Zprávy památkové péče 2014, 74(5):379-392

Medieval symbiosis of stone, plaster, and paint in South Bohemia. A typology of plaster and polychrome finishes as related to stone architectural elements

Roman Lavička

A basic idea of the appearance of the stone parts of architecture and related plasters, including the possible color designs of vaulted structures in the Middle Ages, can be obtained by studying panel paintings and miniatures in manuscripts.
Inside the medieval churches in South Bohemia, even despite the cleaning of the constructional elements, it has been possible to find remains of lime paints and, increasingly used from the High Middle Ages, red polychrome. We start seeing painted imitation marble as early as around the year 1300. Especially in the late Middle Ages, the prevailing color of paint on the individual parts of the vaulting was broken white, ocher, or gray, articulated with multiple colors but mostly with white or ocher lines which were intended to highlight the articulation of the construction into individual parts. Polychrome was supposed to visually unite diverse materials (stone, brick, stucco), to hide their flaws, damage, and possibly even traces of processing (lewis masonry holes).
Plaster on walls was tied into, or slightly preceded, reinforced corners of buildings, but in most cases it respected the irregular shape of the individual blocks. In several cases, the rectangular preparation of a stone was indicated by lines painted around its perimeter. On the jambs of portals and windows, we see plaster framing as a ca. 20-30 cm wide smooth and distinct belt standing out ca. 5-15 millimeters from the surface of coarsely processed plaster. Chambranles typically are rectangular in shape, but their upper part copies the course and shape of the lintel. At first the plaster frame covered the lacking jamb, then it later covered the outer irregular edge of the profiled stones, becoming an important decorative motif in the late Middle Ages. Sometimes the edges of the stone elements were covered with several millimeters of plaster, which led to the formation of an edge around the perimeter acting as a visually determining frame.
Reinforced corners and walls made of regular blocks were imitated from the 12th and especially during the 15th and 16th centuries, when the plaster surface was modified so as to resemble the structure of stone masonry, and eventually a cut joint was engraved or painted on it. The combination of both techniques resulted in a polychrome of stone architectural elements and their distribution as an illusory wall mural.
Research has shown that medieval architecture did not perceive stone masonry and plaster separately, but rather that it tied both elements together using lime paint in order to immediately highlight and articulate them again using colors with the intention of creating a visually impressive work. The diversity of Medieval art and repair of structures thus requires continued studies with the need to evaluate the findings with their regard to period practices when modifying the interiors and exteriors of medieval buildings.

Keywords: medieval architecture, stone, plaster, wall murals, illusionary elements

Published: December 1, 2014  Show citation