Piety, Power, or Presence? Strategies of Monumental Visualization of Patronage in Late Antique Ravenna

Abstract

Between Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages, lay and cleric alike felt the need to be remembered in the monuments they sponsored. Accordingly, specific elements of the décor were designed as means capable of bearing the patron’s memory. The late antique churches of Ravenna offer an extraordinary field to understand how patrons left their mark on decorative programs of ancient buildings. There, portraits, inscriptions, and monograms emerge as the primary instruments used in a complex strategy of visual communication. However, each had its own communicative power and peculiar use. Either separately or in connection, they were able to convey strong messages of patronship to the viewer. By focusing on each of these elements in its context and on the ways they all interacted with the surrounding architecture and church decoration, this paper will highlight their value as visual objects capable to immortalize the piety, power, or presence of the patron. Indeed, the silent dialogue enacted into the architectural space with the beholder will allow us to reconstruct the hidden messages that individuals or groups meant to communicate to posterity.

Pengaruh Makna Gedung Gereja terhadap Motivasi Partisipasi dalam Pembangunan dengan Mediasi Persepsi Kemegahan Gereja

“…Desain yang rumit, jendela kaca patri, dan dekorasi hiasan di gereja bertujuan untuk menciptakan suasana hormat dan kagum bagi umat-Nya (Widjaja et al 2020). Elemen simbolik dalam gedung gereja, seperti fitur arsitektur, karya seni, dan tata letak, memainkan peran penting dalam menghadirkan kekudusan, kekuasaan, atau eksistensi sang Pemilik Gereja atau umat itu sendiri (Carile 2021;Ebabey 2023). Kemegahan arsitektur ini melambangkan gereja sebagai representasi fisik kehadiran Tuhan di tengah umat-Nya.…”