This thesis focuses primarily on the iconographic analysis of ten medals made by Antonio Abondio, a court medallist at the court of Emperor Maximilian II and his son Rudolf II. The introductory part of the thesis dedicated to the biography of Antonio Abondio is followed by a short outline of the development of art medals production in Italy and in Central Europe and of the factors which had an impact on Abondio's work. The core of my study is an actual analysis of some selected pieces made on commission for prominent individuals of the said period. A particular emphasis is put on the images found on the reverse side of the medals and on theirs paradigm detecting.

The thesis about Prague as the leading musical center of the Czech Kingdom is generally accepted in musicological discourse. Likewise, the key role of professional Prague writing workshops in spreading monophonic singing is not questioned. In the distribution of vocal polyphony are many uncertainties. The only known workshop that also created primarily polyphonic manuscripts is the New Town workshop of Jan Kantor Starý († 1582). The number of other surviving manuscripts indicates that there were more such workshops in Prague at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries. The object of the master thesis is therefore to reveal another possible workshop based on detailed paleographic and codicological research of a selected group of polyphonic sources, which demonstrably contain common writing hands. Keywords musical iconography, codicology, vocal polyphony, Prague

Diploma thesis, titled "Mural painting in Bohemia in the 14th century" is focused on two particular locations, The Chapel of the Church of Saint John the Baptist in Český Rudolec and on the ancient minorit church of Saint John the Baptist in Jindřichův Hradec. The first part of this thesis deals with the contemporary, historical, political, religional and art situation and consequently discusses the question of the wall paintings of these two locations mentioned above in the broader context. The next two chapters are focused on the locations on their own and discuss their history and the history of the dynasties as the owners of these landed estates. In brief the thesis also presents the historical sacral monuments - the Church in Jindřichův Hradec and the Chapel in Český Rudolec, where the described wall paintings are situated. The main attention is devoted to the murals and to the iconographic motifs. The main goal of this thesis is to describe and assess the wall paintings in Český Rudolec and in Jindřichův Hradec and to interpret the wall paintings in Český Rudolec in terms of their style and iconographic context in which they have not been presented before.

Iconography of the Czech written Utraquist graduals Abstract: My doctoral thesis is devoted to the iconographic problems of painting decorations of a specific type of liturgical manuscripts. The subject of my doctoral thesis are illuminated chant books (graduals) with Czech texts of Gregorian chant, which originated in the 16th century for the needs of utraquist Confraternities of Litterati. The iconography of illuminations is interpreted with regards to their liturgical and codicological context within single part of the gradual. In the text, I especially accentuate the topics and motives from the whole complex of the themes which deserve attention and which newly appear in the structure of painting decorations or it is possible to interpret them in connection with the haecceity of the (utraquist) iconography and confessional identity. Heuristic compilation of illuminated utraquist chant books, which is the part of the structured catalogue, and interpretation of their iconography, represents the first elaboration which is fundamental to successive study dealing with iconography of single subjects, illustrations of particular saints and patron saints of places and specificity of the utraquist and catholic iconography in the epoch before the battle of White Mountain in Bohemia. My thesis, with regards to...

The thesis named Typology and Iconography of Christ in Distress motive. Devotional theme of Christ in Distress in historical Czech lands in late Gothic and early Renaissance wants to survey the occurrence of an unusual topic that began more often appear in the last quarter of the 15th century in central Europe. It expanded at the beginning of the following century in our territory. The thesis reflects a problem of terminology, seeks views on the origin and typological comparison of the theme. Different iconographic types sitting Suffering Christ are located and the most important artworks are presented in the accompanying catalog. The author concludes that the motive was very close to Franciscan spirituality, but also to notable feature of medieval spiritual life of human, namely the expectance of Apocalypse. Key words Christ in distress / devotional (subject) / iconography / sculpture / Czech

Using the concepts of the institutional completeness of ethnic communities (Breton, 1964) and the gay male community (Lee, 1979) and more recently, 'deviant' organizational sophistication (Best and Luckenbill, 1982), this thesis examines the gay world argue that traditional concepts, in solitude or synthesis, cannot wholly illuminate the phenomenon of modern gay evolutionary development. Notions of subculture and community are inadequate tools by which to describe the complexity and cultural materials of a contemporary and emergent ethnographic unit of analysis: the gay world. Documentary and archival research, personal correspondence and in depth participant-observation have produced an array of historical and cultural materials and analyses of gay iconography, stereotypes, bars, and gay media. Structural features such as the politicization of homosexuality (the shift from rights lobbying to political and legal litigation) the politics of gender and AIDS, emergent age structures and the paradox of capitalist enterprise and liberation have also been examined. It is hypothesized that local gay communities (towns, cities, provinces, states and territories) do not themselves wholly depict this gay world. Rather, the communities and milieux are bound as the links of a chain, through often invisible networks of gay information, publishing, support services, recreation, leisure, unique artifacts and cultural materials. Many of these links exist world wide, traversing international customs, languages, traditions, legal systems, and concrete borders. These links show both variegation and similarity but most are based upon a unique fusion and specific unity, forged by a common prism of homosexual and gay oppression, identity, cu1ture, ideology, and more recently, a still emerging sense of gay identity. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA)

While little is known concerning the events surrounding the commission of the Isenheim Altarpiece or of the artist known to us as Master Matthias Grünewald, much can be ascertained about the message of the Altarpiece through careful study of the socio-historical-religious context from which the work was commissioned and iconographic analysis of the images portrayed by Master Matthias. This thesis explores iconographic metaphors for birth and sacrifice, metaphors which work to create a theological dialogue about Christian redemption within the nine painted panels and the underlying sculpture that makes up the Isenheim Altarpiece. First, we will address the panels in the middle position of the Isenheim Altarpiece, which reveals events from the life of Mary. Since the Madonna is a prominent figure in the Altarpiece panels, understanding her role in sixteenth century Christian theology as birth mother of the Savior and as an especial example of bringing forth good fruit by virtue of obedience and humility is crucial to understanding the Marian iconography of the panels. In the center of the triptych, immediately following the Annunciation panel in the middle position, we see a celebration of Christ's birth in the Concert of Angels panel. When replaced by the folded wings depicting the Crucifixion, the Concert of Angels panel creates a discussion of rebirth through the sacrifice and death of the Savior which is symbolized by the Resurrection displayed in the final panel of the middle position. Through the use of iconographic devices which reference different panels within the Altarpiece, Grünewald creates a dialogue of redemption and rebirth through Jesus' mortal birth mother, the Virgin Mary. This dialogue extends to images of saints and disciples who find spiritual rebirth through conversation and help to build the kingdom of God on earth through their exemplary lives. Even the faithful followers of Christ numbered in the audience of the Isenheim Altarpiece are given a role in the dialogue of rebirth through conversion by bearing virtue, rather than vice, in the attitude of Mary and the saints.

The purpose of this study was to inductively examine the content of the popular comic strip Calvin and Hobbes by analyzing its latent and subjective meaning to discover basic social psychological issues associated with family recreation. The entire collection of 1,360 Calvin and Hobbes strips was evaluated using Grounded Theory techniques influenced by the art scholarship evaluation tool iconography. Review of the strip suggests one way to assess the meaning associated with time use is through preemptive retrospection by which a person looks at current experiences through the lens of an anticipated future to estimate how meaningful that time will be. Overall, Calvin and Hobbes suggests that meaningful time use is a key attribute of a life well lived. One key element of meaningful time use is time spent with family. The strip also helps us see the value in continuing to seek that meaning with family despite apparent setbacks. This analysis brought to light issues associated with gathering meaning from comic strips, which are also discussed. Recommendations are made for future research in the field.

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The ancient Maya afterlife is a rich and voluminous topic. Unfortunately, much of the material currently utilized for interpretations about the ancient Maya comes from publications written after contact by the Spanish or from artifacts with no context, likely looted items. Both sources of information can be problematic and can skew interpretations. Cosmological tales documented after the Spanish invasion show evidence of the religious conversion that was underway. Noncontextual artifacts are often altered in order to make them more marketable. An example of an iconographic theme that is incorporated into the surviving media of the ancient Maya, but that is not mentioned in ethnographically-recorded myths or represented in the iconography from most noncontextual objects, are the "travelers": a group of gods, humans, and animals who occupy a unique niche in the ancient Maya cosmology. This group of figures is depicted journeying from one level or realm of the universe to another by using objects argued to bridge more than one plane of existence at a time. They travel by holding onto or riding objects familiar to the ancient Maya that held other-world or afterlife symbolic significance and that are connected to events related to birth, death, and leadership. This group of figures (the "travelers"), represented across time and space and on wide ranging media, provides insight and broadens what is currently understood about the ancient Maya view of life and death by indicating a persistent belief in the ability to move from one realm to another in the afterlife.