Ostentation von Pracht oder Selbstbescheidung? Antike Spolien in den hochmittelalterlichen Kirchen Roms – Konjunkturen und Intentionen

Abstract

This article explores the reuse of ancient workpieces, especially colonnade elements (base, shaft, capital, architrave), that were valued in Rome in the Central Middle Ages due to their quality craftsmanship or costly, colorful materials. Alongside the lapidary aspect of building material reuse, the focus is on ostentatious, ‘antiquarian’ use of spolia, in which attention was drawn to ancient ‘exhibition pieces’. The last part of the article discusses the reuse of whole sections of buildings as spatial spolia in the conflict between extravagance
and economy.

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