Descrizione

Ein gutes und sauberes Exemplar. - The primary scope of this book is to present the major extant painted decorative programs of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem (1099-1187) in an accurate written description and photographic documentation. A clear and accurate documentation of their present state of preservation is, unfortunately, the only way to counteract the ongoing process of decay suffered by these monumental wall paintings. The presentation of the material is accompanied by an art historical interpretation, the first which takes into consideration the bulk of extant Crusader monumental programs in the Holy Land. The stylistic and iconographie interpretation is based on comparative material, presented to the reader in black and white photos. In view of the considerable volume of the material, only the wall paintings are presented in this publication, the mosaics of the Crusader Kingdom having been relegated to a forthcoming study. The new aspects introduced by monumental painting in the study of Crusader art are not only touching upon the kernel of the artistic process in the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, but also, necessarily, raise again the question regarding the nature of the relationships between the Latin conquerors of the Holy Land, the local Eastern church and monkhood, and the Byzantine emperor. Indeed, the artistic affiliations displayed by the wall paintings - until recently the step-child of modern Crusader research - shed greater light on political and ecclesiastical ties in the Crusader Kingdom. ISBN 9783786114895