Thesis Title
The Twelfth-Century Paintings of the Ceilings of the Cappella Palatina, Palermo
Candidate
Lev Kapitaikin, Wolfson College, University of Oxford
Degree
D.Phil., Michaelmas Term 2011
ABSTRACT
The three 'Islamic' ceilings of the Cappella Palatina in Palermo, the royal chapel of
the Norman kings of Sicily, were commissioned by king Roger II around 1143. The
grandiose muqarnaṣ (stalactite) ceiling of the nave and the two smaller ceilings of the
two aisles were just one part of the opulent, multifaceted decoration of the royal
chapel, that included also Byzantine mosaics with Christian scenes and SouthernItalian marble pavements and revetments. As with other medieval chapels of palaces,
the Cappella Palatina served concomitantly as a royal audience hall, a thing
evidenced by the great throne platform at its west end.
The paintings of the three ceilings present 'Islamic' figural and ornamental decoration
and Arabic inscriptions, the salient subject-matter of which is the Islamic royal
banquet, the majlis, centered upon the king. The study presents new stylistic and
iconographic evidence to show that the painters of the ceilings came mainly from
Fatimid Egypt, and that the paintings could reflect also some impact of the Christian
arts of that country, if not the actual participation of Coptic artists in their production.
Despite the predominantly Islamic subject-matter of the paintings, their imagery was
simultaneously enriched with Christian themes, the models for which were likely
provided by Romanesque, Middle-Byzantine, and – to a lesser extent – Coptic
artwork. Far from being an alien 'Oriental' element incorporated into the otherwise
Christian chapel, the designer/s of the chapel actually sought to manipulate the
Islamic princely imagery of the ceilings through the insertion of Christian 'triumphal'
themes and a few crosses in the paintings. The Christian scenes were, moreover,
placed in focal programmatic points at the ceilings, and associated spatially with
ceremonial and liturgical features of the chapel, namely: the royal throne platform at
the
west
end,
and
the
entrance
to
the
sanctuary
at
the
east.
The 'Islamicate' – rather than Islamic – ceilings and their imagery were thus adapted
to the Christian setting within the palatine chapel of the Norman monarchs.
The Twelfth-Century Paintings
of
the Ceilings of the Cappella Palatina, Palermo
Lev Kapitaikin
A thesis submitted to the University of Oxford
for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
in Islamic Art and Architecture
Volume I : Text
Michaelmas Term 2011
Wolfson Colege
Faculty of Oriental Studies
The study of the Palermitan Islamic ceilings is dedicated
to all those seeking a meaningful change through peaceful means…