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Books by Pippa Salonius

Trees as Symbol and Metaphor in the Middle Ages: Comparative Contexts, 2024

The chapters interrogate the pre-Anthropocene environment, reflecting on trees as metaphors for kinship and knowledge as they appear in literary, historical, art-historical, and philosophical sources. They examine images of trees and trees in-themselves across a range of environmental, material, and intellectual contexts, and consider how humans used arboreal and rhizomatic forms to negotiate bodies of knowledge and processes of transition. Looking beyond medieval Europe, they include discussion of parallel developments in the Islamic world and that of the Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand.

As a vital image of life, the Tree has a longstanding tradition as a polyvalent metaphor, symbol,... more As a vital image of life, the Tree has a longstanding tradition as a polyvalent metaphor, symbol, and allegorical subject. Its progressive expansion from seed to maturity is unique in the natural world, it is grounded in the earth and reaches for the sky. Its growth is a process of differentiation: roots, trunk, branches, twigs, leaves and fruit, which makes the tree a perfect image for representing complex content in a structured allegory. From the twelfth century onwards it is increasingly used as a diagrammatic device for the visual systematisation of knowledge in art. This collection of essays presents a series of case studies analysing different manifestations of trees in art and thought from the eleventh through to the fifteenth century. Using a broad range of methodological strategies and examining diverse materials, the contributions in this volume examine how these trees functioned in their original framework. Illuminated manuscripts, wall paintings, stained glass and sculpture all feature as media for the motif, which is explored both for its crucial role in the story of human salvation, and as a visual model for genealogical and historical structures. Presented as a single volume, these essays successfully illustrate the complex network of meaning behind medieval imagery, and provide new insight to our understanding of both message and audience in the Middle Ages.

Articles and Contributions in Edited Volumes by Pippa Salonius

Trees as Symbol and Metaphor in the Middle Ages, 2024

Forests, with their interlacing networks of trees and secret patterns of communication, are power... more Forests, with their interlacing networks of trees and secret patterns of communication, are powerful entities for thinking-with. A majestic terrestrial community of arboreal others, their presence echoes, entangles, and resonates deeply with the human world. The essays collected here aim to highlight human encounters with the forest and its trees at the time of the European Middle Ages, when, whether symbol and metaphor, or actual, their lofty boughs were weighted with meaning.

The chapters interrogate the pre-Anthropocene environment reflecting on trees as metaphors for kinship and knowledge as they appear in literary, historical, art-historical and philosophical sources. They examine images of trees and trees in-themselves across a range of environmental, material, and intellectual contexts, and consider how humans used arboreal and rhizomatic forms to negotiate bodies of knowledge and processes of transition. Looking beyond medieval Europe, they include discussion of parallel developments in the Islamic world and that of the Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand.

Per Cognitionem Visualem: The Visualization of Natural Processes in the Middle Ages, 2023

In the second half of the thirteenth century the papal court regularly took up residence in Orvie... more In the second half of the thirteenth century the papal court regularly took up
residence in Orvieto, swelling the city population and transforming it. With the pope present, the city became the capital of Christendom. Rulers met there, kings and queens visited from afar, international petitions and pleas were heard and decided in its courts. Ritual and ceremony mattered, the tenuous balance of earthly power was often held within its walls. It was in this milieu, where the presence of the pope,Vicar of Christ and his companions breathed life, energy, money and power into the town, that the personalities and exceptional careers of two local prelates were formed. My paper follows the movements of bishop Francesco of Bagnoregio and cardinal Theoderic of Orvieto as they navigated their way through the administrative apparatus of the medieval Church. Their seals are considered crucial expressions of their identity both as members of the Church and followers of Christ, in the footsteps of the apostles. Analysis of bishop Francesco’s seals raises new questions regarding his identity as a member of the Monaldeschi family.The rediscovery of Theoderic’s seal as bishop elect of Palermo, published here for the first time, presents an exciting new iconographic version of the Calling of Saint Andrew. Within the Church, these prelates associated with men of similar legal and administrative formation, common experience as tax collectors, and these networks are visible in the shared patronage of artists like the Sienese goldsmith Guccio di Mannaia for their seals.

The Tree: Symbol, Allegory and Mnemonic Device in Medieval Art and Thought, eds. Pippa Salonius and Andrea Worm, IMR 20, Jun 2014

Visible Exports/Imports. New Research on Medieval and Renaissance European Art and Culture, eds. E. J. Anderson, J. Farquhar and J. Richards (Cambridge Scholars, 2012), 2012

Encyclopedia of Sculpture, ed. Antonia Böstrom, 3 vols. Fitzroy Dearborn, 2004

Book Reviews by Pippa Salonius

Journal of Iconography, 2017

Trees as Symbol and Metaphor in the Middle Ages: Comparative Contexts, 2024

Trees as Symbol and Metaphor in the Middle Ages, 2024

Per Cognitionem Visualem: The Visualization of Natural Processes in the Middle Ages, 2023

The Tree: Symbol, Allegory and Mnemonic Device in Medieval Art and Thought, eds. Pippa Salonius and Andrea Worm, IMR 20, Jun 2014

Visible Exports/Imports. New Research on Medieval and Renaissance European Art and Culture, eds. E. J. Anderson, J. Farquhar and J. Richards (Cambridge Scholars, 2012), 2012

Encyclopedia of Sculpture, ed. Antonia Böstrom, 3 vols. Fitzroy Dearborn, 2004

Journal of Iconography, 2017

The strong sense of belonging that pervades both medieval Christian imaginary and Māoritanga has ... more The strong sense of belonging that pervades both medieval Christian imaginary and Māoritanga has the power to invoke authority, it shows political alliances and networks, and distinguishes the 'Other'. Deliberately used in expressions of power, it could define territorial and administrative boundaries. Effectively manipulated, it appealed to its audience in their desire to be included. It had the ability to shape and define identities. Our paper will examine sacred images of belonging and lineage evoked in oral and visual discourse across the two cultures. We are interested in lineage and expressions of belonging that convey concepts of hierarchy and power. How do images of the medieval Christian cult of saints, with their function as intercessors for humanity, compare with Māori whakapapa? Roman Catholic administration, with the pope at its head, is often likened to the body of the Church in the Middle Ages. Indeed, both the wharenui or Māori meeting house and the cathedral can be identified in terms of the body and its parts. How does this compare with the symbolic meaning of the wharenui as an ancestor of its people? Thinking in terms of lineage, can we compare the didactic function of medieval Christian motifs and mnemonic devices like the Tree of Jesse, with the sculpted histories narrated on the poupou or heke in the wharenui or told in Māori pūrākau? How do medieval Christian constructs of time and space compare with those in Māoritanga? With this cross-cultural consideration of belonging in the medieval imagination we seek to amplify North-South dialogues in historical emotions research and augment cross-disciplinary dialogue on issues of religion and communication.

Abstract for ANZAMEMS Conference 'Mobility and Exchange', Victoria University of Wellington, New ... more Abstract for ANZAMEMS Conference 'Mobility and Exchange', Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, 7-10 February 2017

Birkbeck Medieval Seminar: 'Medieval Textiles: Meaning and Materiality', Birbeck, University of L... more Birkbeck Medieval Seminar: 'Medieval Textiles: Meaning and Materiality', Birbeck, University of London, 25 November 2016

Convegno dal titolo: "Cristo e il potere nel Medioevo: Teologia, antropologia e politica", organi... more Convegno dal titolo: "Cristo e il potere nel Medioevo: Teologia, antropologia e politica", organizzato dall'Opera del Duomo di Orvieto e dalla Società Internazionale per lo studio del Medioevo latino (SISMEL-Firenze), Orvieto, 10-12 November 2016

Abstract for Conference: Textile Gifts in the Middle Ages – Objects, Actors, and Representations ... more Abstract for Conference: Textile Gifts in the Middle Ages – Objects, Actors, and Representations (Textilschenkungen im Mittelalter)
Bibliotheca Hertziana, Max-Planck-Institut für Kunstgeschichte, Rome, 3-4 November 2016

Abstract for Conference: Medieval Europe in Motion 3: Circulations juridiques et pratiques artist... more Abstract for Conference: Medieval Europe in Motion 3: Circulations juridiques et pratiques artistiques, intellectuelles et culturelles en Europe au Moyen Âge (XIIIe – XVe siècle), Institute of Medieval Studies (IEM), Universidade Nova de Lisboa and Biblioteca
Nacional de Portugal Lisbon, 25-27 February 2016

The papers in this session will address the Latin concept of auctoritas, a referencing mechanism ... more The papers in this session will address the Latin concept of auctoritas, a referencing mechanism that by the Middle Ages had become a constituent feature of European civilization. The interdisciplinary research presented recognizes that although this system of citing authoritative precedents relied on the cooperation and interaction of texts and readers, its expression was not limited to the written medium. It may be useful to think in terms of image, imagining, artist, and creator, when considering ‘cultures of authority’ in medieval and early modern Europe. No authority could surpass the divine source of liturgy and scripture, and yet, as the creator of all living things, the work of God was most immediately cited in images of the natural world. This last practice was a privilege of the artist. Moreover, citation of lesser authors of canonical ancient and medieval texts validated human intellectual pursuits: A dynamic that permeated Humanist ideals and profoundly changed the art of the Renaissance.

The period under examination intentionally ranges beyond the boundaries of the Renaissance in order to highlight patterns of change and continuity against the backdrop of differences between the authority of printed books and manuscripts. Our enquiry is deliberately expansive, including discussion of art, culture and literature. It focuses on the figure of the author as a creative source of imagining and images, so leading to parallels with divine authority and the work of the Creator. The terms ‘image’ and ‘artist’ are considered in their broadest sense, so as to include, without bias, both textual and visual communication. Nature and the natural world are often used as authoritative images, an association and underlying theme which we hope will be explored in this session.

"On the Orvieto cathedral façade, the extensive salvation discourse is presented to its audience... more "On the Orvieto cathedral façade, the extensive salvation discourse is presented to its
audience in the form of four great sculpted trees. Complementing the arboreal
framework, botanically accurate representations of fruit and foliage, interspersed with
geometric designs, provide a running commentary to the primary narrative. My paper will
discuss these representations of nature and the natural world in relation to the
environment of scientific enquiry at the papal court in Orvieto.
A favored residence of the papal court throughout the thirteenth century, Orvieto was a
crucial site of encounter, where Kings, Princes and their consorts, Cardinals and Bishops,
together with some of the greatest scholars of their time gathered about the Pope. The
mendicant doctors of the Church Albertus Magnus, his pupil Thomas Aquinas, and their
Franciscan counterpart Bonaventure, all sojourned in the city during the residency of
Urban IV (1261-1264). Simon of Genoa, medicus capellanus at the court of Nicholas
IV(1288-1292), encyclopaedist, scholar of Greek, Arabic and Latin texts, author,
compiler and translator of the glossary of medical terms Clavis sanationis, and botanical
explorer, had most certainly resided in the city. As did the Franciscan author of the
encyclopaedic Liber de moralitatibus, Marcus of Orvieto, who dedicated the work to his
patron, cardinal Benedict Caetani. My presentation will draw attention to the erudite
spheres of learning present in the peripheral cities of the Patrimony of Saint Peter during
periods of papal residency, where, local memory of true civic grandeur is recorded in
images."

The Church utilized cathedral façades, ideal spaces for public declarations, as places to sanctio... more The Church utilized cathedral façades, ideal spaces for public declarations, as places to sanction official worldviews and propagate ‘truth’ to its subjects. Italian pictorial narrative in this context was often discursive, employing iconographic content, as much as didactic method. A sculpted Genesis sequence on Orvieto’s cathedral façade terminates with illustrations of human achievement, complementing the recurring theme of human perseverance in the quest for knowledge pervading the reliefs, and suggesting knowledge acquisition as means to salvation. Agostino Paravicini Bagliani emphasizes the well-established relationship between Church politics and scientific exploration in the late Middle Ages. Although modern perception may find this rapport contradictory, it was widely recognized and accepted by the contemporary public. This paper examines the role of monumental church decoration in propagating and promoting the erudition of the papal court, and how the Church publicly invoked reference to scientific and technical accomplishments to lend doctrine an aura of ‘truth’.

The iconographic program on the pilasters of the Orvieto cathedral façade has yet to be fully dec... more The iconographic program on the pilasters of the Orvieto cathedral façade has yet to be fully deciphered. One need only point out that the articles by John White (1959) and Michael Taylor (1980-1981), published a good thirty years ago, are still fundamental reading material on the subject. My paper will build on the latest research connecting Saint Bonaventure’s lectures on the Hexaemeron, given at the University of Paris in 1273, to the unusual use of trees as a diagrammatic structure for the façade reliefs. Particular attention will be given to the first pilaster of these didactic reliefs, whose lower panels illustrate episodes from the story of Genesis. My intention is to amplify the discussion of this imagery and consider it in relation to the history of hexaemeral literature. Attention will also be given to the three allegorical panels situated above the episodes, showing the creation of the world and man. These reliefs, which close the Genesis cycle, have traditionally been identified as illustrations of the Descendents of Cain. I would like to draw attention to the sophisticated representation of Man’s intellectual achievements in these panels, and I will discuss how this emphasis on learning is stressed throughout the entire relief program. Although the change in focus is subtle in my interpretation of the Genesis pilaster at Orvieto, I believe it is an essential shift towards furthering our knowledge of the design and reception of visual discourse in late medieval Italy.

The iconographic program on the pilasters of the Orvieto cathedral façade has yet to be fully dec... more The iconographic program on the pilasters of the Orvieto cathedral façade has yet to be fully deciphered. One need only point out that the articles by John White (1959) and Michael Taylor (1980-1981) were published a good thirty years ago and are still fundamental reading material on the subject. My paper will build on recent proposals suggesting the eastern origins of the complex type Tree of Jesse at Orvieto, and mendicant agency in the transmission of this motif to Western Europe. Saint Bonaventure’s lectures on the Hexaemeron (1273) have been identified as an iconographic source for the sculptural layout. I will amplify the discussion to consider the history of hexaemeral literature, with particular focus on its relationship to the Genesis reliefs at Orvieto. The first extant work of hexaemeral literature written in Greek was a commentary of the Genesis by Philo Judaeus, who drew material from the Hebrew Bible, Plato’s Timaeus, Platonising neo-Pythagoreans and the Stoics. Subsequently, the most influential texts in the tradition were by Basil of Caesarea (d. 379) and Augustine of Hippo (d. 430). The fact that each new work was an imitation of earlier treatises is particularly relevant to the topic of this conference ‘Cultures in Translation’. The Hexaemeron can be traced through centuries of literature. The commentary was translated from Greek to Latin and then into subsequent languages, (John Milton’s Paradise Lost, 1667 is a later example). My paper will trace this tradition through its scholastic authors to Orvieto, where we ultimately see text transformed to image in the sculpted reliefs on the cathedral façade.

Orvieto was a city frequently occupied by the papal court in the second half of the thirteenth ce... more Orvieto was a city frequently occupied by the papal court in the second half of the thirteenth century. In periods of papal occupancy, it was a cosmopolitan centre full of wealthy, sophisticated, politically-minded foreigners. As such, it is the ideal case study for the movement and transmission of art and ideas in late medieval Europe. At the outset its cathedral project was an ecclesiastic affair, although civic government did become a major decision maker early on in its construction history. In this paper I will examine some of the city cathedral’s primary motivators and patrons, paying attention to the sophisticated nature of their commissions and relating it to their travel experiences.
Knowledge of Girolamo d’Ascoli’s travels to the Byzantine Imperial Court and the Dalmatian Coast is crucial to understanding the façade iconography on the Orvieto cathedral. Moreover, two of the cathedral’s greatest donors, popes Nicholas IV and Boniface VIII, had both spent significant periods of time in Paris earlier in their ecclesiastic careers. This may account for the unusual expanse of relief sculpture on the cathedral façade, which in its choice of material and technique, imitates French façade decoration. Theodoric, the Orvietan cardinal and papal chamberlain to Boniface VIII, whose seals demonstrate him an innovative and discerning patron of the arts, also travelled extensively on papal business in northern Europe. Travels within the Italian peninsula on the other hand seem to have influenced Bishop Francesco, who was the major personality and driving force behind two of Italy’s most splendid Gothic cathedrals: those of Orvieto and Florence. His papal embassies to both Venice and Genoa probably inspired the combination of mosaic, bronze and relief-work at Orvieto, common to the façade programmes of the major churches in all three cities.

The cathedral of Orvieto was conceived as a pilgrimage site. Its primary attraction was the eucha... more The cathedral of Orvieto was conceived as a pilgrimage site. Its primary attraction was the eucharistic relic of the Holy Corporal, a piece of linen cloth stained with the blood of Christ produced by the miracle of Bolsena in 1264. The reliquary built to house it was one of the largest ever to have been produced by a Sienese goldsmith’s workshop (60 x 139 cm) and was finely worked in silver, gold, gems and translucent enamel. A frieze around its base names Tramo Monaldeschi, bishop of Orvieto as the primary motivator behind its commission, alongside the papal chaplain, the archpriest and the canons of the cathedral. The Monaldeschi coat of arms accompanies that of the State of Orvieto at the end of the inscription. This paper explores the relationship between the precious reliquary and its named patrons. I will examine the political motivation behind the reliquary’s commission, and the subsequent method of its presentation and display. I will also discuss how intentional similarities in the form and style of the reliquary and the cathedral which housed it added further layers of political meaning to the work of art and its contents. Finally, the path of the religious procession in which the relics were paraded through the city shall be traced in an attempt to understand how such a performance further enhanced the meaning of the object and augmented its fame, together with the reputation of its patrons and the State that housed them.

Visible Exports / Imports: New Research on Medieval and Renaissance European Art and Culture

22 June 2019, Birkbeck College, University of London A Symposium Hosted by Medieval Ecocriticisms... more 22 June 2019, Birkbeck College, University of London
A Symposium Hosted by Medieval Ecocriticisms and N/EMICS

We are pleased to announce that Trames Arborescentes is preparing a panel proposal for the Intern... more We are pleased to announce that Trames Arborescentes is preparing a panel proposal for the International Network for Theory of History (INTH) conference (http://www.inth.ugent.be/conference) that will take place in Stockholm on August 2018.
“Place and Displacement: The Spacing of History” has been chosen as the main theme for the aforementioned meeting. Within this framework, Trames Arborescentes has decided to participate by proposing a panel that will gather several speakers around the subject “Branches of Time. Thinking and Representing History through the Arboreal Motif”.
Proposals containing personal information (including academic affiliation), an abstract (up to 300 words), and a short bio are welcome for this panel. Documents may be submitted to our email address tramesarborescentes@gmail.com before January 14, 2018.

We are pleased to announce that Trames Arborescentes is preparing a symposium for the European So... more We are pleased to announce that Trames Arborescentes is preparing a symposium for the European Society for the History of Science’s conference (http://www.eshs.org/?lang=en) that will take place in London on September 2018.
«Unity and Disunity» has been chosen as the main theme for the aforementioned meeting. Within this framework, Trames Arborescentes has decided to participate by proposing a commented panel that will gather four speakers around the subject «Sacred Science: Learning from the Tree».
Proposals containing personal information (including academic affiliation), an abstract, and a short bio are welcome for this panel. The document may be submitted to our email address tramesarborescentes@gmail.com before December 12.

L'Opera del Duomo di Orvieto e la S.I.S.M.E.L. (Società Internazionale per lo Studio del Medioevo... more L'Opera del Duomo di Orvieto e la S.I.S.M.E.L. (Società Internazionale per lo Studio del Medioevo Latino) sono lieti di partecipare la presentazione del volume «Cristo e il potere. Teologia, antropologia e politica» a cura di Laura Andreani e Agostino Paravicini Bagliani, Firenze, SISMEL - Edizioni del Galluzzo, 2017. L'evento avrà luogo giovedì 23 novembre 2017 alle ore 17.00, presso Palazzo Soliano – Museo Emilio Greco, Orvieto. Interverranno: Franco Cardini (Istituto di Scienze Umane e Sociali
Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa) e Roberto Lambertini (Università di Macerata)

Call for Papers: Memories of our ancestors mould us. Key to determining our identities and shapin... more Call for Papers: Memories of our ancestors mould us. Key to determining our identities and shaping our sense of self, they help us construct our own microcosms of belonging. Blood ties bind us together building communities. These memories give us a sense of belonging, they are inclusive and as social animals, we gain strength from them. As parts of a historical and genealogical whole, in Medieval Christian thought we all stem from the same seed, that of Adam. We seek papers that explore the use of arboreal imagery to convey concepts of lineage, genealogy and descent. Tree diagrams were used in the Middle Ages to organise ethics and knowledge. They express hierarchy and classify categories and sub-categories visually. They rendered difficult intellectual concepts accessible to the wider audience and helped scholars put complex issues in order. In both cases, trees were performative and carried their own significance. With their roots deep in the earth and their branches reaching towards the heavens, trees span the distance between the earthly realm and the divine. As mnemonic devices, their branching nature hints at the possibility of infinite multiplication and growth, urging viewers to engage with the data they contain. In the medieval West a renewed interest in mnemotechnic treatises and artefacts, together with a growing tendency for listing processes, increased the use of arboreal imagery in the twelfth century. From the thirteenth century, the use of tree structures together with the translation and dissemination of treatises on the art of memory and the development of vast encyclopaedic projects, constituted an important part of monastic, mendicant and university education. By the fifteenth century the tree had become the most common method for mapping knowledge in medieval Europe. Tree diagrams are not static in time, but reach across it. Not only do they present knowledge, they encourage its future development and generation. Neither were they geographically confined. Trees flourished in the imaginary of many cultures as memory stimulators and storage. The world trees in pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica, Yggdrasil in Norse mythology, Māori purakau (stemming from rakau, the root word for tree), tales told for didactic purposes, represent but a few examples. We seek to identify and explore both the similarities and differences in this nexus between trees, lineage and memory across cultures. In the interest of establishing an interdisciplinary global platform, we encourage proposals that examine arboreal frameworks of lineage and memory across medieval cultures, throughout Christendom and beyond, to include the indigenous cultures of America, Asia and the Pacific. 'Arboreal' and 'imagery' are used in the broadest sense of the terms in order to encourage interdisciplinary enquiry into both visual motifs and arboreal images conjured up by words, movement and/or sound.

this volume can be purchased on line: http://www.sismel.it/tidetails.asp?hdntiid=1577

From the 10th to 12th November 2016, the Opera of the Duomo of Orvieto together with the SISMEL ... more From the 10th to 12th November 2016, the Opera of the Duomo of Orvieto together
with the SISMEL has gathered high-level scholars of theology and political anthropology
to deepen the topics about the relationship between Christ and power, which
is at the center of medieval and modern political theology, at least starting from the
studies of Ernst H. Kantorowicz on Laudes regiae forwards. The meeting has compared
the modes – conceptual, metaphorical, ritual, as well as political and institutional –
that have induced the various medieval sovereignties to refer to Christ «King of the
kings and Lord of lords» (Ap 19, 16).
To undertake the various strategies based on this complex Christomimesis, starting
with studies that can be considered representative, special attention has been given
to universal sovereignties (Byzantium, Empire, Papacy), to some kingdoms (Norman,
France, England, Naples, Portugal, Castile), to the ducal courts of Burgundy and
Savoy, as well as to historical-artistic aspects linked with cultural and political events
of the Orvietan cathedral

Memories of our ancestors mould us. Key to determining our identities and shaping our sense of se... more Memories of our ancestors mould us. Key to determining our identities and shaping our sense of self, they help us construct our own microcosms of belonging. Blood ties bind us together building communities. These memories give us a sense of belonging, they are inclusive and as social animals, we gain strength from them. As parts of a historical and genealogical whole, in medieval Christian thought we all stem from the same seed, that of Adam. Our family trees, the memory of our lineage, branch from its shoots. Trees, with their roots buried deep in the earth and their branches reaching towards the heavens, strive to span the distance between the earthly realm and the divine.

We have reunited papers that explore the use of arboreal imagery to convey concepts of lineage, genealogy and descent. Tree diagrams were used in the Middle Ages to organise ethics and knowledge. They express hierarchy and classify categories and sub-categories visually. They rendered difficult intellectual concepts accessible to the wider audience and helped scholars put complex issues in order. In both cases, trees were performative and carried their own significance. As mnemonic devices, their branching nature hints at the possibility of infinite multiplication and growth, urging viewers to engage with the data they contain. In the medieval West a renewed interest in mnemotechnic treatises and artefacts, together with a growing tendency for listing processes, increased the use of arboreal imagery in the twelfth century. From the thirteenth century, the use of tree structures together with the translation and dissemination of treatises on the art of memory and the development of vast encyclopaedic projects, constituted an important part of monastic, mendicant and university education. By the fifteenth century the tree had become the most common method for mapping knowledge in medieval Europe.

Tree diagrams are not static in time, but reach across it. Not only do they present knowledge, but with the possibility of endless ramification and growth, they encourage its future development and generation. Neither were they geographically confined. Trees flourished in the imaginary of many cultures as memory stimulators and storage. The world trees in pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica, Yggdrasil in Norse mythology, Māori purakau (stemming from rakau, the root word for tree), tales told for didactic purposes, represent but a few examples. We seek to identify and explore both the similarities and differences in this nexus between living trees, lineage and memory across cultures. In the interest of establishing an interdisciplinary global platform, we encouraged proposals that examine arboreal frameworks of lineage and memory across medieval cultures, throughout Christendom and beyond, to include the indigenous cultures of America, Asia and the Pacific. ‘Arboreal’ and ‘imagery’ are used in the broadest sense of the terms in order to encourage interdisciplinary enquiry into the full range of associated motifs, conjured up by words, movement and/or sound.

Our topics and perspectives include but are not limited to:

Metaphors of knowledge: Seeds, trees and ideas.
Links between human ancestry, natural history and botany: Arbor consanguinitatis, Arbor affinitatis?
Arboreal imagery as a pedagogical device.
Songlines: Arboreal frameworks for memory and mapping.
Medieval Music and the Tree.
Sacred Trees and Human History.
The transitory nature of death in the Middle Ages: The tree as intermediary between the world of the living and that of the dead.
Trees in Juridical Thought: Authority, Jurisdiction, Prohibition.
Arboreal imagery in architecture: columns and pilasters, decoration and structure.
Trees and the art of memory. Tree diagrams.
Trees and world order.
Materiality: The meaning of wood, bark and foliage in (ceremonial) dress and gifts.
The Tree at the centre.
The Tree of Life (‘Gunungan’ in Javanese shadow puppet plays, in the Jewish/Christian Tradition, etc.)
Family Trees.

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Parergon, 2013

Review(s) of: The Gothic stained glass of reims cathedral, by Lillich, Meredith Parsons, Universi... more Review(s) of: The Gothic stained glass of reims cathedral, by Lillich, Meredith Parsons, University Park, Pennsylvania State University Press, 2011, hardback, pp. 364, 100 colour, 158 b/w illustrations, R.R.P. US$59.95, ISBN 9780271037776.

Symbol, Allegory, and Mnemonic Device in Medieval Art and Thought, 2014

Orvieto was a place of popes in the second half of the thirteenth century. Urban IV, Gregory X, M... more Orvieto was a place of popes in the second half of the thirteenth century. Urban IV, Gregory X, Martin IV, Nicholas IV and Boniface VIII all held court there. The pope and his numerous entourage made what was essentially a modest hill top town of artisans and feudal nobility, a magnet for men of wealth and culture. Its Gothic cathedral, which still houses one of the most renowned eucharistic relics in Christendom, was conceived in this cosmopolitan atmosphere. Its facade iconography addressed both intellectuals and less educated members of the Orvietan populace. This thesis begins by examining the geographic and political environment which contributed to the realisation of one of Italy's great Gothic cathedrals. Comparisons between the architectural structure of the Cathedral in Orvieto and Roman basilicas are followed by an examination of its western facade in relation to possible iconographic sources deriving from a broader European context. The unusual technical combination o...