The State Hermitage Museum: Hermitage News

Blue and Gold of Limoges: Enamels of XII-XIV centuries

23 June 2009 Blue and Gold of Limoges: Enamels of XII-XIV centuries exhibition dedicated to Limoges champleve enamels was opened in the Blue Bedroom of the Winter Palace. The main part of the exhibits (there were more than 70 of them at the exhibition) dates back to the end of XII - beginning of XIII century, ‘golden age’ of Limoges workshops. Some of them are already familiar to the audience by permanent exhibitions in the Romanov Gallery and the Jewellery Gallery others are kept in the funds of the Hermitage. The exhibition gives an opportunity to display them together tracing all the stages of development of Limoges production.

In XI-XII centuries Limoges was the biggest centre of religious life of France. One of the four pilgrimage roads to sepulchre of St Jacob in Santiago de Compostela was going through it and was called Limoges. And relics of St Martial, baptizer of Aquitaine that was held sacred here as the thirteenth apostle, were in St Martial Abbey. In the city and its outskirts there was thousand of churches and each of them kept its precious shrines. It is believed that the demand for church utensils that had appeared here played crucial part for the development of enamel production. From the second half of XII century and until the beginning of XIV century Limoges workshops became its main manufacturers in Europe.

Church utensils make up the main part of exhibits of the exhibition. These are liturgical vessels: pyxes or ciboriums where sacred wafers (wafers for communion) were kept, book binders, procession crosses, candleholders, bishop’s croziers. One of the most interesting types of Limoges production was caskets-reliquaries for relics of saints.

Earlier monuments (the second half of XII century) differed by their engraving on golden background. From the end of XII century figures were kept in reserve while background, on the contrary, was completely enamelled and decorated with various ornaments. Golden backgrounds were changed to blue by switching places of those two colour categories. Ever since that time Limoges manufactured articles took ‘classic’ form that is very well-known to modern audience. Besides the monuments of XII - XIV centuries several articles of XIX century - stylizations and imitations reflecting revival of interest to that technique in the time of historism, are presented at the exhibition.

If before it was mostly church utensils that were manufactured in Limoges now craftsmen also go by tastes of a new customer - nobility. New types of articles appear: gemellions - pair bowls for lavabo, folding field candleholders, as well as other topics - courtly scenes and heraldry.

Exhibition curator is Ekaterina Nekrasova, junior research assistant of the Department of Western-European Applied Art of the Hermitage. The exhibition is accompanied by academic illustrated catalogue (The State Hermitage Publishing House, 2009), the author of the catalogue is Ekaterina Nekrasova.

Mikhail Piotrovsky, Director of the State Hermitage, at the opening of the exhibition

Ekaterina Nekrasova, Curator of the exhibition, and Mikhail Piotrovsky, Director of the State Hermitage, at the ceremony of the opening

At the exhibition in the Blue Bedroom

Booklet of the exhibition