| Description |
xxi, 180 pages, [16] pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 29 cm. |
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text txt rdacontent |
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unmediated n rdamedia |
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volume nc rdacarrier |
| Series |
California studies in the history of art. Discovery series ; 3 |
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California studies in the history of art. Discovery series ; 3.
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| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 169-172) and index. |
| Contents |
Introduction: Rehistoricizing the Portrait -- 1. From Inventory Description to Symbolic Reading -- 2. On Marriage Law and Ceremony -- 3. Betrothal Custom and the Arnolfini Sponsalia -- 4. Problems of Symbolic Interpretation -- Appendix: A Fifteenth-Century Florentine Marriage Service Before a Notary. |
| Summary |
Commonly known as the "Arnolfi Wedding" or "Giovanni Arnolfi and His Bride," Jan van Eyck's double portrait in the National Gallery, London, painted in 1434, is probably the most widely recognized panel painting of the fifteenth century. One of the great masterpieces of early Flemish art, this enigmatic picture has also aroused intense speculation as to its precise meaning. |
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Erwin Panofsky's view that the painting represents a clandestine marriage was almost universally accepted until recently, when scholars began to abandon his principle of "disguised symbolism" in favor of more theoretical approaches to the panel's interpretation. Edwin Hall's study - firmly grounded in Roman and canon law, theology, literature, and the social history of the period - reveals new meaning for this wonderful painting: instead of depicting the sacrament of marriage, Hall argues, Van Eyck's double portrait commemorates the alliance between two wealthy and important Italian mercantile families, a ceremonious betrothal that reflects the social conventions of the time. |
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Hall's illuminating book not only unlocks the mystery surrounding the content of this work of art; it also makes a unique contribution to the fascinating history of betrothal and marriage custom, ritual, and ceremony, tracing their evolution from the late Roman Empire thorough the fifteenth century and providing persuasive visual evidence for their development. |
| Subject |
Eyck, Jan van, 1390-1440. Wedding portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and Jeanne Cenami.
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Panel painting -- 15th century -- Expertising.
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Marriage customs and rites, Medieval.
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Wedding portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and Jeanne Cenami (Eyck, Jan van) (OCoLC)fst01359313
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Marriage customs and rites, Medieval. (OCoLC)fst01010603
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Panel painting -- Expertising.
(OCoLC)fst01052039
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| Chronological Term |
1400-1499
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| ISBN |
0520212215 (alk. paper) |
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9780520212213 (alk. paper) |
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0520082516 (alk. paper) |
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9780520082519 (alk. paper) |
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