Chapter 5 - Appropriation and/or Influence

Summary

PLACES OF WORSHIP needed to meet formal and ideological requirements as well as satisfy the demand for the prestige of the powerful meant a quest for a particular style and form. Their appearance in particular locations resulted from adopting prototypes from abroad as a result of the movement of mason workshops, as well as agreements between church architects and founding patrons. Two examples may be used as illustrations: firstly, the Ostrów Lednicki stronghold complex and secondly the basilica in Poznań. The ducal palace and chapel (palatium) at Ostrów Lednicki built at its foundation by Mieszko I in the 960s was in all probability a result of the duke's collaboration with bishop Jordan—whereas at the turn of the tenth and eleventh century, Bolesław the Brave instigated a rebuilding, probably in light of the Congress of Gniezno planned for the year 1000. The basilica in Poznań is a similar example: while built with the support of Bolesław the Brave, bishop Unger was most certainly the driving force behind its form.In most cases it was the founder who truly impacted the choice.

By analyzing detailed forms, differences, specific elements, proportions, as well as irregularities, one can identify the original cultural circle behind a given pattern—and thus the community that could have inspired the builders, founding patrons, and architects. We might also assume that the inspirations were conscious and deliberate. Of all buildings, churches and palaces erected on the territory of Younger Europe by the end of the eleventh century are considered to be of mutual inspiration. But is that so? Had they shared their cradle, their cultural circle? These and similar key issues are the focus of researchers analyzing two Benedictine abbeys, one in Tyniec, the other in Hronský Beňadik (Hungarian: Garamszentbenedek). Both were royal foundations dating back to the second half of the eleventh century. The abbey of Tyniec, a church with a monastery added at a later stage, was located on a limestone mound defended by a bend in the River Vistula on one side, floodplains and marshes on the other. The abbey was built close to Kraków, a key centre of power from the second half of the eleventh century onwards.