I was told by a historian once that in our field we like to 'nitpick'; we complain about historical drama, historical fiction and the dates and spelling of names written into history books. But historical drama might have another problem. Think of your favourite portrayal of a period of history in film or TV. Now what colours are the walls? Clothing? Furniture? Castles, churches and homes? All brown, chalky white and beige, right?
This depiction, along with the need to convey that something is 'old' has led us to believe that our medieval ancestors lived their lives without colour at all and dressing in muted shades of grey, brown or black. But the reverse is actually true. Colour dominated every aspect of their lives and filled their workspaces, churches and memorials.
Places of historical importance are now combining documentary evidence with surviving architecture and presenting buildings and rooms as they once looked. Take the medieval royal palace inside the Tower of London. Recreating how the rooms might have once appeared to Henry III and Edward I, bed hangings, bedposts and furniture are painted in vivid green, red and gold. The walls too, are painted with designs, and the floors have similarly brightly-coloured carpets laid out on them. The fireplace too, is painted in blues and reds, with bold representations of the lions of England and shields. This love of colour was continued in later centuries, with Elizabethans painting the walls of their civic offices in intricate designs, for example at Ledbury.
Even churches and cathedrals were brightly painted. The shrine of the thirteenth century St Thomas of Hereford in the city's cathedral is displayed as it once would have looked to medieval pilgrims. Placed on a stage surrounded in red, the candle holders are painted a deep blue with shining gold bases. A canopy on the top includes a religious painting, gold decorations and more deep red with blue accents on the pillars. These structures were built to inspire devotion and raise an emotional response, and colour would have been a big part of that for our medieval ancestors, particularly in a place of worship to help people connect with God.
Shrine of St Thomas, Hereford |
Stained glass windows too, often survive from the fifteenth centuries and earlier, and light would have once streamed in during services. The priory at Great Malvern has some stunning medieval glass that has been well preserved, and similar windows can be seen at Worcester Cathedral and St Mary's in Redcliffe, Bristol. Even the jagged remains of ruined windows in places like Reading Abbey would have once shone in colour. At Worcester, near the tomb of King John who died in 1216, a display screen depicts how the whole area would have once looked soon after his death, in 1220. It's a huge difference in how it looks to us today.
Display at Worcester Cathedral |
Wall paintings depict saints, and there are geometric designs on pillars and arches, in vivid reds, yellows and greens. Originally the king's effigy was also set with precious stones which would have glistened, since plucked out by treasure hunters over the centuries. But colourful memorials were not just limited to the royalty. Many of the effigies of noble men and women, local merchants or figures of local justice have traces of paint on them. A nineteenth-century visitor to the fifteenth-century effigies of Elizabeth and Ralph Fitzherbert in Norbury, Derbyshire noted that traces of colour could be seen on Elizabeth's cloak, dress and headdress. Medieval wall paintings also survive at Checkendon in Oxfordshire (restored by an over-eager artist in the 1950s) and in the ceiling of the Lady Chapel of St Cyriac in Lacock, Wiltshire, which dates to 1430. A stunning collection of early wall art can also be seen at Westminster Abbey in poet's corner as well as in the adjoining council chamber. The Richard II portrait, completed in the fourteenth century, also depicts the king in shimmering gold and red, not to mention the many examples of medieval manuscripts with foliage curling around the page, colourful animals and figures.
Stained glass window, Great Malvern Priory. Jo Romero |
Just as now, colour evokes an emotional response. Why should we think our medieval ancestors felt it any differently? Thankfully, there is a wealth of evidence that shows that vivid colour was as much a way of life to them as it is to us.
Ceiling of the Lady Chapel, Lacock. Dated 1430. Jo Romero |
Enjoyed this? Have a read of Part Two, where I discuss more intimate decorations and colours in medieval homes and the clothing and jewellery worn, busting the myth that medieval England was, basically, brown.
Painted effigy in Worcester Cathedral, Jo Romero. |
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