Art History and Theory

honog'aphim Studies in tha Histor.y ('Ityages is a peer-reviewed journal devoted to the studr,of images in their historic.rl, cuJtu.ial and religious .ont.itr. It lromote, nerv and interdisciplina6,approaches to images goins be,ond the traditional frameuork of iconographic studies ar.rd aims ar shaping n.*, rrlitlrodologies in this naal r,,i.t.o.., essavs investigating the role plaved bv.images in mediating material aid sr.mbolic formiof culturai comrnunication, in corlro ing .t ltutnan grotrpt slrared perception.ol pou:er. behari.,r,rl code.. philosophicrl .nd l..llq;or, no,ionr.

This paper focuses on the origins and practice of relic distribution in the West, a strategy strongly advocated and pursued by Ambrose of Milan, who served as bishop 374–97, and his successors during the fifth century. The directions in which Milanese relics were distributed are traced in the first section of this paper, which then argues that the circulation of relics not only forged strong links among ecclesi- astical communities, but also promoted the circula- tion of ideas. This approach enables the mapping of significant connections that are otherwise difficult to reconstruct. The transmission of iconographical and architectural models, along with certain deci- sions made in urban planning, is to be understood within the complex phenomenon of relic circulation. Three case studies of churches in which the presence of Milanese relics has been supposed or attested support these assertions, which are based on the catacomb of San Severo in Naples, the Concilium Sanctorum church in Aosta, and the Baptistery of Albenga.
/Keywords/ Cult of Relics, Ambrose of Milan, Catacombs of San Severo in Naples, Concilium Sanctorum in Aosta, Baptistery of Albenga

L'articolo si concentra sui mosaici di Sant'Apollinare in Classe e riesamina il ruolo della figura di sant'Apollinare, perno della composizione del mosaico absidale. L'enfasi visiva posta sulla figura di Apollinare, il primo vescovo di Ravenna, dev'essere intesa nel contesto delle rivendicazioni di una piu grande indipendenza del vescovado di questa citta. Sono inoltre da considerare il valore mistico e liturgico del mosaico.

The paper is dedicated to the collection of ampullae preserved in the treasury of the basilica in Monza and endeavors to shed light on the circumstances surrounding their donation. Traditionally, it is held that these little reliquaries containing sacred oils from Jerusalem were a gift of pope Gregory the Great sent to the Lombard queen Theodelinda on occasion of the Catholic baptism of her son, in 603. As heir of the throne, his baptism was important as it effectively assured the conversion of the previously Arian Lombards to Catholicism. Through the study of the political situation at that time, the religion and the culture of the Lombard court and the analysis of the relic policy of the pope, this essay revises this tradition and tries to draw a plausible historical background for a new hypothesis. Collecting relics was an important part of the early medieval aristocratic evergetism since such objects were deemed to be the religious bulwark of the kingdom. Thus, as in the case of Saint Helen, the role of the Queen was to found churches and monasteries and endow them with relics in order to guarantee the protection and the prosperity of the kingdom. However, an entire collection of relics from Jerusalem does not fit into the relic policy of the pope. The latter tended to distribute rather Roman contact relics in quite a limited number. Thus, in all likelihood, Theodelinda’s foundation of the royal basilica went hand in hand with an endowment of relics, brought to Monza by the pilgrims from Holy Land or by special envoys, as recorded in the case of the Merovingian Queen Radegund.

Cet article a pour but d’examiner la vie qu’ont eu les martyrs ambrosiens (Gervais, Protais, Vital) à Ravenne, une fois que la capitale administrative de l’empire y fut transférée de Milan au début du Ve siècle. Après une période marquée par une continuité avec les cultes milanais, ayant obtenu les droits métropolitains, l’évêché de Ravenne rechercha ses propres figures identitaires. Cette recherche culmina pendant la deuxième moitié du Ve siècle, lorsqu’une nouvelle légende de saint Vital fut écrite. Selon cette dernière, le saint devint entièrement ravennat, et, de surcroît, le père de Gervais et Protais. Quelques décennies plus tard, tandis que cette nouvelle légende s’était suffisamment ancrée dans la tradition locale, une église monumentale – un vrai joyau de l’architecture tardo-antique, rappelant l’église la plus admirée de Milan, San Lorenzo – fut construite à Ravenne et dédiée à Vital. À la recherche de ses propres racines liées à sa nouvelle dignité de métropole, il paraît donc que l’église ravennate ait voulu avant tout surpasser l’importance et la renommée de Milan.