Product Description

An important trade center in the Medieval Mediterranean, Amalfi and the surrounding region of southern Italy sustained strong art production and patronage from the eleventh through thirteenth centuries. Merchant patrons realized a wide variety of religious and residential complexes that were evocative of Byzantine, Islamic, Western, and local traditions. With the rise of the Angevin kingdom, a demise of this eclectic art tradition took place and by the fourteenth century, Amalfitan painting and sculpture reflects compromises between local and Neapolitan styles, demonstrating the erosion of its autonomy. This book evaluates the Amalfitan art production in terms of moral, economic, and social structures, including investment strategies, anxieties about wealth and salvation, and southern Italy's diverse religions communities. Historiographical analyses and postcolonial models of interpretation offer further insight into Amalfitan art and its ever-shifting relationship to the visual cultures of sovereign authorities in southern Italy.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2537365 in Books
• Published on: 2004-12-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 344 pages

Review
"Drawing on a rich array of material and textual evidence ... this book is a brilliant contribution ... which foces us to reevaluate our attitudes toward the art and culture of southwestern Italy. This is a must-read for anyone interested in patronage studies and cultural history--a fine and scholarly work with extensive notes and bibliography."
Sixteenth Century Journal

"This book successfully builds on individual monuments to construct a broader picture of the culture of Amalfitan mercatantia, an early model of multiculturalism with numerous poignant resonances for the present day." Letters in Canada 2004,/i> John Osborne

"Caskey has written a brave work on a difficult subject" CAA Reviews Caroline Bruzelius

"Her book rewards a careful reading, encouraging reflection on complex historical conditions and individual monouments of art." - Enrico Parlato, Universita della Tuscia

About the Author
Jill Caskey is associate professor of fine art at the University of Toronto. A recipient of fellowships and grants form the Getty Grant Program, the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, and the Fulbright Commission, she is also a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome. She received the Founders' Award from the Society of Architectural History in 2000.