Octagonal Roman columned ciboriums of the 12th century: origin of the form

Natalia Sergeevna Kuznetsova postgraduate student, Moscow State University after M. V. Lomonosov, Faculty of History (Lomonosovskiy prospekt, 27/4, Moscow, 119192)
natik.ne@mail.ru

Kuznetsova N.S. Octagonal Roman columned ciboriums of the 12th century: origin of the form, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2019, vol. 8, pp. 276–293.

doi: 10.24411/2308-0698-2020-00008

Language: Russian

Among the monuments of Roman Church architecture of the12–13th centuries there are several special basilicas. Their altar spaces havepreserved elements of the High Middle Ages design. These includethe octagonal ciboriums from the basilicas San Giorgio in Velabro and SanLorenzo Fuori Le Mura in Rome, Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Ferentino andSanta Maria Assunta in Anagni. The unusual shape of the ciborium canopyand its location in the interior allow us to explore several problems. First of all,in this article we will try to give a general description of this typology. We willalso look at the genesis of this form of canopy and try to find its prototypes. Thistype of ciborium is one of the small architectural forms. Its composition is veryclear and geometric. There are three factors that influenced the formation ofsuch a structure. First, the development of the local tradition, which indicatesthe existence of more ancient kivori with columns and octagonal kivori.However, ciboriums of the Early Middle Ages are quite different. Their formsare more similar to sculpture. Secondly, during this period, the influenceof Antiquity is strong. Many artists in Rome seek to imitate ancient forms.Often some elements were copied. For example, columns or beam profiles.In addition, Roman art is influenced by the image of Jerusalem. At this time,the connection between the two Christian capitals is strengthened. The formsof the ciborium resemble the image of the Edicule over the Holy Sepulchre.

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Key words: Canopy, ciborium, altar space, Rome, Middle Ages, Papal States, presbytery

URL: http://rcs-almanac.ru/kuznetsova-2020-en/

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