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Women patrons of the arts in the Romanesque period could be as influential as their male counterparts, and included some of the most prominent political figures of the age. One of these, Matilda of Canossa (d. 1115) ruled over the territories of Tuscany and Emilia in northern Italy, and was a keen supporter of the papal reform movement. She sided with Pope Gregory VII against the Holy Roman Emperor, Henry IV, as is recorded in her biography, written shortly after her death by a monk called Donizo.
Matilda is known to have commissioned a sumptuously illustrated Gospel Book made in the late eleventh century at the Cluniac monastery of San Benedetto di Polirone, near Mantua. One of its illustrations shows the highly unusual subject of Christ cleansing the temple. This has been interpreted as a justification of papal military intervention, to which Matilda gave considerable material assistance. The Vatican's military actions, interpreted as cleansing Christendom of malign influences, would thus be seen as a parallel to Christ's actions.
The illumination shown here represents the Cleansing of the Temple.
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