Otto III Receiving Gifts

These triumphal images are in a book of Gospels made for Otto III (r. 983–1002). The crowned women on the left are personifications of the four parts of Otto’s empire: Sclavinia (the Slavic lands), Germania (Germany), Gallia (Gaul), and Roma (Rome). Each offers a gift in tribute and homage to the emperor, who sits on a throne holding the symbols of his power (orb and scepter) and flanked by representatives of the church (on his right) and of the army (on his left). Why do you suppose the artist separated the image of the emperor from that of the women? What does the body language of the women indicate about the relations Otto wanted to portray between himself and the parts of his empire? Can you relate this manuscript, which was made in 997–1000, to Otto’s conquest over the Slavs in 997? (bpk, Berlin / Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich, Germany / photo: Lutz Braun / Art Resource, NY.)