Tabulae cum portis, vela, cortinae and sudaria : Remarks on the liminal zones in the liturgical and para-liturgical contexts in the late Middle Ages
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2019 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Convivium : Exchanges and Interactions in the Arts of Medieval Europe, Byzantium, and the Mediterranean. Seminarium Kondakovianum Series Nova |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | http://hdl.handle.net/11222.digilib/141744 |
| Keywords | Altarpiece; liminal zone; retable; Eucharist; transubstantiaton; Utraqiust; Lutheran; Officium visitationis sepulchrum; Visitation of the Holy Sepulchre; liturgical textiles; liturgical cloths; liturgical performances |
| Description | In the Middle Ages the altar and retable had an evidently liminal status. It defined and delimitated the place of the Eucharist and the transubstantiation of the host to the Corpus Christi. Besides, the lateral altar curtains performed similarly to the winged altarpiece as documented by numerous contemporary illustrations. Thus dogma of transubstantiation is necessary condition for the conception of the altarpiece as a liminal zone. This is confirmed by the case of Lutheran altarpieces which, unlike “Catholic” or Utraquist retables, operate practically like an abolisher of liminality. The liminal function of the altarpiece manifests itself also in the dramatic performances accompanying the Mass proper during the great liturgical feasts, especially during the Easter in the Officium visitationis sepulchrum. The liminal nature of the altar, and Christ the Saviour in the three-days momentum of his death, is underlined, among other things, by the ephemeral and provisional nature of the liturgical textiles used in the performance of the office. |