Word And Image

This book provides an introduction to early medieval art, both the images themselves and the methods used to study them, focusing on the relationship of word and image, a relationship that was central in northern Europe and the Mediterranean from about 600 to about 1050.

William J. Diebold is associate professor of art history and humanities at Reed College. He has curated a number of exhibitions on medieval art, and he has written many articles and reviews for scholarly journals. Diebold received a Samuel H. Kress Fellowship in 1984-1986 and an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship in 1994-1995. He was Chair at the College Art Association meetings in 1995 and 1997.

INTRODUCTION: THE CHARACTER OF EARLY MEDIEVAL ART, 1 BOOKS FOR THE ILLITERATE? ART IN AN ORAL CULTURE, 2 ART IN THE SERVICE OF THE WORD, 3 BOOKS FOR THE ILLITERATE? MEANING IN EARLY MEDIEVAL ART, 4 THE CRISIS OF WORD AND IMAGE, 5 INSCRIPTIONS AND IMAGES: ARTIST AND PATRON IN THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES, CONCLUSION: "BROTHER, WHAT Do You THINK OF THIS IDOL?"