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Martyrdom and Imitation in Early Christian Texts and Art
Series:
Morphomata, Volume: 43
Contributors:
, , , , , , , and
This volume explores the phenomenon of Christian martyrdom and ideas of “following Christ”, in particular focusing on theological and pragmatic difficulties in the early Christian period. How can martyrs successfully follow Christ without themselves entering into a competition with him? What happens when the idea of following Christ so faithfully as to experience martyrdom becomes impossible because of the fundamentally different living situation of the faithful? How do Christian concepts of the model and of imitation compare to pagan traditions of “exempla”? Contributions from classical philology, ancient history, theology, and art history suggest some answers to these questions, drawing equally on ancient literature and material culture.
Series:
Morphomata, Volume: 20
Contributors:
, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , and
In the last two decades we have had many books and proceedings of conferences on the history, formulas and incantations of magic in antiquity, both in East and West, but this is the first book of its kind that focuses on the material aspects of magic, such as gems, rings, drawings, grimoires, amulets and figurines.
In recent years scholars have focused not only on the discourse and practices of magic in antiquity, but also on its practitioners, literary stereotypes and historical shifts. Much less attention, however, has been paid to the material that was used by the magicians for their curses and incantations. Yet there is no magic without materiality. The practice of magic required a specialist expertise that knew how to handle material such as lead, gold, stones, papyrus, figurines or voodoo dolls. That is why we present new insights on the materiality of magic by studying both the materials used for magic as well as the books in which the expertise was preserved.
In recent years scholars have focused not only on the discourse and practices of magic in antiquity, but also on its practitioners, literary stereotypes and historical shifts. Much less attention, however, has been paid to the material that was used by the magicians for their curses and incantations. Yet there is no magic without materiality. The practice of magic required a specialist expertise that knew how to handle material such as lead, gold, stones, papyrus, figurines or voodoo dolls. That is why we present new insights on the materiality of magic by studying both the materials used for magic as well as the books in which the expertise was preserved.
Dissolving the Boundaries of Embodied Knowledge
Series:
Morphomata, Volume: 23
Contributors:
, , , , , , , , , , , and
This volume deals with the dissolution of the concept of the ideal body as a repository of knowledge through instances of deformation or hybridization
The starting point comprises a series of case studies of less than perfect bodies: bodies that are misshapen, stigmatized, fragmented, as well as hybrid human/animal creatures, transgendered persons, and bodies on the cultural periphery of the classical world. These examples represent deviations from the »normal« order of things and evoke feelings of alienation. One strategy for dealing with this is to canonize transgression in visual form. Fluid bodies are captured in the image, creating a visual order in disorder. The body-as-ruin is a fixed figure of fluidity and thus receptive to attributions of meaning, which helps explain its persistence as a cultural trope. It allows for the observation of cultural change.
The starting point comprises a series of case studies of less than perfect bodies: bodies that are misshapen, stigmatized, fragmented, as well as hybrid human/animal creatures, transgendered persons, and bodies on the cultural periphery of the classical world. These examples represent deviations from the »normal« order of things and evoke feelings of alienation. One strategy for dealing with this is to canonize transgression in visual form. Fluid bodies are captured in the image, creating a visual order in disorder. The body-as-ruin is a fixed figure of fluidity and thus receptive to attributions of meaning, which helps explain its persistence as a cultural trope. It allows for the observation of cultural change.