Images and Relics: Theological Perceptions and Visual Images in Sixteenth-Century Europe (review)

Images and Relics: Theological Perceptions and Visual Images in Sixteenth-Century Europe. By John Dillenberger. [Oxford Studies in Historical Theology.] (New York: Oxford University Press. 1999. Pp. xii, 248; 85 halftones. $45.00.)

In this learned new volume, John Dillenberger endeavors to present, in his words, an "account of the nature and place . . . of visual images in sixteenth-century European religious reformations," an account which, rather than being "a summary," will offer "a way of seeing the whole from a theological perspective" (p. vii). He begins the pursuit of this goal through a general introduction, outlining the major reforming movements of the sixteenth century, with particular attention paid to the place of relics, saints, and images within the movements, both Protestant and Catholic. The author then moves on to the heart of the book, a consideration of seven artists--Matthias Grünewald, Albrecht Dürer, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Michelangelo Buonarroti, Hans Holbein the Younger, Hans Baldung Grien, and Albrecht Altdorfer--the first four of whom he accords individual chapters, the last three he treats together in a single chapter. He situates these artists within their historical and theological contexts, offering interpretations of some of their most famous works in an attempt to elucidate their theological meanings. In a concluding chapter, entitled "Iconoclasm and Beyond," he traces the major iconoclastic developments of the century, some of the ways in which the Catholic Church responded to the attacks on images, and, finally, arguing that "the wounds of the reformations have not healed," appeals for a "disciplined theory of images" and a "learned modality of seeing" (p. 191) within our modern visual culture.

In a number of ways, Dillenberger provides a provocative and highly thoughtful account of one of the most complex and tormented centuries of image production. There are few scholars more capable than he in synthesizing the historical roots and doctrinal controversies of the Reformation, and he articulates them here in a remarkably cogent way in order to set the stage for understanding the work of the seven artists he discusses. Ranging across media--from prints to paintings to sculpture--he is frequently eloquent in his description of works of art; he provides pertinent information on their patrons and intended function; and for some of the images under discussion--especially Lucas Cranach the Elder's allegories of "Law and Gospel"--he offers subtle and convincing theological readings. But what is most laudable is his inclusion of an Italian artist--Michelangelo--within his study, which serves to bridge the false and arbitrary divide between north and south, and allows the reader to see how issues of reform were equally relevant to artists within and outside the Catholic fold.

Unfortunately, Images and Relics is also a disappointing book, especially with respect to fulfilling its stated goal, and the depth and originality of its analysis of images. Given the selective foci of his study, it is no wonder that the book fails to live up to the grand goal Dillenberger set for himself. What results from his discussions of the seven artists is a rather fragmentary and summary picture, rather than a view of "the whole." The vast majority of his readings of images, including Grünewald's Isenheim Altarpiece and Michelangelo's Last Judgment--simply reiterate other scholars' arguments; he ignores a number of important older and recent publications (among them, From a Mighty Fortress: Prints, Drawings and Books in the Age of Luther, 1493-1546 [1983] and O. Bätschman and P. Griener, Hans Holbein [1997]); and elsewhere he offers seemingly endless descriptions of works with little or no analysis. The book is also marred by a number of factual errors. For example, the Council of Trent did not last from 1542 to 1564, as he writes on page 10 (nor from 1543 to 1564, as he states on page 116), but instead actually convened in...