The Roman Crucible: The Artistic Patronage of the Papacy 1198 - 1304

Description

This book gathers 13th century art commissioned by Roman popes and cardinals and provides a remarkable insight into the sociology of late medieval artistic practice. It traces how the church's governing body, the Roman Curia, imported art works from Europe to the Latium region and illustrates their enormous impact on Roman culture.

Julian Gardner is a researcher in medieval studies and the history of art. He completed research for The Roman Crucible as a distinguished visiting professor in medieval studies at the University of California, Berkeley, and a research professor at the Bibliotheca Hertziana of the Max Planck Institute of Art History, Rome.

"Gardner is an authority on the art and architecture of Rome between the pontificates of Popes Innocent III (1198-1216) and Benedict XI (1303-04), making this volume a welcome addition to the literature on the subject. There is a particularly interesting overview of surviving personal seals, small privately commissioned works, which not only indicate the artistic taste of their patrons and the varying styles of the time but also provide a well-dated body of evidence, which can be used in some instances to further one's understanding of more monumental works of art and architecture."-- "Catholic Historical Review" (9/14/2015 12:00:00 AM)