Rome in the Eighth Century : a history in art : John Osborne, Carleton University, Ottawa

This book addresses a critical era in the history of the city of Rome, the eighth century CE. This was the moment when the bishops of Rome assumed political and administrative responsibility for the city's infrastructure and the physical welfare of its inhabitants, in the process creating the papal state that still survives today. John Osborne approaches this using the primary lens of 'material culture' (buildings and their decorations, both surviving and known from documents and/or archaeology), while at the same time incorporating extensive information drawn from written sources. Whereas written texts are comparatively few in number, recent decades have witnessed an explosion in new archaeological discoveries and excavations, and these provide a much fuller picture of cultural life in the city. This methodological approach of using buildings and objects as historical documents is embodied in the phrase 'history in art'.Too bad the photos in the book are all in black and white with only a few color plates appearing in the end. "This book addresses a critical era in the history of the city of Rome, the eighth century CE. This was the moment when the bishops of Rome assumed political and administrative responsibility for the city's infrastructure and the physical welfare of its inhabitants, in the process creating the papal state that still survives today. John Osborne approaches this using the primary lens of 'material culture' (buildings and their decorations, both surviving and known from documents and/or archaeology), while at the same time incorporating extensive information drawn from written sources. Whereas written texts are comparatively few in number, recent decades have witnessed an explosion in new archaeological discoveries and excavations, and these provide a much fuller picture of cultural life in the city. This methodological approach of using buildings and objects as historical documents is embodied in the phrase 'history in art.'"-- Provided by publisher "This book addresses a critical era in the history of the city of Rome, the eighth century CE. This was the moment when the bishops of Rome assumed political and administrative responsibility for the city's infrastructure and the physical welfare of its inhabitants, in the process creating the papal state that still survives today. John Osborne approaches this using the primary lens of 'material culture' (buildings and their decorations, both surviving and known from documents and/or archaeology), while at the same time incorporating extensive information drawn from written sources. Whereas written texts are comparatively few in number, recent decades have witnessed an explosion in new archaeological discoveries and excavations, and these provide a much fuller picture of cultural life in the city. This methodological approach of using buildings and objects as historical documents is embodied in the phrase 'history in art"--Publisher's description 04.0_pp_iv_iv_Copyright_page 1 07.0_pp_ix_ix_Plates 9 08.0_pp_x_xi_Acknowledgements 10 09.0_pp_xii_xii_Abbreviations 12 10.0_pp_xiii_xx_Preface 13 11.0_pp_1_21_Rome_in_700_Constantinople_on_the_Tiber 21 12.0_pp_22_66_Pope_John_VII_servus_sanctae_Mariae 42 13.0_pp_67_87_Clerics_Monks_and_Pilgrims 87 14.0_pp_88_94_The_City_of_the_Church 108 15.0_pp_95_136_The_Chapel_of_Theodotus_in_Santa_Maria_Antiqua 115 16.0_pp_137_158_Pope_Zacharias_and_the_Lateran_Palace 157 17.0_pp_159_170_Rome_and_the_Franks 179 18.0_pp_171_193_Paul_I 191 19.0_pp_194_218_Hadrian_I_dux_Dei 214 20.0_pp_219_230_Leo_III_and_Charlemagne 239 21.0_pp_231_238_Afterword 251 22.0_pp_239_286_Bibliography 259 23.0_pp_287_292_Index 307 Combines the evidence of written texts with 'material culture' (primarily buildings and their decoration) to present a more complete picture of a pivotal century in the city's history that has long been viewed as a 'dark age'. For all those interested in medieval Italy and the city of Rome.