San Marco, Byzantium, and the Myths of Venice

by Henry Maguire (Editor), Robert S. Nelson (Editor)

Overview

The church of San Marco of Venice has long played a central role in Venetian political, ceremonial, and religious life. Its renowned assemblage of mosaics, sculpture, metalwork, and reliquaries are, in origin, Roman, Byzantine, Venetian, or Venetian imitation of Byzantine designs. In San Marco, Byzantium, and the Myths of Venice, the authors assess the significance of the embellishment of the church and its immediate surroundings, especially during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, when most of the Byzantine material was acquired, largely from Constantinople. The church and its decoration are studied in relation to Venice’s interests abroad and on mainland Italy. The authors address the diverse styles, sources, meanings, and significance of this art, both individually and as an ensemble.

Building upon developments in scholarship since Otto Demus’s masterly studies of the church, the book offers new insights into the inspiration, purposes, and mutability of San Marco and the myths that inspired and motivated Venetians.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780884023609
Publisher:	Harvard University Press
Publication date:	12/01/2010
Series:	Dumbarton Oaks Byzantine Symposia and Colloquia , #3
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	7.20(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Henry Maguire is a former Director of Byzantine Studies at Dumbarton Oaks and Professor of Art History at Johns Hopkins University.

Robert S. Nelson is Robert Lehman Professor of History of Art, Yale University.

Table of Contents

Plan of San Marco vi

Acknowledgments viii

Introduction Henry Maguire Robert S. Nelson 1

1 Disiecta membra: Ranieri Zeno, the Imitation of Constantinople, the Spolia Style, and Justice at San Marco Fabio Barry 7

2 The History of Legends and the Legends of History: The Pilastri Acritani in Venice Robert S. Nelson 63

3 The Aniketos Icon and the Display of Relics in the Decoration of San Marco Henry Maguire 91

4 Fashioning a Façade: The Construction of Venetian Identity on the Exterior of San Marco Michael Jacoff 113

5 Cultural Hybridity in Medieval Venice: Reinventing the East at San Marco after the Fourth Crusade Thomas E. A. Dale 151

6 Refashioning Byzantium in Venice, ca. 1200-1400 Holger A. Klein 193

7 Mosaic Matters: Questions of Manufacturing and Mosaicists in the Mosaics of San Marco, Venice Liz James 227

8 Venice and Its Doge in the Grand Design: Andrea Dandolo and the Fourteenth-Century Mosaics of the Baptistery Debra Pincus 245

Abbreviations 273

About the Authors 277

Index 279