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Byland Abbey: History
Byland Abbey: Buildings
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Getting along with the neighbours
There were, of course, advantages to be had from living near to other religious houses and a sense of solidarity might be fostered between houses that shared the same founder. The Augustinian canon, William of Newburgh, spoke with respect and fondness for Abbot Roger and the monks of Byland. William had evidently visited his Cistercian neighbours on a number of occasions, undermining contemporary complaints that the White Monks were inhospitable to other religious. In fact, it was at Roger’s behest that William wrote his commentary on the Song of Songs, the ‘Explanatio sacri epithalamii in matrem sponsi’ (‘An application of each verse of the ‘Song of Songs’ to the life and spiritual nature of Mary’). Both the prologue and postscript of this work are addressed to Abbot Roger and the prologue reveals that it was Roger who had requested a commentary of this kind: Your frequent and sacred wishes, Father Roger, have projected from me, after a great deal of labour, the exposition of the sacred epithelium for the glorious Virgin Mary. How, either with respect to the Church, or with respect to the meritorious soul, that nuptial song should be understood has been explained by outstanding men in excellent works … If your dignity desires that my slight abilities be tried, I will promptly and devotedly follow your order. (38) Similarities in the execution,
decoration and even the page size of twelfth-century manuscripts
from Rievaulx and Byland suggest that the
monks of Rievaulx offered assistance
and guidance to their neighbours at Byland after their incorporation
within the Cistercian family.
These manuscripts
mostly lack ornamentation, they rarely show human figure, and there
is little use of expensive colours or metals to enhance the work.(39) Anne
Lawrence has argued that various aspects of the manuscript decoration
and production
are peculiar to the North of England, and are not a specifically
Cistercian phenomenon. Notably, Rievaulx’s use of the split-leaf decoration
seems to stem from Durham, with which Rievaulx had strong ties,
yet was also adopted
by Byland.(40) |
