thumb|300px|Miniature of [[Sinon and the Trojan Horse, from the Vergilius Romanus, a manuscript of Virgil's Aeneid, early 5th century]]

A miniature (from the Latin verb 'to colour with minium', a red lead) is a small illustration used to decorate an ancient or medieval illuminated manuscript; the simple illustrations of the early codices having been miniated or delineated with that pigment. The generally small scale of such medieval pictures has led to etymological confusion with minuteness and to its application to small paintings, especially portrait miniatures, which did however grew from the same tradition and at least initially used similar techniques.

Apart from the Western, Byzantine and Armenian traditions, there is another group of Asian traditions, which is generally more illustrative in nature, and from origins in manuscript book decoration also developed into single-sheet small paintings to be kept in albums, which are also called miniatures, as the Western equivalents in watercolor and other media are not. These include Arabic miniatures, and their Persian, Mughal, Ottoman and other Indian offshoots.

Christian traditions

Italy and Byzantium

3rd–6th centuries

thumb|220px|Miniature of [[Abraham meeting angels, from the Cotton Genesis, 5th–6th century.]]

The earliest extant miniatures are a series of uncolored pen drawings in the Chronograph of 354, which was lost after the Renaissance, but is known from copies. Fragments of some heavily illustrated luxury manuscripts from before about 450 have survived to the modern day. The Cotton Genesis was mostly destroyed by fire in London in 1731 and the Quedlinburg Itala fragments mostly destroyed in the Middle Ages, the vellum reused in bookbindings.

There are also colored miniatures cut from the Ambrosian Iliad, an illustrated manuscript of the Iliad from the 5th century. In these pictures there is a considerable variety in the quality of the drawing, but there are many notable instances of fine figure-drawing, quite classical in sentiment, showing that the earlier art still exercised its influence. Such indications, too, of landscape as are to be found are of the classical type, not conventional in the sense of medieval conventionalism, but still attempting to follow nature, even if in an imperfect fashion; just as in the Pompeian and other frescoes of the Roman age.

Books with religious content were mostly decorated, however, the miniature artists, or "flourishers", as they were called at the time, were able to express their emotions and feelings and to reflect real life scenes through religious themes. Especially in capital letters at the beginning of the text, in the ornaments placed before the title or in the pictures made in the margins, in the decorated letters, they introduced various images and elements of flora and fauna.

In Armenian miniatures one can find scenes depicting hunting, animal fighting, theatrical performances, other scenes of urban and rural life, portraits of famous figures of the time, commissioners of manuscripts. Such miniatures are of great importance for the study of the life and lifestyle of medieval Armenia, costumes, manners, crafts, Armenian nature. Some miniature painters also left their self-portraits.

thumb|left|Saint Mathew by Hakob of Julfa, Gospel of [[1610 (Matenadaran, Ms. 7639).]]

Many miniature painting centers operated in Armenia at different times. There are well-known centers, such as those of Ani, Gladzor, Tatev, Nakhichevan, Artsakh, Vaspurakan, each of which, in addition to the general features typical of national art, is characterized by a unique style of miniature painting and local traditions. Later miniature painting centers were established in Armenian colonies as well.

Armenian miniature art flourished in the 13th century, especially in Cilician Armenia, where the miniatures were more luxurious and elegant. Works of such talented miniature artists of different times and centers as Toros Roslin, Grigor, Ignatius, Sargis Pitsak, Toros Taronetsi, Avag, Momik, Simeon Archishetsi, Vardan Artsketsi, Kirakos, Hovhannes, Hakob Jughayetsi and may more have weathered the march of times up to now. Yet names of many other miniature artists have not been preserved.

Armenian miniature painting has gone through long and difficult historical paths; it is a witness of Armenian's unparalleled creative zeal, which neither the countless disasters brought by foreign invaders, nor the difficult and torturous migration routes were able to extinguish. With its originality, mastery of performance, extraordinary color, richness and variety of jewelry, it occupies a unique and honorable place not only in the treasury of national art, but also in the world art.

The Gospels were the most illustrated, followed by the Bible and other religious collections. The first miniatures that have reached us are samples of the 6th-7th centuries. The types of characters and painting in them are reminiscent of the frescoes of Lmbat and Aruch from the 7th century. The "Gospel of Queen Mlke", "The Gospel of Kars", "The Gospel of Trabzon" have survived from the period of the kingdoms of Bagratuni and Artsruni. These manuscripts contain the main features of the further development of Armenian miniature painting:

• columnar tabernacles,

• gold leaflets with capital letters,

• Lord's pictures, that is the events of Christ's life, which are mentioned in the church holidays,

• miniatures attached to the text.

An organic combination of Byzantine and all-Christian art can be found in them, in the depictions of arches of the tabernacles of the "Gospel of Queen Mlke", Egyptian motifs, architectural decor of evangelical paintings, and elements of Hellenistic art.

Larger miniatures of the Gospels of Lesser Armenia related to Early Christian miniature art in 1038 (Matenadaran after Mesrop Mashtots, Yerevan, manuscript N 6201), preserving old stylistic and pictorial rules, contain novelties that formed the basis of all subsequent Armenian iconography, for example, the depiction of the naked Christ on the cross. The graphic development of the style of the group of manuscripts is obvious in Vaspurakan School of Miniature Painting.

A group of manuscripts from the late 11th century, led by the Gospel of Moghni, formed the school of Ani the stylistic forms of which bear similarities with the pre-Gothic miniatures, which show the eastern origins of the latter. The miniatures of that group stand out in the monumental-fresco style. In the manuscripts of the 12th century, the traditions of miniature art of the 10th-11th centuries were developed, endowed with tragic-emotional accents, and a great importance was paid to plant-animal motifs.

In the first half of the 13th century, before the Mongol invasions, miniature painting flourished in Greater Armenia ("Gospel of Haghpat", "Gospel of Translators"). Miniature painting received an unprecedented new quality in Cilician Armenia. Exquisite manuscripts were collected both in the monasteries and in the royal court, and in addition to the clergy, manuscripts were ordered by members of the royal court and the councilors.

The ritual-church significance of the manuscripts diminished, they were often ordered for personal use, to satisfy the refined taste of the councilors ad their religious feelings. The size of the books decreased, the miniature painters turned more to the depiction of reality and of the neighboring countries (Byzantium և European countries). Famous miniature painters Grigor Mlichetsi, Toros Roslin, Sargis Pitsak and others appeared creating elegant royal manuscripts ("King Hetum II's dinner", "Gospel of Queen Keran").

A relatively stable political situation in some regions of Greater Armenia contributed to the development of miniature painting. While the representatives of the Gladzor School of Miniature Painting stand out with stressed personalities, the artists of Vaspurakan (Simeon Artchishetsi, Zakaria Akhtamartsi, Rstakes, Kirakos Aghbaketsi and others) moved back to more unified painting traditions. The famous center of miniature painting was the Tatev School of Miniature Painting headed by Grigor Tatevatsi, after whom Armenian miniature art was continued in the colonies of the Crimea, New Julfa, Constantinople and elsewhere. In the 17th-18th centuries, Armenian book miniature painting gradually gave way to the printing art of book illustration.

Europe

8th–12th centuries

thumb|220px|This lavishly decorated text that opens the [[Gospel of John in the Book of Kells, early 9th century, shows the Insular style of illumination: decorative and not illustrative.]]

In the native schools of illumination of Western Europe, decoration only was the leading motive. In the manuscripts of the Merovingian period, in the school which connected Frankland and northern Italy, and which is known as Lombardic or Franco-Lombardic, in the manuscripts of Spain, in the productions of the Insular art of the British Isles, figure-drawing was scarcely known, serving rather as a feature of decoration than as a representation of the human form. (for example with Hitda Codex), Trier, Regensburg and, above all, Reichenau Abbey (for example with Gero Codex, Petershausen Sacramentary, Codex Egberti or Egbert Psalter). In addition, scriptoria were active in Mainz, Prüm Abbey, the Abbey of Echternach (with the Golden Gospels of Henry III) and elsewhere. In the 11th century, the scriptoria of Tegernsee Abbey, Niederaltaich Abbey, Freising and Salzburg emerged in the Bavarian-Austrian region. From around 990 to 1020, Ottonian illumination reached its peak with the works of the Liuthar group, which were probably created in the Reichenau Island monasteries, including the Liuthar Gospels, the Gospels of Otto III, the Pericopes of Henry II and the Bamberg Apocalypse. Throughout the Ottonian period, the image of the evangelist was a central motif; the image of the ruler, which served to represent the clients' self-portrayal - often in the form of a dedication image - and the Majestas Domini stand out. The dominant stylistic elements are symmetrical, flat representations with a monumental character. Many of the Ottonian illustrations are full-page, sometimes divided into two panels. Large, overly long and expressive figures with ecstatic, suggestive sign language and the courage to use empty, monochrome surfaces - mostly gold backgrounds - characterize the style of these manuscripts, which strongly influenced Expressionism in the 20th century. The illustrations completely lack spatial depth.

thumb|200px|Miniature of the [[baptism of Christ from the Benedictional of St. Æthelwold, 10th century, is an example of the Anglo-Saxon school.]]

The influence which the Carolingian school exercised on the miniatures of the southern Anglo-Saxon artists shows itself in the extended use of body-color and in the more elaborate employment of gold in the decoration. Such a manuscript as the Benedictional of St. Æthelwold, bishop of Winchester, 963 to 984, with its series of miniatures drawn in the native style but painted in opaque pigments, exhibits the influence of the foreign art. But the actual drawing remained essentially national, marked by its own treatment of the human figure and by the disposition of the drapery with fluttering folds. The style was refined, tending to exaggeration and disproportion of the limbs. With the Norman Conquest this remarkable native school died. Zsuzsanna Gulácsi's study of Manichaean illuminated manuscripts documents technical and stylistic features—such as brushwork iconography, and use of color—that have been suggested to influence later Islamic and Persian miniature painting. Some researchers (e.g., S. Latifpour) have further argued that certain ornamental and illumination features of early Qur'an manuscripts show affinities with Manichaean book art, although further comparative study and wider scholarly consensus are needed for definitive conclusions. The art form went through several stages of evolution while witnessing the fall and rise of several Islamic caliphates. Arab miniaturists absorbed Chinese and Persian influences brought by the Mongol destructions, and at last, got totally assimilated and subsequently disappeared due to the Ottoman occupation of the Arab world. Nearly all forms of Islamic miniatures (Persian miniatures, Ottoman miniatures and Mughal miniatures) owe their existences to Arabic miniatures, as Arab patrons were the first to demand the production of illuminated manuscripts in the Caliphate, it wasn't until the 14th century that the artistic skill reached the non-Arab regions of the Caliphate.

Despite the considerable changes in Arabic miniature style and technique, even during their last decades, the early Umayyad Arab influence could still be noticed. Arabic miniature artists include Ismail al-Jazari, who illustrated his own Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices, and the Abbasid artist, Yahya Al-Wasiti, who probably lived in Baghdad in the late Abbasid era (12th to 13th-centuries), was one of the pre-eminent exponents of the Baghdad school. In 1236-1237, he is known to have transcribed and illustrated the book, Maqamat (also known as the Assemblies or the Sessions), a series of anecdotes of social satire written by Al-Hariri of Basra. The narrative concerns the travels of a middle-aged man as he uses his charm and eloquence to swindle his way across the Arabic world.

With most surviving Arabic manuscripts in western museums, Arabic miniatures occupy very little space in modern Arab culture.

Persian

Persian art has a long tradition of the use of miniatures, both for illustrated books and individual pieces, which were collected in albums (muraqqa). The Mughal miniature tradition was heavily influenced by Persia, and began when a group of artists was recruited for India, miniatures having fallen into disfavour in the Persian court of Tahmasp I. Reza Abbasi (1565–1635), considered one of the most renowned Persian painters of all time, specialized in the Persian miniature, with a preference for naturalistic subjects. Today his surviving works can be found in many of the major museums of the Western world, such as the Smithsonian, the Louvre and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In 2020, UNESCO declared the miniature art of Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey and Uzbekistan as one of the masterpieces of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

India

thumb|400px|Bengal Folio Painting, early 12th century.

Under the patronage of Pala Dynasty miniature painting was introduced in India by painting on Buddhist palm leaf manuscripts. One of the earliest surviving examples of Buddhist illustrated palm leaf manuscripts is Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā dated to 985 AD preserved in the University of Cambridge library. The art of Pala illuminated manuscripts developed in Buddhist centers of Bihar and Bengal. The Pala miniature paintings not only inspired Nepalese and Tibetan miniature paintings but also inspired Hinduism and Jainism to develop their own miniature painting traditions in later periods.

thumb|The Emperor [[Jahangir receiving his two sons, an album-painting of c 1605-06]]

Mughal painting developed during the period of the Mughal Empire (16th - 18th centuries) and was generally confined to miniatures either as book illustrations or as single works to be kept in albums. It emerged from the Persian miniature painting tradition introduced to India by Mir Sayyid Ali and Abd al-Samad in the mid 16th century. It soon moved away from its Safavid origins; with the influence of Hindu artists, colors became brighter and compositions more naturalistic. The subject matter was predominantly secular, mainly consisting of illustrations to works of literature or history, portraits of court members and studies of nature. At its height the Mughal painting style represented an elegant marriage of Persian, European, and Hindi art.

In the Muslim Deccan sultanates miniature painting styles emerged with influence direct from Persia, and with some from existing Hindu painting. The Deccan painting style was freer and more extravagant than Mughal painting, if not as consistent in quality or naturalism. As the Mughals conquered the sultanates over the 17th century, the artists dispersed. A version of the Mughal style spread to princely courts, mostly Hindu, in North India, especially in Rajput painting, where several different styles developed. Pahari painting covers a number of small courts in the foothills of the Himalayas, and the Bikaner style came from further south. By the 18th century the Rajput courts were producing the most innovative Indian painting.

Ottoman Empire

The tradition of the Ottoman Empire began under Persian influence, and Persian miniatures were keenly collected by the Sultans. A distinctive Ottoman style soon developed, with a greater interest in narrative, and recording the history of the empire. Ottoman illumination was also extensively used on court manuscripts.

Forgeries

Miniatures are forged for various reasons. Forged Islamic miniatures depicting scientific advancements are made by Turkish artisans as souvenirs, and can often be found innocuously as stock photos on the Internet or within formal learning materials. Medieval European miniatures also have been forged to deceive collectors by various persons, one of the most notable forgers being the Spanish Forger.

See also

  • Commentary on the Apocalypse by Beatus
  • Book of Job in Byzantine illuminated manuscripts

Notes

References

  • Otto Pächt, Book Illumination in the Middle Ages (trans fr German), 1986, Harvey Miller Publishers, London,
  • Walther, Ingo F. and Wolf, Norbert, Masterpieces of Illumination (Codices Illustres); pp 350–3; 2005, Taschen, Köln;
  • Jonathan Alexander; Medieval Illuminators and their Methods of Work; p. 9, Yale UP, 1992,
  • Calkins, Robert G. Illuminated Books of the Middle Ages. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1983.
  • Papadaki-Oekland Stella,Byzantine Illuminated Manuscripts of the Book of Job, .

Further reading

  • Kren, T. & McKendrick, Scot (eds), Illuminating the Renaissance – The Triumph of Flemish Manuscript Painting in Europe, Getty Museum/Royal Academy of Arts, 2003,
  • McKendrick, Scot; Lowden, John; Doyle, Kathleen, (eds), Royal Manuscripts, The Genius of Illumination, 2011, British Library,
  • T. Voronova and A Sterligov, Western European Illuminated Manuscripts (in the St Petersberg Public Library), 2003, Sirocco, London
  • Weitzmann, Kurt. Late Antique and Early Christian Book Illumination. Chatto & Windus, London (New York: George Braziller) 1977.
  • Nordenfalk, Carl. Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Painting: Book illumination in the British Isles 600–800. Chatto & Windus, London (New York: George Braziller), 1977.
  • Brown, Michelle P., Manuscripts from the Anglo-Saxon Age, 2007, British Library,
  • Williams, John, Early Spanish Manuscript Illumination Chatto & Windus, London (New York, George Braziller), 1977.
  • Cahn, Walter, Romanesque Bible Illumination, Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1982,

Persian

  • Canby, Sheila R., Persian Painting, 1993, British Museum Press,
  • Titley, Norah M., Persian Miniature Painting, and its Influence on the Art of Turkey and India, 1983, University of Texas Press,
  • Welch, Stuart Cary. Royal Persian Manuscripts, Thames & Hudson, 1976,

19th-century revival

  • Sandra Hindman, Michael Camille, Nina Rowe & Rowan Watson, Manuscript Illumination in the Modern Age : Recovery and Reconstruction, Evanston : Northwestern University, 2001.
  • Thomas Coomans & Jan De Maeyer (ed.), The Revival of Mediaeval Illuminating in the Nineteenth Century (KADOC Artes, 9), University Press Leuven, 2007, 336 p.
  • Digital Scriptorium
  • British Library, Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts
  • Initiale – Catalogue de manuscrits enluminés
  • Brief Inventory of Illuminated Manuscripts in Herzogenburg/Austria
  • Kurzinventar der illuminierten Handschriften in Stift Stams/Austria
  • Unlocking the Secrets of Medieval Painters and Illuminators
  • Central Asian miniature painting
  • Armenian miniatures (photos)