Hertugparret malet i rotunden i Znojmo, 1134, Tjekkiet, er den bedste ikonografiske parallel til det danske kongelige stifterpar i Vä, 1121

Abstract

Title: The donor couple painted in the Rotunda of St. Catherine in Znojmo (Czech Republic) in 1134 is the best iconographical parallel to the Danish royal donors in Vä Church, Sweden (1121)

In this paper the author introduces an iconographic parallel to the donor portraits of a royal couple in Vä Church, Sweden, dated to 1121 and presented by the author in a previous issue of ICO, Nordic Review of Iconography: “Donor pictures and their iconography in Danish frescos from the 12th century”, nr 4, 2015, pp. 4–48. The case in point is found in Bohemia, in the Rotunda in Znojmo, where the donor portraits of Conrad II of Znojmo and Maria of Serbia, dated to 1134, like those in Vä are painted on the eastern wall of the chancel, on both sides of the apse. Notable parallels between the two monuments are that the construction of the church and the wall paintings are contemporary, that both use the same painting technique (fresco/secco) and that both show Byzantine influence. Furthermore the patrons are represented on the same scale as the saints in their vicinity in the church, men and women are depicted as equals in that they have the same height, both are very finely dressed and both present gifts that are received by the hand of God. However, although the portraits have much in common concerning iconography and placing, there is nothing to suggest a direct connection between the two churches. Perhaps the paintings in Vä and Znojmo are just two randomly preserved remnants of a Byzantine tradition.