Visual Cultures of Death in Central Europe: Contemplation and Commemoration in Early Modern Poland-Lithuania (The Northern World, 73)

In "Visual Cultures of Death in Central Europe", Aleksandra Koutny-Jones explores the emergence of a remarkable cultural preoccupation with death in Poland-Lithuania (1569-1795). Examining why such interests resonated so strongly in the Baroque art of this Commonwealth, she argues that the printing revolution, the impact of the Counter-Reformation, and multiple afflictions suffered by Poland-Lithuania all contributed to a deep cultural concern with mortality. Introducing readers to a range of art, architecture and material culture, this study considers various visual evocations of death including 'Dance of Death' imagery, funerary decorations, coffin portraiture, tomb chapels and religious landscapes. These, Koutny-Jones argues, engaged with wider European cultures of contemplation and commemoration, while also being critically adapted to the specific context of Poland-Lithuania. Acknowledgements ix A Note on Proper Names xii List of Maps and Figures xiii Glossary xvi Introduction: The Central European Age of Contemplation and Commemoration 1 1. Frameworks for Visual Cultures of Death in Poland-Lithuania 16 Artistic Patronage in Poland-Lithuania 18 The Commonwealth and the Counter-Reformation 23 The Central European Printing Revolution 33 Plague and Warfare 40 Conclusion 52 2. Death Personified: The Skeleton and the Printed Image 54 Anatomical Treatises and the Melancholy Death 56 The Triumph of Death 65 Allegories of Death: The Wheel of Death 75 Conclusion 87 3. The Dance of Death in Central Europe: Indigenous Variations on a Familiar Theme 91 Dancing with Death in Medieval Western Europe and beyond 93 Performing the Dance of Death in Medieval Poland: Master Polikarpus's Dialogue with Death 99 Death and the Friars: The Role of the Observant Franciscans 102 Conclusion 117 4. Triumphant Funerals: Ceremonial, Coffin Portraits and Catafalques 121 Processional Pomp: Heraldic Displays and the Theatre of Death 123 Church Decorations and the "Castrum Doloris" 131 Coffin Portraits: Images of the Spiritual body 146 Commemoration in Context: The Burials of the Opaliński Magnate Family 154 Conclusion 164 5. Architectures and Landscapes of Death: Funerary Chapels and Jerusalem Sites 167 The Introduction of the Domed Chapel to Poland and Lithuania: Genesis and Symbolism 169 Central European Landscapes of Death: Jerusalem Sites 175 Decorating the Seventeenth-century Funerary Chapel: Sculpting the Passion and Personalising the Dance of Death 185 Conclusion 203 Conclusion 206 Appendix: The Kraków "Taniec śmierci" (Dance of Death): Transcription and Translation of Textual Cartouches 213 Bibliography 217 Index 249 By Aleksandra Koutny-jones. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.