Medieval Calendar Year

by Bridget Ann Henisch

The Medieval Calendar Year celebrates the pictorial convention known as "The Labors of the Months" and the ways it was used in the Middle Ages. Richly illustrated and elegantly presented, it provides valuable insights into prevailing social attitudes and values and will fascinate all readers who are interested in the history and culture of medieval Europe. The "Labors" cycle was most popular during the High Middle Ages (ca. 1200–1500). The traditional cycle depicts the year as a round of seasonal activities on the land. Each month has its allotted task, and each of these represents one stage in the never-ending process of providing food for society. The small scenes that made up the cycle were well-known and used widely throughout Europe. They were chosen to decorate both public and private churches and houses, town fountains, baptismal fonts, as well as books of devotion intended both for priests and for the laity. The cycle was sculpted in stone, carved in wood, painted on glass and on manuscript pages. Examples from such media are described, but most of the illustrations have been taken from manuscripts, primarily Books of Hours. The author has spent the past fifteen years studying calendar after calendar, and one of her great strengths is her ability to see the social reality that lies hidden, even masked, behind the stylized presentation. In the chapter on winter, she shows how the image of this season, dreaded in the Middle Ages, was softened and sweetened by calendar artists to bring it more into harmony with the characteristic mood of the cycle as a whole. For autumn, she reveals how depictions of the harvest of grain, grapes, and livestock hint at a sophisticated market economy. Thematic chapters on children, women, and the hardship of work brilliantly cut through idealized conventions and assumptions to unveil the underlying complexities of life. The "Labors" cycle and its social context have not hitherto been examined in depth and with the care they deserve. The Medieval Calendar Year is a book worthy of the beautiful and beguiling tradition it describes.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Medieval

248 pages, Paperback

First published October 6, 1999

Reviews

[Louise Culmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting look at the medieval illustrated calendar, and how the pictures relate to the real life led by medieval people. The calendars focused mainly on agricultural work. The book takes us through the medieval year, with all the tasks associated with the various months, and how they are portrayed. Lots of fascinating information, for instance I was quite surprised to read that in the fourteenth century the Bishop of Ely employed a woman, Juliana, as head gardener at his estate at Little Downham in Norfolk. There are lots of illustrations from medieval calendars,though unfortunately they are all in black and white.

[Jennifer Heise · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book! The "Labors of the Months" illustrative calendar tradition of the middle ages and renaissance is a valuable resource for scholars of material culture, and this is an excellent analysis of it. The only thing that could make it better would be reproductions of every single calendar illustration mentioned, and that would be impractical due the current copyright issues with modern reproductions.

In addition to describing the Labors of the months, as well as other related calendar traditions, Henisch groups together examples of various activities depicted in surviving examples, and then analyses specifically the depictions of food and cooking, of gardens and gardening, of children and of women. A handy appendix in the back explains the way the calendars were arranged to be perpetual (including the use of hebdominal letters, and gold letter days!)

The book is plentifully illustrated with both black and white and color plates, using a numbering scheme which makes it reasonable to flip back and forth between illustrations in different chapters. I'll be using it also as a guide to locate other depictions not shown in this book. It's a pity it isn't available as an e-book for easy text searching.

[Hannahcomb · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read overall. For my specific purposes concerning the 12th century and Paris, this was broader in scope than was useful to me, but I enjoyed reading it and it has good visual references. Tying art history in to standard life at the time is a good angle to take.

My favorite part is how mathematically ridiculous it was to figure out when Easter occurs every year.

[a duck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bridget Ann Henisch's (independent historian) book is a helpful guide to the structure of the medieval year, perfect as an introductory read.