This shows that there were more than one type of monk or nun.
Working hard did not change your status. Your clothing,
food, marriage, homes, etc., were determined for you. After
the rank of king, the hierarchy was the nobles, the knights,
the clergy (religious people), the tradesmen and the peasants.
You were born into a class of people
and generally stayed in that class for your entire life.
An example of an object used in daily worship was a board with pilgrim badges attached to it; these were homemade pieces made by the poor.
“Do-It-Yourself” reliquaries were also popular. A hollow cage of soft metal could be pulled open then the pilgrim chose and placed their own relic inside. Lockets, chains, and brooches were increasingly popular as portable and personal reliquary.
There were also rattles, whistles, horns and bells sold at Churches and these were often used in processions. Some were inscribed with inscriptions to Mary and
The
Keep: One of the largest spaces behind the thick walls was
the keep. The keep was a storage area topped by a huge square tower with
slotted windows for castle archers to use. The keep stored food, wine,
and grain in case of siege.
This map shows three groups that attach and raid Europe: The Saracens (from North Africa, they are Arabs), The Magyars (From Europe, Hungarian Christians) and Vikings (from Scandinavia, polytheistic: become Christian)
Another article describes these raids this way "In the short run, they wreaked havoc on land and people"
The medieval period of art history spans from the fall of the Roman Empire in 300 AD to the beginning of the Renaissance in 1400 AD
he Catholic Church financed many projects, and the oldest examples of Christian art survive in the Roman catacombs, or burial crypts beneath the city.
Medieval artists decorated churches and works for public appreciation using classical themes. For example, Roman mosaics made of small stone cubes called tesserae offered Christian scenery.
Early Christian mosaics used muted colors like classical mosaics, but in the fourth century, mosaicists moved to brighter colors and patterns.
Romanesque architecture symbolized the growing wealth of European cities and the power of Church monasteries.
The Gothic style developed in the middle of the twelfth century and is named after the Goths who ruled France.
Human forms such as the Madonna and Baby Jesus evolve from large heads on small bodies in Early Christianity to abstract forms in the Romanesque era. In the Gothic era, the Madonna and Child are more naturalistic with tall, bony figures.