The World of the Early Sienese Painter by Hayden B.J. Maginnis (review)

372 letters in canada 2001 university of toronto quarterly, volume 72, number 1, winter 2002/3 believers away from their faith. Pressure was brought to bear on secular rulers to persecute non-believers who had formerly been tolerated. Reflecting the more tolerant twelfth-century perspective, Rainer Christoph Schwinges notes that the Crusader historian William of Tyre argued for the similarities between Christianity and Islam, praised the character of rulers such as Nur-ad-Din, and recognized the sovereign rights of Muslim peoples. Thus, Schwinges argues that William enunciated an >informal tolerance combined with dogmatic intolerance.= Some of the papers, such as those by Ryan and Lev, are accompanied by substantial and convincing citation of relevant sources which will be of considerable use to other scholars. Others are less well documented, such as Giulio Cipollone=s reflections on humanitarianism in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, which appear to be a summary of some of his earlier work. In the course of transforming a conference into a published collection of articles, the editors and their authors might have made some changes. For example, the all too short articles by Hay, Ilieva, and Cipollone could have been expanded. Additional papers could have been solicited in order to expand the volume to consider the policy towards other groups. An afterword could helpfully summarize the common themes of this volume, suggesting further conceptualization of the notion of tolerance in its medieval context, along with areas for further research. (MICHAEL GOODICH) Hayden B.J. Maginnis. The World of the Early Sienese Painter Pennsylvania State University Press. 310. 16 colour plates, 108 black and white figures. US $65.00 The book is a celebration of some outstanding Sienese painters and their art. Within that frame, it meticulously evaluates the city, its government structure, faith, guilds, and charitable foundations, and much more. It is proudly proposing to be >a case study ... that may well be the closest we shall ever come to understanding the historical context of early Italian artists.= It is divided in two major parts, the second one being a translation of the Sienese Breve dell=Arte dei Pittori by Gabriele Erasmi. Aiming not so much at the novice as at the litteratus in that field, it is a comprehensive and well-written study, covering roughly a hundred years of Sienese painting between 1260 and 1363. Without giving any further reason, Maginnis launches his scrutiny in 1260 >because the situation in Siena changed dramatically. Rather suddenly, there appeared a new group of artists.= Was there not, at the time, a major crisis of the Western world with the Byzantine reconquest, the gradual breakdown of the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem, the Crusaders, and so on, which definitely had a dramatic impact not only on Western painting B and especially in Pisa and Siena? These non-Western humanities 373 university of toronto quarterly, volume 72, number 1, winter 2002/3 historical events are beyond consideration. Greater importance is, however, given to the penetration of Aristotelian thought, as >a new investigatory approach to things of this world,= without mention of the impact of a new vernacular B ideas, language, and pictures B at the same time. The silence on these issues seems to distort the perspective as seen by Maginnis. However, when it comes to Siena itself, Maginnis offers an intriguing mixture of known and unknown facts and figures, compiled from various historical and art-historical sources, as well as valuable personal observations. His perspective is, however, somewhat >parochial,= and should be viewed together with his previous publication, Painting in the Age of Giotto. To be sure, Siena was not the source of all social and pictorial >progress= at the time. Therefore, one would have expected a more contextual evaluation, maybe in conjunction with other, equally well developed city-republics at the same time. From the very beginning, the emphasis is on artists and art, to >illustrate currents of thought or aspects of technique, to provide referents for discussions of painters= incomes, to document the patronage of the commune and the fame of Sienese painters abroad= B and not on pictures and their communicative function. Duccio is, of course, at centre stage, his Rucellai Madonna disproportionately glorified...