Images Of Children In Byzantium

Author : Cecily Hennessy
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 317 pages
File Size : 42,6 Mb
Release : 2017-03-02
Category : History
ISBN : 9781351928878

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Images of Children in Byzantium by Cecily Hennessy Pdf

This book covers a subject that has never previously been addressed, and yet it is both a fascinating and a provocative one: the representation of children in Byzantium. The visual material is extensive, intriguing and striking, and the historical context is crucially important to our understanding of Byzantine culture, social history and artistic output. The imagery explored is drawn from the fourth to the fifteenth centuries and encompasses media from manuscripts to mosaics and enamel. Part of the allure of this subject is that people do not associate childhood with Byzantium. Ernst Gombrich commented, 'who could find it easy, after a visit to Ravenna and its solemn mosaics, to think of noisy children in Byzantium?'. However, in Byzantium, patrons of art were often young, such as emperors who acceded to the throne as teenagers, and makers of art, sculptors, mosaicists, painters often began their training at an early age. How did this affect the creation, promotion and production of art? The study questions the definitions and perceptions of childhood, focusing on topics such as the family, saintly children and those associated with imperial power. Cecily Hennessy demonstrates that children are featured often in visual imagery and in key locations, indicating that they played a central role in Byzantine life, something which has previously been overlooked or ignored. In tackling this new subject she reveals important aspects of childhood, youth, and by extension adulthood in Byzantine society and raises issues that are also applicable to the present and to other historical contexts.

Author : Αριέττα Παπακωνσταντίνου,Alice-Mary Maffry Talbot
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 344 pages
File Size : 45,6 Mb
Release : 2009
Category : Family & Relationships
ISBN : 0884023567

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Becoming Byzantine by Αριέττα Παπακωνσταντίνου,Alice-Mary Maffry Talbot Pdf

Becoming Byzantine: Children and Childhood in Byzantium presents detailed information about children's lives, and provides a basis for further study. This collection of eight articles covers matters relevant to daily life such as the definition of children in Byzantine law, procreation, death, breastfeeding patterns, and material culture.

Author : Oana-Maria Cojocaru
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 258 pages
File Size : 47,5 Mb
Release : 2021-08-26
Category : History
ISBN : 9781000431940

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Byzantine Childhood by Oana-Maria Cojocaru Pdf

Byzantine Childhood examines the intricacies of growing up in medieval Byzantium, children’s everyday experiences, and their agency. By piecing together a wide range of sources and utilising several methodological approaches inspired by intersectionality, history from below and microhistory, it analyses the life course of Byzantine boys and girls and how medieval Byzantine society perceived and treated them according to societal and cultural expectations surrounding age, gender, and status. Ultimately, it seeks to reconstruct a more plausible picture of the everyday life of children, one of the most vulnerable social groups throughout history and often a neglected subject in scholarship. Written in a lively and engaging manner, this book is necessary reading for scholars and students of Byzantine history, as well as those interested in the history of childhood and the family.

Author : Katherine Vlassie
Publisher : Dunvegan, Ont. ; Cormorant Books
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 47,6 Mb
Release : 1987
Category : Fiction
ISBN : UOM:39015055109840

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Children of Byzantium by Katherine Vlassie Pdf

Author : Neil Churchill
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
Page : 215 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2024-01-23
Category : History
ISBN : 9781003835585

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Power and Representation in Byzantium by Neil Churchill Pdf

Throughout the history of Byzantium 65 emperors were dethroned and only 39 reigns ended peacefully. How might a usurper get away with murdering his predecessor? And how could a bloody act of regicide lead to one of the most glorious of all eras in Byzantium? These were questions that puzzled Michael Psellos as he looked back at Basil I’s assassination of Michael III and the origin of the Macedonian dynasty. Might the imperial art of Basil, his sons and grandson help to explain how the dynasty overcame its violent beginnings and secured the loyalty of its subjects? It has long been recognised that the early Macedonian emperors were active propagandists but royal art has usually been viewed thematically over the span of centuries. Official iconography has been understood to project imperial power in ways which were impersonal and unchanging. This book instead adopts a chronological approach and considers how Basil justified his seizure of power, and how his successors went on to articulate their own ideas about authority. It concludes that imperial art did at times reflect the personality of the emperor and the political demands of the moment, such as the need for an heir, the nature of court politics or the choice of successor. This innovative account of the forging of the Macedonian dynasty will appeal to those interested in how early medieval kings and emperors used art to create their own image, to differentiate themselves from rivals and to extend the boundaries of their personal power.

Author : Derek Krueger
Publisher : Fortress Press
Page : 282 pages
File Size : 55,8 Mb
Release : 2010-01-01
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781451406566

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Byzantine Christianity by Derek Krueger Pdf

This third volume in the pioneering A People's History of Christianity series focuses on the religious lives of ordinary people and introduces the religion of the Byzantine Christian laity by asking the questions: What did ordinary Christians do in church, in their homes and their workshops? How were icons used? How did the people celebrate, marry, and mourn? Where did they go on pilgrimage? Contributors include: Derek Krueger, University of North Carolina at Greensboro; Vasiliki Limberis, Temple University; Georgia Frank, Colgate University; James Skedros, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology; Nicholas Constas, Harvard University; Sharon Gerstel, University of Maryland; Peter Hatlie, University of Dallas at Rome; Charles Barber, University of Notre Dame; Brigitte Pitarakis, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Paris; Alice-Mary Talbot, Dumbarton Oaks; Jaclyn Maxwell, Ohio University

Author : Despoina Ariantzi
Publisher : Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Page : 316 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2017-12-18
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9783110576603

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Coming of Age in Byzantium by Despoina Ariantzi Pdf

The various phases of life and their manifestations in theory and social reality constitute a well-established area of research in the fields of western medieval studies and ancient history. In this respect the Byzantine East has been widely neglected. This volume will focus on the Byzantine experience of adolescence, which may be defined as the biological transition from childhood to adulthood as well as the social and psychological experience of leaving the care of parents, guardians and family groups and the gradual integration into adult society. The contributions gathered therein treat seven subtopics that correspond to crucial questions in the current research on adolescence: the legal status of adolescents; the mechanisms of transition from childhood to adolescence; the socialisation and gradual integration into adult society; adolescents in Byzantine art; psychological aspects of adolescence from medieval to modern times; illnesses of adolescents; adolescents in the western medieval world.The focus is on the Middle and Late Byzantine Period, where historical, hagiographical,legal and medical sources offer rich material for an investigation of these aspects. The book contributes to a better understanding of all these questions and to show future trajectories for research.

Author : Paroma Chatterjee
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 301 pages
File Size : 50,8 Mb
Release : 2014-03-17
Category : Art
ISBN : 9781107034969

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The Living Icon in Byzantium and Italy by Paroma Chatterjee Pdf

Explores the development and diffusion of the vita image which emerged in Byzantium in the twelfth century and spread to Italy and beyond.

Author : Irfan Shahîd
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 422 pages
File Size : 48,7 Mb
Release : 1995
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : 0884023478

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Byzantium and the Arabs in the Sixth Century by Irfan Shahîd Pdf

This fourth installment of Byzantium and the Arabs in the Sixth Century resumes the previous volume's discussion of the Ghassanids by examining their economic, social, and cultural history. First, Irfan Shahîd focuses on the economy of the Ghassanids and presents information on various trade routes and fairs. Second, the author reconstructs Ghassanid daily life by discussing topics as varied as music, food, medicine, the role of women, and horse racing. Shahîd concludes the volume with an examination of cultural life, including descriptions of urbanization, Arabic script, chivalry, and poetry. Throughout the volume, the author reveals the history of a fully developed and unique Christian-Arab culture. Shahîd exhaustively describes the society of the Ghassanids, and their contributions to the cultural environment that persisted in Oriens during the sixth century and continued into the period of the Umayyad caliphate.

Author : Stavroula Constantinou,Aspasia Skouroumouni-Stavrinou
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
Page : 289 pages
File Size : 49,9 Mb
Release : 2023-09-29
Category : History
ISBN : 9781000997439

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Breastfeeding and Mothering in Antiquity and Early Byzantium by Stavroula Constantinou,Aspasia Skouroumouni-Stavrinou Pdf

This volume offers the first comparative, interdisciplinary, and intercultural examination of the lactating woman – biological mother and othermother – in antiquity and early Byzantium. Adopting methodologies and knowledge deriving from a variety of disciplines, the volume’s contributors investigate the close interrelationship between a woman and her lactating breasts, as well as the social, ideological, theological, and medical meanings and uses of motherhood, childbirth, and breastfeeding, along with their visual and literary representations. Breastfeeding and the work of mothering are explored through the study of a great variety of sources, mainly works of Greek-speaking cultures, written and visual, anonymous and eponymous, which were mostly produced between the first and the seventh century AD. Due to their multiple interdisciplinary dimensions, ancient and early Byzantine lactating women are approached through three interconnected thematic strands having a twofold focus: society and ideology, medicine and practice, and art and literature. By developing the model of the lactating woman, the volume offers a new analytical framework for understanding a significant part of the still unwritten cultural history of the period. At the same time, the volume significantly contributes to the emerging fields of breast and motherhood studies. The new and significant knowledge generated in the fields of ancient and Byzantine studies may also prove useful for cultural historians in general and other disciplines, such as literary studies, art history, history of medicine, philosophy, theology, sociology, anthropology, and gender studies.

Author : Jelena Bogdanovic
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 419 pages
File Size : 50,6 Mb
Release : 2018-04-09
Category : History
ISBN : 9781351359603

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Perceptions of the Body and Sacred Space in Late Antiquity and Byzantium by Jelena Bogdanovic Pdf

Perceptions of the Body and Sacred Space in Late Antiquity and Byzantium seeks to reveal Christian understanding of the body and sacred space in the medieval Mediterranean. Case studies examine encounters with the holy through the perspective of the human body and sensory dimensions of sacred space, and discuss the dynamics of perception when experiencing what was constructed, represented, and understood as sacred. The comparative analysis investigates viewers’ recognitions of the sacred in specific locations or segments of space with an emphasis on the experiential and conceptual relationships between sacred spaces and human bodies. This volume thus reassesses the empowering aspects of space, time, and human agency in religious contexts. By focusing on investigations of human endeavors towards experiential and visual expressions that shape perceptions of holiness, this study ultimately aims to present a better understanding of the corporeality of sacred art and architecture. The research points to how early Christians and Byzantines teleologically viewed the divine source of the sacred in terms of its ability to bring together – but never fully dissolve – the distinctions between the human and divine realms. The revealed mechanisms of iconic perception and noetic contemplation have the potential to shape knowledge of the meanings of the sacred as well as to improve our understanding of the liminality of the profane and the sacred.

Author : Mati Meyer
Publisher : Pindar Press
Page : 571 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2007-12-31
Category : Art
ISBN : 9781915837226

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An Obscure Portrait by Mati Meyer Pdf

Recent discussions on Byzantine art have been dominated by the question of representing realia. Among these, however, the way works of art reflect the daily life of women have not received much space or attention. The present book studies various images representing women's status and her performative tasks, and their significance from the fourth century to the fall of the Empire, through analysis of archaeological evidence and works of art. It addresses a wide range of questions, some pertaining both to pictorial traditions and to their late antique antecedents, others peculiar to changing and evolving Byzantine culture and mentality. The first chapter deals with the imagery of childbearing, starting with conception and concluding with the care given to the new born and the mother. The second chapter investigates motherhood imagery (breastfeeding, child care, and child-mother intimacy) and the portrayal of women as caretakers and managers of the household (preparing food, bringing water, carding and weaving, or working side by side with their husbands). The third chapter is dedicated to representations of women holding positions outside the house: midwives, maidservants, wet nurses, and mourners. Images of women engaged in disreputable occupations-dancers, musicians, prostitutes and courtesans - complete this chapter. The fourth chapter discusses images of women portrayed in the metaphorical margins - looking out from the gynaikon (the women's apartments), or at their private toilette; it also deals with representations of women who stray from the societal mainstream - concubines; adulteresses, women consenting to sexual acts or being coerced into them - considered symbolically as belonging to the margins of society. The book concludes with a discussion of the degree to which the visual material reliably reflects reality and changing attitudes toward women between Late Antiquity and late Byzantium; and further, to what extent it reveals embedded perceptions and conceptions of women, constructed by canonic regulations and imperial law, popular beliefs and accepted customs. The book aims to lift a veil from known and less known works of art and to present the rarely described picture of the daily life of women in Byzantine art over a very wide chronological span of time, in an effort to expand our knowledge of women in Byzantium and their realia.

Author : Stephanie Lynn Budin
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 395 pages
File Size : 49,8 Mb
Release : 2011-04-11
Category : Art
ISBN : 9780521193047

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Images of Woman and Child from the Bronze Age by Stephanie Lynn Budin Pdf

"This book is a study of the woman-and-child motif as it appeared in the Bronze Age eastern Mediterranean, focusing on Egypt, the Levant, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Iran, Cyprus, and the Aegean. Rather than being a universal symbol of maternity, or a depiction of a mother goddess, the woman-and-child motif, called by the technical name kourotrophos, was relatively rare in comparison with other images of women in antiquity, and served a number of different symbolic functions, ranging from honoring the king of Egypt to giving extra oomph to magical spells"--Provided by publisher.

Author : Leslie Brubaker,Shaun Tougher
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 446 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2016-04-08
Category : History
ISBN : 9781317180012

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Approaches to the Byzantine Family by Leslie Brubaker,Shaun Tougher Pdf

The study of the family is one of the major lacunas in Byzantine Studies. Angeliki Laiou remarked in 1989 that ’the study of the Byzantine family is still in its infancy’, and this assertion remains true today. The present volume addresses this lacuna. It comprises 19 chapters written by international experts in the field which take a variety of approaches to the study of the Byzantine family, and embrace a chronological span from the later Roman to the late Byzantine empire. The context is established by chapters focusing on the Roman roots of the Byzantine family, the Christianisation of the family, and the nature of the family in contemporaneous cultures (the late antique west and the Islamic east). Key methodological approaches to the Byzantine family are highlighted and discussed, in particular prosopographical and life course approaches. The contribution of hagiography to the understanding of the Byzantine family is analysed by several authors; other chapters on the family and children in art and on the archaeology of the Middle Byzantine house explore the material evidence that can shed light on the Byzantine family. Overall, the diversity of families that existed in Byzantium (blood, fictive, metaphorical) is emphasised, and chapters consider the specific cases of ascetic, monastic, aristocratic and peasant families, as well as the imperial family, which is illuminated by the comparative case of a Caliphal family. The volume is topped and tailed by a Preface and an Afterword by the editors, which address the state of the field and consider the way ahead. Thus the volume is vital in putting the subject of the Byzantine Family in sharp focus and setting the research agenda for the future.

Author : Sophia Germanidou
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 261 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2022-03-14
Category : History
ISBN : 9781000537345

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Secular Byzantine Women by Sophia Germanidou Pdf

Secular Byzantine Women examines female material culture during the Late Roman, Byzantine, and Post-Byzantine eras, to better understand the lives of ordinary and humble women during this period. Although recent scholarship has contributed greatly to our knowledge of Byzantine and medieval women, such research has largely focused on female saints, imperial figures, and prominent women of local communities. But what about secular and non-privileged women? Bringing together scholars from various fields, including archaeology, history, theology, anthropology, and ethnography, this volume seeks to answer this important question. The chapters examine the everyday lives of lay women, including their working routines, their clothing, and precious possessions. This book will appeal to scholars and students of Byzantine history, art, and archaeology, as well as those interested in gender and material culture studies.