ed. MartÃn Alvira Cabrer (Zaragoza, 2010), pp. 377â78. This document is also present in the lfm; see Liber Feudorum Maior, ed. Miquel Rosell, ii, p. 284.
Pedro el Católico, Rey de Aragón y Conde de Barcelona i, ed. Alvira Cabrer, pp. 254â55.
See: Kosto, âThe Liber feudorum maior,â pp. 8â14; Lawrence J. McCrank, âA Medieval âInformation Ageâ: Documentation and Archives in the Crown of Aragon,â Primary Sources & Original Works 2/1â2 (1993), 19â102.
Kosto, âThe Liber Feudorum Maior,â pp. 15â16.
For a discussion of the possible uses of the lfm, see: Anscari M. Mundó, âEl pacto de Cazorla del 1179 i el âLiber feudroum maiorâ. Notes paleogrà fiques i diplomà tiques,â in Jaime I y su época. X Congrés de la Corona dâAragó, Zaragoza, 1976, 3 vols (Zaragoza, 1979), 2:119â29; Lawrence J. McCrank, âDocumenting Reconquest and Reform: The Growth of Archives in the Medieval Aragon,â The American Archivist 56/2 (1993), 256â318; Kosto âThe Liber feudorum maior,â pp. 1â22.
McCrank, âDocumenting Reconquest and Reform,â 290.
The comparison of the images of Alfonso ii and Pedro ii in the lfm and lfc to determine the meaning of the presence or absence of royal insignias is the subject of my current thesis research: âRoyal Epiphanies. The Kingâs Body as Image and Its Mise-en-scène in the Crown of Aragón (1164â1291).â The project focuses on the ways kings were represented at different moments of their reigns and the ways their presence was âframedâ in the context of different ceremonies and events.
Ernest MartÃnez Ferrando, Hallazgo de miniaturas románicas en el Archivo de la Corona de Aragón (Barcelona, 1944), p. 8.
MartÃnez Ferrando, Hallazgo de miniaturas románicas.
Liber Feudorum Maior, ed. Miquel Rosell, ii, caption to illustration xv.
Liber Feudorum Maior, ed. Miquel Rosell, i, preface xiv. This identification is still standing, as evident in the publication that accompanied the celebration of the 700th anniversary of the Achivo de la Corona de Aragón: Archivo de la Corona de Aragón: siete siglos (Madrid, 2018), p. 28. As there are more than 70 documents that reference Almodis in the lfm, it is logical that she and Ramon Berenguer i, as powerful Catalan figures, would be represented in such an outstanding manner.
For the identification of Alfonso ii and Queen Sancha, see, for example: MartÃnez Ferrando, Hallazgo de miniaturas románicas, pp. 4â33; Maria Eugenia Ibarburu Asurmendi, âLos cartularios reales del Archivo de la Corona de Aragón,â Lambard: Estudis dâart medieval 6 (1991â96), 197- 213, esp. 201; Soledad de Silva y Verástegui, âEl matrimonio real: sus representaciones en la miniatura hispana del siglo XII,â Potestas 13 (2018), 5â43.
MartÃnez Ferrando, Hallazgo de miniaturas románicas, p. 13.
Archivo Histórico Nacional de Madrid, Tumbo menor de Castilla, Códices. Sign. 1046 B, fol. 15r; Liber Vitae or The Book of Life, c. 1031. British Library, Stowe ms 944, fol. 6r.
Diane Owen Huges, âLas modas femeninas y su control,â in Historia de la Mujer en la Edad Media 2, eds. Georges Duby, and Michelle Perrot (Madrid, 2000),171â206, esp. 185.
Queen Urraca i in Archivo de la Catedral de Santiago de Compostela, Tumbo A, fol. 31; British Museum, Elisabeth of Hainault seal matrix, inv. no. 1970,0904.1.
The image on folio 102r is one that has triggered the idea of the participation of a third workshop in the illumination of the lfm. Closer to workshop B in form, there are still significant differences between the two in terms of the configuration of the bodies, the shape of the faces, and the less natural position of the bodies. This is evident, for instance, in the draperies of the womanâs pellizón in the miniature on folio 102r.
The supposed image of Sancha is undoubtedly similar to the man standing on the right on folio 83bis-r in important elements like the pellizón, the hair, and the face.
Some of the main works of scholarship on the evolution of the ideology behind the coronations of the Aragonese kings are: Bonifacio Palacios MartÃn, âImágenes y sÃmbolos del poder real en la Corona de Aragón,â in El poder real de la Corona de Aragón: (siglos XIV-XVI) 1 (Madrid, 1996), pp. 189â229; Carmen Orcástegui Gros, âLa coronación de los reyes de Aragón. Evolución polÃtico-ideológica y ritual,â in Homenaje a Don Antonio Durán Gudiol (Huesca, 1995), pp. 633â47. For the most recent work on this topic, see: Marta Serrano-Coll, âDe Modo Qualiter Reges Aragonum Coronabuntur. Visual, Material and Textual Evidence during the Middle Agesâ in Royal Divine Coronation Iconography in the Medieval Euro-Mediterranean Area, ed. Mirko Vagnoni, Arts 9/1 (2020), n. 25, 1â18. Available at:
Andrés Giménez Soler, âAlgunas coronas reales de Aragón (datos arqueológicos),â BoletÃn Real de la Academia de las Buenas Letras de Barcelona 2 (1903), 62â67, esp. 64.
Françoise Garnier, Le langage de lâimage au moyen âge. Signification et symbolique (Paris, 1982), p. 172.
Garnier, Le langage de lâimage, p. 174.
Garnier, Le langage de lâimage, p. 229.
Liber Feudorum Maior, ed. Miquel Rosell, i, p. 23. Also see: Serrano-Coll, La imagen figurativa del rey de Aragón en la Edad Media, Ph.D. thesis, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, 2005, pp. 312â13. This document is also preserved as an individual folio in aca, CancillerÃa, Pergaminos, Alfonso i-ii, Carpeta 42, 15 (es.08019. aca).
José MarÃa de Francisco Olmos, âLos inicios de la moneda dinástica en el Imperio Bizantino. La casa de Justino y los Heráclidas,â Documenta & Instrumenta 7 (2009), 123â147, esp. 124.
Hessische Landesbibliothek, Historia Welforum, c. 1185â95, Fulda, Cod. D. 11, fol. 14r.
Avranches, bibl. Mun, Cartulary of Mont-Saint-Michel, third quarter of the 12th century, ms. 210, fol. 19v. Published in: Françoise Garnier, Le langage de lâimage au moyen âge. Grammaires des gestes (Paris, 1989), p. 396.
On the Basil i and Constantine viii coin, see: Phillip Grierson, Byzantine Coinage (Washington D.C., 1999), p. 10. On the Romanos i Lekapenos and Christopher Lekapenos coin, see: Philip Grierson, Catalogue of the Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection. Leo III to Nicephoros III, 717â1081 (Washington, D.C., 1973), 544â47, plate xxxvi, 5.1, 5.2, 6.1â6.3, 7.1â7.20.
On the idea of lineage and royalty under the Crown of Aragón, see: Stefano Maria Cingolani, âSeguir les vestÃgies dels antecessors. Linatge, reialesa i historigrafia a Catalunya des de Ramon Berenguer IV a Pere II (1131â1285),â Anuario de estudios medievales 36/1 (2006), 201â40.
Allegra Iafrate, The Wandering Throne of Solomon, Objects and Tales of Kingship in the Medieval Mediterranean (Leiden, 2015), p. 215.
Francis Wormald, âThe Throne of Solomon and St. Edwardâs Chair,â in De artibus opuscula XL essays in honor of Erwin Panofsky, ed. Millard Meiss (New York, 1961), 532â539, esp. 537. On the usage of the allegory of the Throne of Solomon in connection to secular rulers, see esp. 537â539.
Book of Kings 3:9â13.
Joseph Verheyden, âIntroduction,â in The Figure of Solomon in Jewish, Christians and Islamic Tradition. King, Sage and Architect, ed. Joseph Verheyden (Leiden, 2013), 1â6, esp. 1.
For more about how the Crown of Aragón and counties of Barcelona changed in their politics as a result of their union under Alfonso ii, see: José MarÃa Lacarra y de Miguel, âAlfonso II el Casto, rey de Aragón y conde de Barcelona,â in VII Congreso de Historia de la Corona de Aragon, 3 vols (Zaragoza, 1963â64), 1:95â120.
Iafrate, The Wandering Throne, p. 5.
Wormald, âThe Throne of Solomon,â 535.
Iafrate, The Wandering Throne, p. 7.
Book of Knowledge of Solomon 7:16â21.
Liber Feudorum Maior, ed. Miquel Rosell, i, prefacio, xiv; Ibarburu Asurmendi, âLos cartularios reales,â p. 201.
Mishtooni Bose, âThe Issue of Theological Style in Late Medieval Disputations,â in Medieval Forms of Argument. Disputation and Debate, eds. Georgiana Donavin, Carol Poster, and Richard Uts (Eugene, Oregon, 2002), 1â22, esp. 4â5.
Tomas Ekenberg, âOrder in Obligational Disputations,â in Medieval Forms of Argument, eds. Donavin et al., 23â40, esp. 23.
Joseph W. Mason, Melodic Exchange and musical violence in the thirteenth century jeu-parti, Ph.D. thesis, University of Oxford, 2018, p. ii.
Alicia Yllera, âRutebeuf y la tradición del debate medieval,â Estudios románicos 5 (1987â89), p. 1493.
Yllera, âRutebeuf y la tradición,â 1493â1503, esp. 1494.
Isabel de Riquer, âPresencia trovadoresca en la Corona de Aragón,â csic 26/2 (1996), 933â966, esp. 934. For more on the development of troubadours as courtly entertainment, see: Manuel Alejandro Rodriguez de la Peña, âMecenas, trovadores, bibliófilos y cronistas: los reyes de Aragón del Casal de Barcelona y la sabidurÃa (1162â1410),â Revista Chilena de Estudios medievales 2 (2012), 81â120; Carlos Alvar Ezquerra, âPolÃtica y poesÃa: la corte de Alfonso VIII,â Mot so razo 1 (2002), 56â61; Miguel de Riquer, âEl trovador Giraut de Luc y sus poesÃas contra Alfonso II de Aragón,â BoletÃn de la Real Academia de las Buenas Letras de Barcelona 23 (1950), 209â48.
Manuel Lima, The Book of Circles. Visualizing Spheres of Knowledge (New York, 2017), p. 35.
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Alfonso ii in the lfm, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 01, fol. 01r (detail)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
Male and female vestments in the lfm, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 01, fol. 78v (detail)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
Alfonso ii in the lfc, aca, CancillerÃa, Reg. 04, fol. 62r (detail)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
a) Gonela amaetada. lfc, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 04, fol. 7v (detail) (left); b) Pellote worn by a woman. lfc, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 04, fol. 60r (detail) (right)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
a) Alfonso ii in the lfc, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 04, fol. 22v (detail) (left); b) Pedro ii in the lfc, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 04, fol. 64v (detail) (right)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
a) Alfonso ii in the lfc, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 04, fol. 25r (detail) (left); b) Alfonso ii in the lfm, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 01, fol. 69r (detail) (right)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
lfm, aca CancillerÃa Reg. 01, fol. 93r
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
Comparison between folios 93r (left) and 102r (right) of the lfm, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 01 (details)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
lfc, aca, CancillerÃa Reg. 04, fol. 51v (detail)
copyrights owned by archivo de la corona de aragón, barcelona
