Art and Patronage in Medieval Hungary: The Frescoes of the Augustinian Church at Siklós
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2003
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Abstract
This dissertation provides an in-depth analysis of the former Augustinian church at Siklos in southern Hungary, and its fresco decoration. Commissioned by an aristocratic family, the frescoes reveal a wealth of information about art and patronage in the reign of King Sigismund (1387-1437). The Introduction provides an overview of art historical literature dealing with Siklos and its church, and outlines the problems discussed in the dissertation. Part I focuses on the history and architecture of the church. The Augustinian canons settled at Siklos in the early fourteenth century, invited by the Siklosi family. Their first church, dedicated to St. Anne, stood near Siklos castle, and was completed before 1343. It was built in a simple manner resembling contemporary mendicant churches. At the end of the fourteenth century, under its new patrons, members of the Garai family, the church was remodeled.
Part II surveys the painted decoration of the church. There were two layers of frescoes in the sanctuary, and the remainder of this chapter is dedicated to the earlier layer, of which only fragments remain. Painted in the 1360s, these frescoes are most likely the work of a group of masters familiar with Riminese painting, or its offshoots in Hungary-Croatia (cf. Esztergom, Zagreb). Part III focuses on the later, more fully preserved decorative scheme executed around 1410 under the Garai family's patronage. After a description, the iconography of key scenes is analyzed. Most attention is given to the large scenes on the walls: the Crucifixion, the Coronation of the Virgin, and the Traditio Legis. Based on comparisons with the painting of Altichiero and his circle, and with works of his followers in South-Tyrol, the chapter demonstrates that direct connections with Italian painting did not cease with the demise of the Neapolitan Angevin dynasty in Hungary (1382). The frescoes are then placed in their historical context. First they are examined as a product of Garai patronage, by comparing them to other monuments commissioned by this family and other barons. Other elements of an ensemble of monuments at Siklos, including the castle and its frescoed chapel, as well as the tombstone of Miklos (I) Garai, are also discussed. The church functioned as a family burial church, similar to a group of monuments, all richly decorated with frescoes. In conclusion, the contribution of these findings to a fuller understanding aristocratic patronage in the Sigismund period is summarized.
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Yale University Press, Megjelenés/Fokozatszerzés éve: 2003