First Croatian Art of Early Middle Ages
The term Middle Ages, in Western Europe, designates the period following the decline of the Roman Empire through the 13th century. Early Middle Ages (Pre-Romanesque) covers the time from seventh to the end of the 10th century.
In the 7th century the Croats, with other Slavs and Avars, came from Northern Europe to the region where they live today. They were on the level of Iron Age nomadic culture, so they did not know how to enjoy the advantages of urban cities. That's why they first inhabited city boundaries on close by rivers (like Jadro near Roman Salona).
The Croats were open to Roman art and culture, and first of all to Christianity. First churches were built as royal sanctuaries, and influences of Roman art was strongest in Dalmatia where urbanization was thickest, and there was largest number of monuments. Gradually that influence was neglected and certain simplification, alteration of inherited forms and even creation of original buildings appeared. All of them (dozen large ones and hundred of small ones) were built with roughly cut stone (natively called – lomljenac) bounded with thick layer of "malter" from outside. Large churches are longitudinal with one or three naves like the Church of Holy Salvation on spring of river Cetina and the Church of Saint Cross near Nin, both built in the 9th century. The latter has strong semi-circular buttresses that give a feeling of fortification, emphasized with mighty bell-tower positioned in front of the entrance.
Smaller churches are interestingly shaped (mainly central) with several apses. The largest and most complicated central based church from 9th century is St Donatus in Zadar. Around its circular centre – with dome above – is nave in shape of ring with three apses directed to east; that shape is followed on second floor forming a gallery. From those times, with its size and beauty one can only compare the chapel of Charlemagne in Aachen.
Altar fence and windows of those churches were highly decorated with transparent shallow string-like ornament that is called pleter (commonly embraced as "Croatian wattle", meaning to weed) because the strings were threaded and rethreaded through itself.
Motifs of those reliefs were taken from Roman art (waves, three-string interlace, pentagrams, net of rhomboids etc.), but while in Roman art they only made frame of a sculpture in Dark Ages it fills entire surface. Those reliefs were vividly coloured (red, blue and yellow), and because the paintings from that period are not preserved (it is known they existed because they were mentioned in written sources as liturgical from Split, 8-11th century), they remain the only remains of old-Croatian painting.
Sometimes the figures from Bible appeared alongside this decoration, like relief in Holy Nedjeljica in Zadar, and then they were subdued by their pattern. That happened to engravings in early Croatian script – Glagolitic.
Soon, the "glagolic" writings were replaced with Latin on altar fences and architraves of old-Croatian churches. Those inscriptions usually mention to whom the church was dedicated, who build it and when it was built, as well who produced the building. That was the way that "barbarian newcomers" could fit amongst the Romanised natives.
From Crown Church of King Zvonimir (so called Hollow Church in Solin) comes the altar board with figure of Croatian King on the throne with Carolingian crown, servant by his side and subject bowed to the king. Linear cuts representing lines on the robes are similar to lines on their frontal faces, and also on those of a frame. Today the board is a part of Split cathedral baptistery.
Out of artistically applied objects there are many reliquaries preserved. They were adored and believed to have magical powers of healing. They were usually shaped as the part of body that was in them. That's why the relic of Saint James's head in Zadar is shaped in form of a head; the tube part has section with stream of arcades with single saint in every one, while a dome-like cover is decorated with medallions bearing symbols of evangelist and Christ on the top.
By joining the Hungarian state in the 12th century, Croatia lost its independence, but it did not lose its ties with the south and the west, and instead this ensured the beginning of a new era of Central European cultural influence.
Read more about this topic: Croatian Art, Medieval Art
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