Illumination Unbound: The Victoria and Albert Museum Cross and Its Parchment Miniatures

Abstract

Around 1260, the school of metalwork associated with the Augustinian priory of Oignies in south central Belgium produced three altar crosses that share a distinctive and unusual characteristic: the incorporation of painted miniatures into their multimedia decor of stamped openwork gold filigree, gemstones, and niello engravings. Concentrating on the cross now in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, this article explores the interrelationships among its various elements, especially the role played by the parchment images. Their Marian and Christological themes add explicit iconographic meaning to the symbolism present in foliate elements of the metalwork and to the identity and arrangement of gems. The relic lists on the cross identify locally venerated saints. Together the miniatures and relics reflect the liturgical use of the London Cross and its possible connection with more personal devotion. The styles of the miniatures point to close associations with contemporary illumination in the Hainaut region of the Liège diocese and help to resolve arguments about the dating of this cross and related works, while their presence invites inquiry into the relationship between metalworkers and illuminators. Setting the crosses into a wider cultural context, finally, the inclusion of illuminations invites exploration of the phenomenon of unbound parchment miniatures in medieval Gothic art on book covers, portable altars, reliquaries, and other crosses, raising questions about why miniatures were used, what subjects were normally selected, and how the Mosan crosses compare with these other multimedia works.