Images et société à Reichenau, vers l’an mil : les peintures d’Oberzell et les manuscrits apparentés

A new interpretation of the Pre-Romanesque frescoes in the Church of Saint George at Oberzell, part of the UNESCO-listed Monastic Island of Reichenau, reveals a coherent programmatic meaning centered on the role of the priesthood and its intermediation in salvation. The study, analyzing eight scenes decorating the church's walls, suggests that these murals reflect the Benedictine monks' vision of ecclesiastical society around the year 1000, mirroring contemporary reforms at Cluny and Fleury. This finding is supported by a comparative analysis with illuminated manuscripts from the Liuthar group, particularly the Bamberg Collection (Msc. Bibl. 22), which share similar theological and societal intentions.

Franzé, B. (2021). Images et société à Reichenau, vers l’an mil : les peintures d’Oberzell et les manuscrits apparentés. Zeitschrift Für Kunstgeschichte, 84(2), 147–180. https://doi.org/10.1515/zkg-2021-2001