Lloyd and Jennifer Lang, Thames and Hudson, London, 1992
This well-illustrated book looks at the intricate and profound productions of Celts from pre-historic times to the revival into the Twentieth Century. The authors state that Celtic art tends to avoid symmetry and the straight line. Also, "It is not concerned either with the imitation of nature or with an ideal of beauty." (p. 6) They describe it as: "An art which delights in curvilinear form, in interweaving lines, in ornament which is often ambiguous. It is an art in which similar motifs -- triskeles, trumpets, scrolls and palmettes -- abound." (p. 8)
They mention three, "'Traditions' of Celtic art": Continental La Tene, early insular la Tene and later insular (especially Irish) La Tene, stating that the Norman conquest of the British Isles, "Seems to have led to the disappearance of Celtic Art in the thirteenth century." They quote Paul Jacobsthal's view that Celtic, "Art was, 'full of contrasts...ful of paradoxes, restless, puzzlingly ambiguous,'" and his opinion,
'How numerous is the repertory of Early Celtic imagery! It is confined to huge menhir-like statues in stone, to a few busts or miniature doll-like men, and to a multitude of heads, either primitive or strongly stylized, adorning metal objects.' (p. 13)
They consider true Celtic art to commence with the La Tene culture, though, "Forerunners of some of the elements of La Tene art can be discovered in Bronze Age and Hallstatt Iron Age Europe." (p. 23) They show and tell about some of these earlier elements. For example, page 26 has a photo of, "Swans and ravens on a ritual bronze 'flesh-hook' or goad from Dunaverney, Co. Antrim, northern Ireland, probably eighth century BC." (p. 27)
They refer to the increased contact with the Mediterranean world and the impact this had on artistic taste and repertoire. They also mention influences from the east reaching the Celts through the Greeks or by other ways. For example, they show, "Four pottery rhyta or drinking horns found at Dalj" (Yugoslavia) "the animals adorning them much in the style of the creatures from the cemetery at Hallstatt. These rhyta recall Iranian work. (p. 35)
Chapter Three considers, "La Tene art in Europe", "Named after a site on Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland, but the richest artifacts have been found further north, in the Middle Rhine and Hunsruck-Eifel region." (p. 41) They discuss the classification of La Tene art and comment on and display material from the different styles: Early, Waldalgesheim (from, "A princess's burial from Waldalgesheim in Germany."), Plastic and Sword." (p. 58) Of this last, "Many of them survive by having been commited to water, possibly as votive offerings -- swords are often dredged from rivers." (p. 73) This chapter includes mention of sculpture in stone, bronze and wood and suggests Celtic deities were, "Forbidding or frightening," rather than, "Benign." (p. 74) Illustration number 68 (on page 77 is identified,
Deservedly the most famous work of Celtic scupture: a head 23.5 cm (9 1/2 in) high found near ritual enclosures at Mseake-Zehrovice, near Prague, Czechoslovakia. The stylized moustache and eyebrows end in Celtic twirls, and the hair is arranged in a stiff, backswept style known to have been favoured by Celtic men in Roman times.
They discuss sculptured heads as well as sculptures including more of the body. They proceed to cauldrons, including the famous one from Gundestrop saying, "Many of the details on the Gundestrop cauldron are clearly Celtic," (p. 85) "And most authorities would accept that it was made somewhere in north Bulgaria or southern Romania." (p. 85) They look at coins. "There are hundreds of thousands of Celtic coins surviving from the continent, with individual hoards containing up to ten thousand coins or more." (p. 86) They feel these may have been used more for prestige than for trade. They consider coins in various Celtic regions, mention that inscriptions are generally to individuals rather than tribes and speak of, "A wealth of traditional imagery." (p. 88) "Boars abound, with the occasional sow, accompanied by horses, eagles, bulls, wolves, bears, hares, ravens, crows, ducks, cocks, snakes and goats." (p. 88) The chapter concludes with a consideration of Romano-Celtic art, although this is, "Remarkably sparse." (p. 89)
Chapter Four, "Art in Iron Age Britain and Ireland", begins by noting,
The most recent research suggests that Celtic culture in later prehistoric Britain owes more to a gradual development of the language and other definitive features than to the invasions from the continent favoured by earlier archaeologists. (p. 93)
Also, "Ireland has so far yielded no archaeological evidence whatsoever for large intrusive groups of Celtic continental immigrants." (p. 93)
They refer to the difficulty of classifying British Iron Age art. They write,
Non-Romanized Ireland and northern Scotland, and the little Romanized areas of Wales and Cornwall -- are apparently almost devoid of artistic productions during the first to fourth centuries AD. (p. 95)
Page 97 has a map of the, "Location of finds of Iron Age Celtic art in Britain and Ireland." (p. 97) They discuss continental influences on insular art, the development of engraving, often asymetrical and, as throughout the book, show the reader photographs of the fine work they are discussing. In all, five insular styles are discussed, the last solely applicable to the Islands. The origin of this more symmetrical style is suggested to be possibly the Iceni, Boudica's people (pp. 108-109). This discussion includes mirrors whose individuality
Every piece of ornamental metalwork the Celts produced seems to have been an original: after casting they discarded the mould, and finished the work by hand. (p. 115)
and subtlety of design the authors highly praise. They mention metalwork, enamelling ("Celtic artists by the time of the Roman conquest had added other colours to the basic red." (p. 117) coins, Roman influence on Britain and Romano-British influence on Ireland.
Chapter Five, "The Renaissance of Celtic Art", looks at the period roughly from the departure of Rome to the arrival of the Normans. "Both economic recovery and Christianity were factors which led to an enormous increase in outlets for the artist." (p. 141) They discuss and show examples of the lauded work of Celtic manuscripts and other artifacts, such as brooches and monuments. They mention the impact of the Vikings, "That the Vikings approved of Celtic art is apparent from the fact that so much of what survives does so in graves in Scandinavia." (pp. 176-177) However, in addition, "It is clear Scandinavian and Irish craftsmen worked side by side, pooling motifs and ideas when producing wood, metal and leather objects that were probably traded quite widely." (p. 177) There is reference to the extinguishing consequences of the Normans, with a preceeding period of Irish artistic activity, almost all ecclesiastical.
Chapter Six, "Celtic Revivals", begins by mentioning survivals in the West Highlands, the School of Kintyre (c. 1425-1500) and other artistic activity before the revival in the late Seventeenth Century in interest in Celts by such as John Aubrey, William Stukeley and MacPherson. This last in 1760, "Forged pseudo-Celtic poems." They mention the Nineteenth Century Celtic revival in Ireland. "Sir George Petrie (1790-1886), himself no mean artist, spearheaded the serious study of Irish antiquities." (p. 203) They mention the copying of Celtic art and the innovative work of such as, "Charles Russell, who came to Ireland around 1872 and began promoting the revival of Celtic art." (p. 205)
This is a fascinating consideration of the topic, richly illustrated so the reader can see clearly what is being discussed.