0
Your cart

Your cart is empty

Browse All Departments
Price
  • R50 - R100 (2)
  • R100 - R250 (29)
  • R250 - R500 (102)
  • R500+ (1,087)
  • -
Status
Format
Author / Contributor
Publisher

Books > Arts & Architecture > History of art / art & design styles > 500 CE to 1400 > General

Femina - The instant Sunday Times bestseller - A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of It... Femina - The instant Sunday Times bestseller - A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of It (Paperback)
Janina Ramirez
R295 R231 Discovery Miles 2 310 Save R64 (22%) Ships in 5 - 10 working days

'Janina Ramirez is a born storyteller, and in Femina she is at the peak of her powers. This is bravura narrative history underpinned by passionate advocacy for the women whom medieval history has too often ignored or overlooked. Femina is essential reading' - Dan Jones, bestselling author of The Plantagenets and Powers and Thrones 'I am the fiery life of divine substance, I blaze above the beauty of the fields, I shine in the waters, I burn in sun, moon and stars' - Hildegard of Bingen (1098 - 1179) The middle ages are seen as a bloodthirsty time of Vikings, saints and kings: a patriarchal society which oppressed and excluded women. But when we dig a little deeper into the truth, we can see that the 'dark' ages were anything but. Oxford and BBC historian Janina Ramirez has uncovered countless influential women's names struck out of historical records, with the word FEMINA annotated beside them. As gatekeepers of the past ordered books to be burnt, artworks to be destroyed, and new versions of myths, legends and historical documents to be produced, our view of history has been manipulated. Only now, through a careful examination of the artefacts, writings and possessions they left behind, are the influential and multifaceted lives of women emerging. Femina goes beyond the official records to uncover the true impact of women like Jadwiga, the only female King in Europe, Margery Kempe, who exploited her image and story to ensure her notoriety, and the Loftus Princess, whose existence gives us clues about the beginnings of Christianity in England. See the medieval world with fresh eyes and discover why these remarkable women were removed from our collective memories.

Femina - The instant Sunday Times bestseller - A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of It... Femina - The instant Sunday Times bestseller - A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of It (Hardcover)
Janina Ramirez
R649 Discovery Miles 6 490 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'The women of the Middle Ages, so often silent and inconspicuous in our histories, find voice, agency and justice in this brilliant book' - Alice Roberts, bestselling author of Ancestors: A Prehistory of Britain in Seven Burials 'Beautifully written, wonderfully free-ranging and gloriously original, Femina makes us look into the mists of history in new, exciting and provocative ways. A joyous read' - Peter Frankopan, bestselling author of The Silk Roads __________________ The middle ages are seen as a bloodthirsty time of Vikings, saints and kings: a patriarchal society which oppressed and excluded women. But when we dig a little deeper into the truth, we can see that the 'dark' ages were anything but. Oxford and BBC historian Janina Ramirez has uncovered countless influential women's names struck out of historical records, with the word FEMINA annotated beside them. As gatekeepers of the past ordered books to be burnt, artworks to be destroyed, and new versions of myths, legends and historical documents to be produced, our view of history has been manipulated. Only now, through a careful examination of the artefacts, writings and possessions they left behind, are the influential and multifaceted lives of women emerging. Femina goes beyond the official records to uncover the true impact of women like Jadwiga, the only female King in Europe, Margery Kempe, who exploited her image and story to ensure her notoriety, and the Loftus Princess, whose existence gives us clues about the beginnings of Christianity in England. See the medieval world with fresh eyes and discover why these remarkable women were removed from our collective memories.

The Grand Medieval Bestiary (Dragonet Edition) - Animals in Illuminated Manuscripts (Hardcover): Christian Heck The Grand Medieval Bestiary (Dragonet Edition) - Animals in Illuminated Manuscripts (Hardcover)
Christian Heck
R1,797 R1,696 Discovery Miles 16 960 Save R101 (6%) Ships in 12 - 17 working days

As the 587 colourful images in this magnificent volume reveal, animals were a constant—and delightful—presence in illuminated manuscripts throughout the Middle Ages. They were illustrated not only in bestiaries—the compendiums of animal fact and fable that were exceedingly popular in the 12th and 13th centuries—but in every sort of manuscript, sacred and profane, from the Gospels to the Romance of the Rose. This book is arranged in manner of a proper bestiary, with essays on the medieval lore and iconography of one hundred creatures alphabetised by their Latin names, from the alauda, or lark, whose morning song was thought to be a hymn to Creation, to the vultur, whose taste for carrion made it a symbol of the sinner who indulges in worldly pleasures. The selection includes a number of creatures that would now be considered fantastic, including the griffin, the manticore, and of course the fabled unicorn.

The Art of the Bible - Illuminated Manuscripts from the Medieval World (Hardcover): Scot McKendrick, Kathleen Doyle The Art of the Bible - Illuminated Manuscripts from the Medieval World (Hardcover)
Scot McKendrick, Kathleen Doyle
R920 Discovery Miles 9 200 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

An extensively illustrated compendium of 45 expertly selected illuminated bibles that transport the reader through 1,000 years of history and across the Christian world. For two millennia the Bible has inspired the creation of art. Within this legacy of remarkable art and beauty, illuminated biblical manuscripts offer some of the best evidence for our understanding of early Christian painting and artistic interpretations of the Bible. Compiled and written by two internationally renowned experts, this beautiful book immerses the reader in the world of illuminated manuscripts of the Bible. Through its pictures we are transported across 1,000 years of history, passing chronologically through many of the major centres of the Christian world. Starting in Constantinople in the East, the journey moves on to Lindisfarne in the North, to imperial Aachen, back to Canterbury, then to Carolingian Tours in western France. Later we view some of the riches of Winchester, Mozarabic Spain, Crusader Jerusalem, the Meuse valley, northern Iraq, Paris, London, Bologna, Naples, Bulgaria, the Low Countries, Rome and Persia. Our journey ends in Gondar, the capital of imperial Ethiopia. Forty-five remarkable books - each a treasure in its own right - provide our itinerary through time and across continents. Together they enable us to explore and revel in the extraordinary art and beauty of illuminated biblical manuscripts, some of the finest but least-known paintings from the Middle Ages.

Mary Magdalene - A Visual History (Hardcover): Diane Apostolos Cappadona Mary Magdalene - A Visual History (Hardcover)
Diane Apostolos Cappadona
R458 Discovery Miles 4 580 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

From faithful apostle and seductress to feminist icon, Mary Magdalene's many complex roles in Christian history have fascinated us for 2000 years. Illustrated in full colour, this visual history reveals how images and presentations have created a Mary who is often far different from the real woman, the first witness of the Resurrection in the gospels, or even from her appearances in the works of the Church Fathers. Beginning with the earliest sources, uncover who the real Mary was, and what she meant in her own time, before embarking on a fast-paced tour of Magdalene's depictions in great works of art, forgotten masterpieces and contemporary visual culture. Considering relics, statuary, paintings, sculpture and recent works for stage and screen, discover how Mary Magdalene has been seen across time as a witness, a sinner, a penitent, a contemplative, a preacher and a patroness. Above all her complex roles, Mary has emerged as a powerful feminist icon, the closest person to Jesus himself, with a visual history as rich and varied as the roles she has fulfilled in numerous contexts of faith and worship for two millennia.

The Castle - A History (Hardcover): John Goodall The Castle - A History (Hardcover)
John Goodall
R626 Discovery Miles 6 260 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

A vibrant history of the castle in Britain, from the early Middle Ages to the present day The castle has long had a pivotal place in British life, associated with lordship, landholding, and military might, and today it remains a powerful symbol of history. But castles have never been merely impressive fortresses-they were hubs of life, activity, and imagination. John Goodall weaves together the history of the British castle across the span of a millennium, from the eleventh to the twenty-first century, through the voices of those who witnessed it. Drawing on chronicles, poems, letters, and novels, including the work of figures like Gawain Poet, Walter Scott, Evelyn Waugh, and P. G. Wodehouse, Goodall explores the importance of the castle in our culture and society. From the medieval period to Civil War engagements, right up to modern manifestations in Harry Potter, Goodall reveals that the castle has always been put to different uses, and to this day continues to serve as a source of inspiration.

Penned and Painted - The Art & Meaning of Books in Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts (Hardcover): Lucy Freeman Sandler Penned and Painted - The Art & Meaning of Books in Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts (Hardcover)
Lucy Freeman Sandler
R784 R645 Discovery Miles 6 450 Save R139 (18%) Ships in 9 - 15 working days

The idea of the book was central throughout the western European and the eastern Mediterranean world in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. From the beginning, the word for 'book'-sefer in Hebrew, biblia in Greek, and liber in Latin-was identified with sacred writings--the Holy Scriptures of Jews and Christians, who were known as 'people of the book'. The centrality of the book to medieval thought is reflected materially in the countless images of books that appear in the manuscripts of the era, be they in the most treasured, highly decorated, sacred texts or in devotional and secular works as well. In Penned & Painted, Lucy Freeman Sandler, one of one of the world's most respected authorities on medieval art, takes us on a personal but highly insightful exploration of some of the British Library's most precious manuscript holdings and describes the many uses and meanings of these 'books in books'. Through the fascinating face-to-face discovery of 60 manuscripts, she investigates the various types and forms of books as depicted in the era. How were they produced and what did they look like? What do they tell us of the lives and skills of the scribes and illuminators? What did these books record and signify? How were they displayed, consumed and how did some of these objects of supreme beauty even come to be wantonly destroyed? Penned & Painted is presented in full-colour throughout and includes a high number of images specially photographed for this volume.

Astrology in Medieval Manuscripts (Hardcover, 2nd Revised edition): Sophie Page Astrology in Medieval Manuscripts (Hardcover, 2nd Revised edition)
Sophie Page 1
R407 R335 Discovery Miles 3 350 Save R72 (18%) Ships in 9 - 15 working days

The art of predicting earthly events from the movements of stars and planets has always been a source of fascination. Medieval astrologers, though sometimes feared to be magicians in league with demons, were usually revered scholars whose ideas and practices were widely respected. Politics, medicine, weather forecasting, cosmology and alchemy were all influenced by astrological concepts. Astrology in Medieval Manuscripts explores the dazzling complexity of western medieval astrology and its place in society, as revealed by a wealth of illustrated manuscripts from the British Library's rich medieval collection.

Eros and Sexuality in Islamic Art (Hardcover, New Ed): Francesca Leoni Eros and Sexuality in Islamic Art (Hardcover, New Ed)
Francesca Leoni
R3,935 Discovery Miles 39 350 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

Dedicated to the topics of eroticism and sexuality in the visual production of the medieval and early modern Muslim world, this volume sheds light on the diverse socio-cultural milieus of erotic images, on the range of motivations that determined their production, and on the responses generated by their circulation. The articles revise what has been accepted as a truism in existing literature-that erotic motifs in the Islamic visual arts should be read metaphorically-offering, as an alternative, rigorous contextual and cultural analyses. Among the subjects discussed are male and female figures as sexualized objects; the spiritual dimensions of eroticism; licit versus illicit sexual practices; and the exotic and erotic 'others' as a source of sensual delight. As the first systematic study on these themes in the field of Islamic art history, this volume fills a considerable gap and contributes to the lively debates on the nature and function of erotic and sexual images that have featured prominently in broader art-historical discussions in recent decades.

Medieval Bodies - Life, Death and Art in the Middle Ages (Paperback): Jack Hartnell Medieval Bodies - Life, Death and Art in the Middle Ages (Paperback)
Jack Hartnell 1
R462 R329 Discovery Miles 3 290 Save R133 (29%) Ships in 12 - 17 working days

A SUNDAY TIMES HISTORY BOOK OF THE YEAR

'A triumph' Guardian

'Glorious ... makes the past at once familiar, exotic and thrilling.' Dominic Sandbrook

'A brilliant book' Mail on Sunday

Just like us, medieval men and women worried about growing old, got blisters and indigestion, fell in love and had children. And yet their lives were full of miraculous and richly metaphorical experiences radically different to our own, unfolding in a world where deadly wounds might be healed overnight by divine intervention, or the heart of a king, plucked from his corpse, could be held aloft as a powerful symbol of political rule.

In this richly-illustrated and unusual history, Jack Hartnell uncovers the fascinating ways in which people thought about, explored and experienced their physical selves in the Middle Ages, from Constantinople to Cairo and Canterbury. Unfolding like a medieval pageant, and filled with saints, soldiers, caliphs, queens, monks and monstrous beasts, it throws light on the medieval body from head to toe - revealing the surprisingly sophisticated medical knowledge of the time in the process.

Bringing together medicine, art, music, politics, philosophy and social history, there is no better guide to what life was really like for the men and women who lived and died in the Middle Ages.

Medieval Bodies is published in association with Wellcome Collection.

Beholding Violence in Medieval and Early Modern Europe (Hardcover, New Ed): Allie Terry-Fritsch Beholding Violence in Medieval and Early Modern Europe (Hardcover, New Ed)
Allie Terry-Fritsch
R4,221 Discovery Miles 42 210 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

Interested in the ways in which medieval and early modern communities have acted as participants, observers, and interpreters of events and how they ascribed meaning to them, the essays in this interdisciplinary collection explore the concept of beholding and the experiences of individual and collective beholders of violence during the period. Addressing a range of medieval and early modern art forms, including visual images, material objects, literary texts, and performances, the contributors examine the complexities of viewing and the production of knowledge within cultural, political, and theological contexts. In considering new methods to examine the process of beholding violence and the beholder's perspective, this volume addresses such questions as: How does the process of beholding function in different aesthetic conditions? Can we speak of such a thing as the 'period eye' or an acculturated gaze of the viewer? If so, does this particularize the gaze, or does it risk universalizing perception? How do violence and pleasure intersect within the visual and literary arts? How can an understanding of violence in cultural representation serve as means of knowing the past and as means of understanding and potentially altering the present?

Early Gothic Column-Figure Sculpture in France - Appearance, Materials, and Significance (Hardcover, New Ed): Janet E. Snyder Early Gothic Column-Figure Sculpture in France - Appearance, Materials, and Significance (Hardcover, New Ed)
Janet E. Snyder
R4,222 Discovery Miles 42 220 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

Richly illustrated, Early Gothic Column-Figure Sculpture in France is a comprehensive investigation of church portal sculpture installed between the 1130s and the 1170s. At more than twenty great churches, beginning at the Royal Abbey of Saint-Denis and extending around Paris from Provins in the east, south to Bourges and Dijon, and west to Chartres and Angers, larger than life-size statues of human figures were arranged along portal jambs, many carved as if wearing the dress of the highest ranks of French society. This study takes a close look at twelfth-century human figure sculpture, describing represented clothing, defining the language of textiles and dress that would have been legible in the twelfth-century, and investigating rationale and significance. The concepts conveyed through these extraordinary visual documents and the possible motivations of the patrons of portal programs with column-figures are examined through contemporaneous historical, textual, and visual evidence in various media. Appendices include analysis of sculpture production, and the transportation and fabrication in limestone from Paris. Janet Snyder's new study considers how patrons used sculpture to express and shape perceived reality, employing images of textiles and clothing that had political, economic, and social significances.

Hell in the Byzantine World 2 Volume Hardback Set - A History of Art and Religion in Venetian Crete and the Eastern... Hell in the Byzantine World 2 Volume Hardback Set - A History of Art and Religion in Venetian Crete and the Eastern Mediterranean (Hardcover)
Angeliki Lymberopoulou
R6,545 Discovery Miles 65 450 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

The imagery of Hell, the Christian account of the permanent destinations of the human soul after death, has fascinated people over the centuries since the emergence of the Christian faith. These landmark volumes provide the first large-scale investigation of this imagery found across the Byzantine and post-Byzantine world. Particular emphasis is placed on images from churches across Venetian Crete, which are comprehensively collected and published for the first time. Crete was at the centre of artistic production in the late Byzantine world and beyond and its imagery was highly influential on traditions in other regions. The Cretan examples accompany rich comparative material from the wider Mediterranean - Cappadocia, Macedonia, the Peloponnese and Cyprus. The large amount of data presented in this publication highlight Hell's emergence in monumental painting not as a concrete array of images, but as a diversified mirroring of social perceptions of sin.

Perspectives on Persian Painting - Illustrations to Amir Khusrau's Khamsah (Hardcover, Illustrated Ed): Barbara Brend Perspectives on Persian Painting - Illustrations to Amir Khusrau's Khamsah (Hardcover, Illustrated Ed)
Barbara Brend
R3,938 Discovery Miles 39 380 Ships in 12 - 17 working days


This is a detailed study of the illustrations to Amir Khusrau's Khamsah, in which twenty discourses are followed by a brief parable, and four romances. Amir Khusrau (1253-1325) lived the greater part of adventurous life in Delhi; he composed in Persian, and also in Hindi. From the point of view of manuscript illustration, his most important work is his Khamsah (Quintet'). Khusrau's position as a link between cultures of Persia and India means that the early illustrated copies of the Khamsah have a particular interest. The first extant exemplar is from the Persian area in the late 14th century, but a case can be made that work was probably illustrated earlier in India.

Jerusalem in the Time of the Crusades - Society, Landscape and Art in the Holy City under Frankish Rule (Hardcover): Adrian J.... Jerusalem in the Time of the Crusades - Society, Landscape and Art in the Holy City under Frankish Rule (Hardcover)
Adrian J. Boas
R3,486 Discovery Miles 34 860 Ships in 12 - 17 working days


On 15 July 1099 the Crusaders conquered Jerusalem beginning an innovative and prosperous Frankish rule over the city, which lasted a little over a hundred years and ended with the Khwarizmian conquest in 1244. This time of Crusader rule can be considered one of the most important in the history of Jerusalem. Through systematic renovation and repopulation, the Crusaders transformed a provincial town into the capital city of an eponymous kingdom: the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Adrian Boas's combined use of historical and archaeological evidence together with first-hand accounts written by visiting pilgrims results in a multi-faceted perspective of Crusader Jerusalem. This book will serve both as a scholarly account of this city's archaeology and a useful guide for the interested reader to a city at the centre of international and religious interest and conflict today.

Women Pilgrims in Late Medieval England (Hardcover): Susan S. Morrison Women Pilgrims in Late Medieval England (Hardcover)
Susan S. Morrison
R3,914 Discovery Miles 39 140 Ships in 12 - 17 working days


This thought-provoking book explores medieval perceptions of pilgrimage, gender and space. It examines real life evidence for the widespread presence of women pilgrims, as well as secular and literary texts concerning pilgrimage and women pilgrims represented in the visual arts. Women pilgrims were inextricably linked with sexuality and their presence on the pilgrimage trails was viewed as tainting sacred space.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203463803

The Art and Science of the Church Screen in Medieval Europe - Making, Meaning, Preserving (Paperback): Spike Bucklow, Richard... The Art and Science of the Church Screen in Medieval Europe - Making, Meaning, Preserving (Paperback)
Spike Bucklow, Richard Marks, Lucy Wrapson; Contributions by David Griffith, Donal Cooper, …
R884 Discovery Miles 8 840 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

Fresh examinations of one of the most important church furnishings of the middle ages. The churches of medieval Europe contained richly carved and painted screens, placed between the altar and the congregation; they survive in particularly high numbers in England, despite being partly dismantled during the Reformation. While these screens divided "lay" from "priestly" jurisdiction, it has also been argued that they served to unify architectural space. This volume brings together the latest scholarship on the subject , exploring in detail numerous aspects of the construction and painting of screens, it aims in particular to unite perspectives from science and art history. Examples are drawn from a wide geographical range, from Scandinavia to Italy.

A Short History of the Middle Ages, Sixth Edition (Paperback, 6th Revised edition): Barbara Rosenwein A Short History of the Middle Ages, Sixth Edition (Paperback, 6th Revised edition)
Barbara Rosenwein
R1,409 Discovery Miles 14 090 Ships in 9 - 15 working days

In this new edition of A Short History of the Middle Ages, Barbara H. Rosenwein offers a panoramic view of the medieval world from Iceland to China and from Sweden to West Africa. Yet the book never loses sight of the main contours of the period (c.300 to c.1500) or of the fate of the heirs of the Roman Empire. Its lively and informative narrative covers the major events, political and religious movements, men and women, saints and sinners, economic and cultural changes, ideals, fears, and fantasies of the period in Europe, Byzantium, and the Islamic world. A comprehensive new map program, updated for the global reach of this edition, offers a way to visualize the era's enormous political, economic, and religious changes. Line drawings make clear archaeological finds and architectural structures All of the maps, genealogies, and figures in the book, as well as practice questions and suggested answers, are available at utphistorymatters.com,

Italy, Cyprus, and Artistic Exchange in the Medieval Mediterranean (Hardcover): Anthi Andronikou Italy, Cyprus, and Artistic Exchange in the Medieval Mediterranean (Hardcover)
Anthi Andronikou
R2,420 R2,247 Discovery Miles 22 470 Save R173 (7%) Ships in 12 - 17 working days

In this volume Anthi Andronikou explores the social, cultural, religious and trade encounters between Italy and Cyprus during the late Middle Ages, from ca. 1200 -1400, and situates them within several Mediterranean contexts. Revealing the complex artistic exchange between the two regions for the first time, she probes the rich but neglected cultural interaction through comparison of the intriguing thirteenth-century wall paintings in rock-cut churches of Apulia and Basilicata, the puzzling panels of the Madonna della Madia and the Madonna di Andria, and painted chapels in Cyprus, Lebanon, and Syria. Andronikou also investigates fourteenth-century cross-currents that have not been adequately studied, notably the cult of Saint Aquinas in Cyprus, Crusader propaganda in Santa Maria Novella in Florence, and a unique series of icons crafted by Venetian painters working in Cyprus. Offering new insights into Italian and Byzantine visual cultures, her book contributes to a broader understanding of cultural production and worldviews of the medieval Mediterranean.

Universe of Stone - Chartres Cathedral and the Invention of the Gothic (Paperback): Philip Ball Universe of Stone - Chartres Cathedral and the Invention of the Gothic (Paperback)
Philip Ball
R517 R434 Discovery Miles 4 340 Save R83 (16%) Ships in 10 - 15 working days

Chartres Cathedral, south of Paris, is revered as one of the most beautiful and profound works of art in the Western canon. But what did it mean to those who constructed it in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries--and why was it built at such immense height and with such glorious play of light, in the soaring manner we now call Gothic?

In this eminently fascinating work, author Philip Ball makes sense of the visual and emotional power of Chartres and brilliantly explores how its construction--and the creation of other Gothic cathedrals--represented a profound and dramatic shift in the way medieval thinkers perceived their relationship with their world. Beautifully illustrated and written, filled with astonishing insight, "Universe of Stone" embeds the magnificent cathedral in the culture of the twelfth century--its schools of philosophy and science, its trades and technologies, its politics and religious debates--enabling us to view this ancient architectural marvel with fresh eyes.

Temples and Towns - The Form, Elements, and Principles of Planned Towns (Paperback): Michael Dennis Temples and Towns - The Form, Elements, and Principles of Planned Towns (Paperback)
Michael Dennis
R1,144 Discovery Miles 11 440 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

This book traces the historic evolution of urban form, principles, and design; it serves as a compendium, or reference, of city design; and is a polemic about the necessity for the recovery of the city and a contemporary urban architecture. It begins with the planned cities of Greece and the Roman Empire from about 500 BC, through the late-medieval Bastides, the Ideal Renaissance cities, and Baroque new towns, to the urban planning strategies of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It covers anti-urban modernist architecture and the resulting disintegration of the city. It concludes with late-twentieth-century efforts to recover the city, a contemporary urban architecture, and urbanism's potential contribution to the contemporary ecological crisis. The book is project oriented and extensively illustrated. It may be read graphically, textually, or both. As such, it falls into the long tradition of illustrated treatises in which theory is embedded in the projects, with only occasional assistance or clarification from the text. Architecture and urban design are physical arts, not verbal arts, and they are best understood from graphic representations.

Bestiary - Being an English Version of the Bodleian Library, Oxford, MS Bodley 764 (Paperback, New Ed): Richard Barber Bestiary - Being an English Version of the Bodleian Library, Oxford, MS Bodley 764 (Paperback, New Ed)
Richard Barber
R608 R550 Discovery Miles 5 500 Save R58 (10%) Ships in 9 - 15 working days

A delightful translation of one of the finest, and most beautiful, examples of a medieval Bestiary. Bestiaries are a particularly characteristic product of medieval England, and give a unique insight into the medieval mind. Richly illuminated and lavishly produced, they were luxury objects for noble families. Their three-fold purpose was to provide a natural history of birds, beasts and fishes, to draw moral examples from animal behaviour (the industrious bee, the stubborn ass), and to reveal a mystical meaning - the phoenix, for instance, as a symbol ofChrist's resurrection. This Bestiary, MS Bodley 764, was produced around the middle of the thirteenth century and is of singular beauty and interest. The lively illustrations have the freedom and naturalistic quality ofthe later Gothic style, and make dazzling use of colour. This book reproduces the 136 illuminations to the same size and in the same place as the original manuscript, fitting the text around them. Richard Barber's translation from the original Latin is a delight to read, capturing both the serious intent of the manuscript and its charm. RICHARD BARBER has written many books on the history of and life in the middle ages, from his Somerset MaughamAward-winning The Knight and Chivalry, by way of biographies of Henry II and the Black Prince, to an anthology of Arthurian literature from England, France and Germany, Arthurian Legends, and an account of the historical Arthur, King Arthur: Hero and Legend.

Global Byzantium - Papers from the Fiftieth Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies (Hardcover): Leslie Brubaker, Rebecca Darley,... Global Byzantium - Papers from the Fiftieth Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies (Hardcover)
Leslie Brubaker, Rebecca Darley, Daniel Reynolds
R4,535 Discovery Miles 45 350 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

This book analyses the global influence of the Byzantine Empire, which will appeal to all those interested in Byzantine History / This book expands upon the theme of 'Byzantium and its neighbours', by looking into the cultural and geographical influence of Byzantium / This book will appeal to all those interested in Byzantine Culture and the Byzantine economy.

Postcolonising the Medieval Image (Paperback): Eva Frojmovic, Catherine E. Karkov Postcolonising the Medieval Image (Paperback)
Eva Frojmovic, Catherine E. Karkov
R1,331 Discovery Miles 13 310 Ships in 9 - 15 working days

Postcolonial theories have transformed literary, historical and cultural studies over the past three decades. Yet the study of medieval art and visualities has, in general, remained Eurocentric in its canon and conservative in its approaches. 'Postcolonising', as the eleven essays in this volume show, entails active intervention into the field of medieval art history and visual studies through a theoretical reframing of research. This approach poses and elicits new research questions, and tests how concepts current in postcolonial studies - such as diaspora and migration, under-represented artistic cultures, accented art making, displacement, intercultural versus transcultural, hybridity, presence/absence - can help medievalists to reinvigorate the study of art and visuality. Postcolonial concepts are deployed in order to redraft the canon of medieval art, thereby seeking to build bridges between medievalist and modernist communities of scholars. Among the varied topics explored in the volume are the appropriation of Roman iconography by early medieval Scandinavian metalworkers, multilingualism and materiality in Anglo-Saxon culture, the circulation and display of Islamic secular ceramics on Pisan churches, cultural negotiation by Jewish minorities in Central Europe and the Iberian peninsula, Holy Land maps and medieval imaginative geography, and the uses of Thomas Becket in the colonial imaginary of the Plantagenet court.

Portraying the Aztec Past - The Codices Boturini, Azcatitlan, and Aubin (Paperback): Angela Herren Rajagopalan Portraying the Aztec Past - The Codices Boturini, Azcatitlan, and Aubin (Paperback)
Angela Herren Rajagopalan
R756 Discovery Miles 7 560 Ships in 12 - 17 working days

During the period of Aztec expansion and empire (ca. 1325-1525), scribes of high social standing used a pictographic writing system to paint hundreds of manuscripts detailing myriad aspects of life, including historical, calendric, and religious information. Following the Spanish conquest, native and mestizo tlacuiloque (artist-scribes) of the sixteenth century continued to use pre-Hispanic pictorial writing systems to record information about native culture. Three of these manuscripts-Codex Boturini, Codex Azcatitlan, and Codex Aubin-document the origin and migration of the Mexica people, one of several indigenous groups often collectively referred to as "Aztec." In Portraying the Aztec Past, Angela Herren Rajagopalan offers a thorough study of these closely linked manuscripts, articulating their narrative and formal connections and examining differences in format, style, and communicative strategies. Through analyses that focus on the materials, stylistic traits, facture, and narrative qualities of the codices, she places these annals in their historical and social contexts. Her work adds to our understanding of the production and function of these manuscripts and explores how Mexica identity is presented and framed after the conquest.

Free Delivery
Pinterest Twitter Facebook Google+
You may like...
Secrets of the Bayeux Tapestry
Brian Williams, Brenda Williams Paperback R182 R137 Discovery Miles 1 370
The Bright Ages - A New History of…
Matthew Gabriele, David M. Perry Paperback R293 Discovery Miles 2 930
Maps of Medieval Thought - The Hereford…
Naomi Kline Paperback R734 Discovery Miles 7 340
Figural Sculpture in Eleventh-Century…
Magdalena Skoblar Paperback R1,238 Discovery Miles 12 380
Fashion in the Age of the Black Prince…
Stella Mary Newton Paperback R591 Discovery Miles 5 910
Simone Martini in Orvieto
Nathaniel Silver Hardcover R1,125 Discovery Miles 11 250
Negotiating Cultural Identity…
Himanshu Prabha Ray Paperback R1,273 Discovery Miles 12 730
Saints as Intercessors between the…
Emily Kelley, Cynthia Turner Camp Paperback R1,249 Discovery Miles 12 490
Animals in Art and Thought - To the End…
Francis Klingender Paperback R1,526 Discovery Miles 15 260
Giotto's Arena Chapel and the Triumph of…
Henrike Christiane Lange Hardcover R1,370 R1,295 Discovery Miles 12 950

 

Partners