Civilisation: The Skin of Our Teeth
Cast & Crew
Michael Gill
Kenneth Clark
Kenneth Clark
Joe Cooksey
Roger Crittenden
Michael Shah Dayan
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Sir Kenneth Clark's personal history of Western civilization, as reflected in its art, architecture, and technical achievements, examines Western Europe from the fall of the Roman Empire to the year 1,000. The dispersion of Christian culture by the barbarian conquerors of Rome gave rise to Islam during the 7th century. As the new faith swept through the Mediterranean lands, migrant Christians settled in Scotland, the Hebrides, and Ireland. In the West they encountered Viking explorers, for whom the ship was as much a work of art as the temple had been for the ancient Greeks. Because literacy was confined to the higher clerics of the time, many works of classical literature were left uncopied or destroyed since they might detract from study of the scriptures. Only through the efforts of Charlemagne, the first man since the fall of Rome to achieve political unity in Europe and encourage the arts, were many secular manuscripts preserved. The act of preservation, which included elaborate ornamentation and design, carried on the meticulous craftsmanship of the wandering barbarians, who had deemphasized man as a subject of their art in favor of birds and other animals. After the breakup of the Frankish kingdom, the dominance of the Church over both man and nature is reflected; the crucifix and other religious objects became vehicles for artistic expression. With a new cultural focus and the dissolution of barbarian dominance, Europe in the year 1,000 was prepared to embark upon its first great age of civilization.
Director
Michael Gill
Crew
Kenneth Clark
Joe Cooksey
Roger Crittenden
Michael Shah Dayan
Colin Deehan
A. A. Englander
Michael Gill
Dave Griffiths
Basil Harris
Peter Heelas
Maggie Houston
Carol Jones
June Leech
Kenneth Macmillan
Peter Montagnon
Bill Paget
Jesse Palmer
Jack Probert
John Taylor
Ann Turner
Ann Turner
Allan Tyrer
Malcolm Webberley
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Location scenes filmed in Paris, Ravenna, Hebrides, Oslo, Aix-la-Chapelle, and Nîmes. First shown in Great Britain March 23, 1969 on BBC 2; the first in Sir Kenneth Clark's series on the history of Western civilization. Also known as The Frozen World.
