Medieval Art, Architecture and Archaeology in the Dioceses of Aberdeen and Moray
Medieval Art, Architecture and Archaeology in the Dioceses of Aberdeen and Moray

Author: Jane Geddes

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-04-14

Total Pages: 328

ISBN-13: 1317248066

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Exploring the medieval heritage of Aberdeenshire and Moray, the essays in this volume contain insights and recent work presented at the British Archaeological Association Conference of 2014, based at Aberdeen University. The opening, historical chapters establish the political, economic and administrative context of the region, looking at both the secular and religious worlds and include an examination of Elgin Cathedral and the bishops’ palaces. The discoveries at the excavations of the kirk of St Nicholas, which have revealed the early origins of religious life in Aberdeen city, are summarized and subsequent papers consider the role of patronage. Patronage is explored in terms of architecture, the dramas of the Reformation and its aftermath highlighted through essentially humble parish churches, assailed by turbulent events and personalities. The collegiate church at Cullen, particularly its tomb sculpture, provides an unusually detailed view of the spiritual and dynastic needs of its patrons. The decoration of spectacular ceilings, both carved and painted, at St Machar’s Cathedral, Provost Skene’s House and Crathes Castle, are surveyed through the eyes of their patrons and the viewers below. Saints and religious devotion feature in the last four chapters, focusing on the carved wooden panels from Fetteresso, which display both piety and a rare glimpse of Scottish medieval carnal humour, the illuminated manuscripts from Arbuthnott, the Aberdeen Breviary and Historia Gentis Scotorum. The medieval artistic culture of north-east Scotland is both battered by time and relatively little known. With discerning interpretation, this volume shows that much high-quality material still survives, while the lavish illustrations restore some glamour to this lost medieval world.

Cosmo Innes and the Defence of Scotland's Past c. 1825-1875
Cosmo Innes and the Defence of Scotland's Past c. 1825-1875

Author: Richard A. Marsden

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-05-13

Total Pages: 382

ISBN-13: 1317159160

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Today, Scotland's history is frequently associated with the clarion call of political nationalism. However, in the nineteenth century the influence of history on Scottish national identity was far more ambiguous. How, then, did ideas about the past shape Scottish identity in a period when union with England was all but unquestioned? The activities of the antiquary Cosmo Innes (1798-1874) help us to address this question. Innes was a prolific editor of medieval and early modern documents relating to Scotland's parliament, legal system, burghs, universities, aristocratic families and pre-Reformation church. Yet unlike scholars today, he saw that editorial role in interventionist terms. His source editions were artificial constructs that powerfully articulated his worldview and agendas: emphasising Enlightenment-inspired narratives of social progress and institutional development. At the same time they used manuscript facsimiles and images of medieval architecture to foreground a romantic concern for the texture of past lives. Innes operated within an elite associational culture which gave him access to the leading intellectuals and politicians of the day. His representations of Scottish history therefore had significant influence and were put to work as commentaries on some of the major debates which exorcised Scotland's intelligentsia across the middle decades of the century. This analysis of Innes's work with sources, set within the intellectual context of the time and against the antiquarian activities of his contemporaries, provides a window onto the ways in which the 'national past' was perceived in Scotland during the nineteenth century. This allows us to explore how historical thinkers negotiated the apparent dichotomies between Enlightenment and Romanticism, whilst at the same time enabling a re-examination of prevailing assumptions about Scotland's supposed failure to maintain a viable national consciousness in the later 1800s.

Studies in Numismatic Method
Studies in Numismatic Method

Author: Philip Grierson

Publisher: CUP Archive

Published: 1983-04-21

Total Pages: 376

ISBN-13: 9780521225038

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Coins are one of the most abundant sources for our study of the past, yet their value as historical evidence is relatively neglected because of a general lack of knowledge of numismatic techniques. This volume of essays, offered by a circle of friends, colleagues and pupils working in Britain, Europe and North America, is intended to pay tribute to Philip Grierson's unique contribution to the study of numismatic method. A medievalist by training, through his wide-ranging interests in coins and coinage Grierson has commanded the respect of historians and numismatists of all periods for the originality and good sense of his prolific scholarship. More than any other living scholar, he has been responsible for making available an understanding of numismatic expertise to specialist and non-specialist audiences.