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Carolingian art and architecture

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lightbulbAbout this topic
Carolingian art and architecture refers to the artistic and architectural styles that emerged during the reign of Charlemagne and his successors in the late 8th to early 9th centuries. This period is characterized by a revival of classical forms, integration of Christian themes, and the development of monumental structures, reflecting the cultural and political aspirations of the Carolingian Empire.
lightbulbAbout this topic
Carolingian art and architecture refers to the artistic and architectural styles that emerged during the reign of Charlemagne and his successors in the late 8th to early 9th centuries. This period is characterized by a revival of classical forms, integration of Christian themes, and the development of monumental structures, reflecting the cultural and political aspirations of the Carolingian Empire.

Key research themes

1. How did Carolingian palace architecture embody and communicate imperial power and legal authority?

This theme explores the multifunctional architectural design of Carolingian palaces (Pfalzen) as physical expressions of political, juridical, and religious authority that embodied the nature of Carolingian kingship. These complexes served not only as royal residences but also as seats of government, law-making, and ritual, reflecting central courtly and imperial functions. Understanding their form and symbolism informs how early medieval rulers constructed and manifested their sovereignty through space and ceremonial architecture.

Key finding: The study identifies a constant architectural triad in Carolingian palaces—worldly representation, religious cult practice, and economic power—which collectively symbolized the structures of power and law within the empire.... Read more
Key finding: This work situates Carolingian palace architecture within a broader imperial tradition drawing on Late Antique and Byzantine models. It discusses how Carolingian court culture deliberately invoked classical antiquity and... Read more
Key finding: Challenging the previously dominant theory that the Plan of St. Gall represents a direct official program from the imperial court, this paper emphasizes the complexities behind the plan’s origins and cautions against viewing... Read more

2. What do archaeological and material studies reveal about Carolingian construction techniques and material economies?

Recent archaeometric analyses and excavations provide direct evidence of the building methods, material procurement strategies, and workshop organization underlying Carolingian architectural projects. This theme focuses on investigations of mortars, metal fastenings, timber constructions, and associated material culture to understand how Carolingian builders sourced, processed, and applied materials within economic and technological contexts. These studies expand knowledge beyond textual sources, revealing practical dimensions of Carolingian monumental construction.

Key finding: Archaeometric analysis of iron clamps from a Carolingian stone bridge reveals a complex metal supply strategy combining local production with significant metal recycling. The presence of slag inclusions indicates the reuse of... Read more
Key finding: Petrographic and archaeological evidence from mortar samples dated dendrochronologically to AD 775–788 reveal diverse mortar recipes linked to specific construction phases and functional areas within the Carolingian... Read more
Key finding: This research supports the creation of a standardized, pan-European database of early medieval religious architecture integrating field surveys, stratigraphic data, and iconographic studies. The Croatian CARE initiative... Read more
Key finding: Through experimental archaeology, this study reconstructs a Carolingian wooden watchtower using period-appropriate timber and construction techniques without metal nails, evidencing durable wooden architectural practices... Read more

3. How did Carolingian artistic programs articulate humanistic and cultural ideals within court poetry and polychrome decoration?

This theme addresses Carolingian cultural and aesthetic achievements through poetic and decorative arts that integrate classical influences with innovative medieval expressions. It investigates how literary works from the Carolingian Renaissance reflect a conscious revival of Roman and late antique sources, contributing to humanistic ideals, while architectural polychromy and interior decoration draw on classical imitation techniques to communicate social status and identity. This theme illuminates the intersections of intellectual revival and visual culture at the Carolingian court.

Key finding: Paul the Deacon's Carmen X showcases how Carolingian poetry integrates classical Latin literary techniques and sources, particularly Ovidian exile poetry, within the context and expectations of Charlemagne's court cultural... Read more
Key finding: The research traces the tradition and meaning of painted imitation marble dados in early medieval Italy, particularly in Lombard and Carolingian contexts, evidencing the sustained use of polychrome marbling schemes to evoke... Read more
Key finding: Recent archaeological excavations and interdisciplinary research reveal that Aachen functioned not only as an imperial palace site but also as a production center for mosaic tesserae during the Carolingian period. This... Read more
Key finding: Acoustic reconstruction combined with liturgical and archival data shows how spatial modifications in Aachen's collegiate church, including the addition of the Gothic choir, influenced the performance practices of polyphonic... Read more

All papers in Carolingian art and architecture

Slika 1. Današnja crkva Vele Gospe podignuta 1789. godine nad ruševinama crkve ranoga srednjega vijeka ( foto: I. Matejčić)
Durante l’impero Carolingio si realizzarono strutture ispirate al passato. I disordini e la violenza del regno franco durante la sua prima fase, avevano ostacolato l’esercizio delle arti. Fu l’istituzione monastica a creare un nuovo e... more
by Martina Usai and 
1 more
La tesi riguarda lo studio della chiesa altomedievale di S. Liberato, situata nei pressi di Bracciano, all’interno della tenuta privata dei Conti Sanminiatelli. In particolare, mi sono concentrata sull’analisi delle murature e dell’arredo... more
Catalogue of Buildings and Artwork: The catalogue lists Carolingian buildings and artwork in Switzerland, which are open to the public. Futhermore there is a distribution map, a chronological table by Hannes Steiner and a bibliography.... more
prati rasdlambu izloZbe. Podijeljena je. medutim. u dva dijela. U prvom su sintezni tekstovi o povijesti, kulturi. umietnosti i pismenosti s povijesnim vrelima, a u drugom je opselan katalog samih izloZaka. U oba se dijela prati struktura... more
printing: Tiskara rotim i Market, Lukavec, Croatia isBN 978-953-6002-44-3 (niz) 978-953-6002-50-4 (Vol. 2) CIP zapis dostupan u računalnom katalogu Nacionalne i sveučilišne knjižnice u Zagrebu pod brojem 730240 ouvrage préparé et publié... more
by Jürg Goll and 
1 more
Abstract italiano / english / deutsch Le pitture parietali della chiesa dell’abbazia di Müstair appartengono ai più noti monumenti di pittura medievale. Il ciclo carolingio e la pittura romanica del muro orientale fanno parte... more
uando il biografo di Gregorio IV (827-844) descrisse, ormai al tramonto di una stagione gloriosa dell'architettura ecclesiastica a Roma, gli interventi disposti dal pontefice per Santa Maria in Trastevere, si sentì in dovere di aggiungere... more
by Jürg Goll and 
1 more
Stucco as embellishment („Schmuck"): During the early medieval period stucco can be found only at very few sites, but there it has been used with perfection. The finds from Geneva (contribution Plan) and Disentis (contribution... more
Navigable canals are a rare exception in the Early Middle Ages, although ships were important means of transport. The Fossa Carolina is the most important exception and an outstanding example of Early Medieval hydrological engineering. It... more
Muestair - Architecture serving the Faith- and Powerful: From the Carolingian period there are two churches at Muestair, which will be described in the following paper. The church of the monastery is a simple hall-like room with five... more
Der vorliegende Band geht detailliert auf eine bisher überhaupt nicht oder nur kaum bekannte Periode des Karpatenbeckens ein: die östliche Expansion des Karolingerreiches, jene knapp 100 Jahre, die zwischen Untergang des Awarenkhaganats... more
Rituale und Zeremonien, so eine jüngste Definition, sind "standardisiertes Verhalten in kommunikativer Funktion, wobei die pragmatische Grundlage zurücktreten oder ganz entschwinden kann". 1 Doch werden die Motivationen für zeremonielles... more
Prvo izdanje / Prima edizione rujan / settembre 2009. Izdavači / Editori Omega engineering d.o.o. -Dubrovnik Centar Studia mediterranea pri Filozofskom fakultetu u Splitu
Un aperçu general sur la structure topographique du monastère de Saint Vincent par rapport au panorama des grands complexes monumentaux de l'Europe à l'âge carolingienne
1974, 702). Stoga su saveznici panonskim Slavenima bile slavenske zajednice u provinciiama uzdu2 sjeverozapadne granicc Bizantskog carsNa: Karantanci i Karniolci, a na istoku Timoiani i Abodriti. Premda je Siscija u karolinSko doba bila,... more
Michelangelo e Caravaggio Riflessioni a commento di un volume di M. Bussagli Sergio Rossi, 1-18 FOCUS SUL BRONZINO Il quadrato magico del Bronzino e i ritratti di Tonino Lapi, Filippo Peruzzi ed un'effigie di Don Garzía mai consegnata a... more
DAS STEINERNE MONUMENT DES HRABANUS MAURUS AUF DEM RELIQUIENGRAB DES HL. BONIFATIUS ( † 754) IN MAINZ Die Verehrung des hl. Erzbischofs Bonifatius haben seine Amtsnachfolger Lullus (754-786) und Hrabanus Maurus (847-856) in Mainz durch... more
Felelős kiadó: Dr. Vándor László BBN 963 7205 25 X Kiadványunk a Nemzeti Kulturális Alap támogatásával készült Zalaegerszeg 2002 ElŐSZÓ Kis folyó kanyarog a délnyugat magyarországi dombok között Z betű ala kot írva le, és táplálja... more
Much attention has been paid in recent years to ethnicity in the early Middle Ages, but one area of investigation that has escaped scholarly attention is the illustrated psalters that originated in Frankish monasteries in the ninth and... more
Il mosaico absidale della basilica di Sant'Ambrogio è, nella sua forma attuale, il risultato di un lungo processo storico: concepito probabilmente già in epoca ambrosiana 1 , modificato in epoca carolingia e danneggiato tra il 1190 e il... more
Già da qualche tempo si è ritenuto opportuno proporre per la scul-tura ad incrostazione di mastice, tecnica di decorazione basata su un consapevole e schietto approccio coloristico e polimaterico, l'adozione di un vocabolario che non... more
"The Carolingian renascence of the 8th and 9th centuries was about restoring high culture to the Frankish Empire through education. It encompassed all fields of learning and included the arts. The visual arts, for instance, educated... more
Among the liturgical furnishings that have survived from the early medieval period, a complete episcopal throne is a true rarity. This article examines a marble papal throne that appeared on the antiquities market in Rome in the late... more
Spoznaje u izucavanju predromanicke arhitekture istocne obale Jadrana posljednjih su se desetljeéa umnogostrucile. Od prve sinteze Lj. Karamana o starohrvatskim crkvicama slobodnih oblika 1 doslo se do cvrste tipologije predromanicke... more
Le présent mémoire de master traite la terminologie de l'architecture préromane qui teste la présence des éléments d'architecture carolingienne. La partie théorique vise à définir la terminologie en tant que discipline. La partie pratique... more
Nonostante la sua marginaliti geografica rispeno allo stato franco, gli oggetti dell'arte e artigianato che distinguono la Ctoazia nella prima eti carolingia testimoniano per quantia e qualiti una superioriA rispetto a grzrn p rte degli... more
Thanks to new material analysis and archaeological investigation, still in progress, the rural church of S. Ambrogio alla Rienna in the countryside of Salerno (southern Italy) is revealing crucial information about cultural coexistence... more
by Neukom Hans and 
1 more
Report on the current studies in the convent of St. John in Müstair in the years 2012-2014 : Carolingian windows , stucco statue of Charlemagne , stucco relief of the Baptism of Christ, Castelmur chamber in the romanesque north wing, west... more
By examining the inventory books of the Museum of Croatian Archaeological Monuments in Split, I have determined that 1133 fragments of pre-Romanesque sculpture originate from site Crkvina in Biskupija near Knin. The largest amount of... more
Zalavár, known as Mosaburg in Carolingian period, was the seat of a local prince who ruled over considerable parts of Pannonia. During the last few decades a large three-aisled church was excavated with a multi-storied western part and a... more
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