Klosterneuburg Altar 1181

Nicholas of Verdun and his workshop created this section of the Klosterneuburg Altar, working with enamel, gold, and gemstones. The processes involved were incredibly demanding. Enameling requires firing powdered glass at high temperatures, a technique that only expert artisans could manage. But what is most impressive is the overall design and the division of labor required to bring it into being. The altar is composed of fifty-one separate enamel plaques, each framed and integrated into a larger architectural structure. Some artisans were clearly responsible for hammering out the gold framework, while others like Nicholas of Verdun would have been masters of the enamel technique. When viewing an object like this, it’s important to remember that medieval workshops were highly structured, almost corporate in their organization. It took the combined talents of many people to create this altar. It exemplifies the idea that creativity and devotion are as much about social cooperation as individual expression, challenging the modern notion of the artist as a solitary genius.