Searching in ArtStor is a great way to get visual inspiration for your designs through objects and art. One advantage of ArtStor is you can zoom in very closely on the image and look at the details.
Go to Advance Search and set the dates to 800-1400 and the geography limited to Europe
Here are some search term ideas:
Below is an image gallery of the types of images you can find with these searches.
(c) 2006, SCALA, Florence/ART RESOURCE, N.Y.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Cloisters Collection, 1968 (68.174)
Germanisches Nationalmuseum Nürnberg
ARTstor Slide Gallery
Österreichische Nationalbibliothek
British Library, London [Cotton MS. Nero C. IV]