This thesis considers some of the ways in which images of justice were used to express and in some cases promote certain aims and aspirations of those who commissioned them, in northern Italy between c.1250-1400, and whether and to what extent this impacted upon their depiction. It explores the question of a sacred/secular distinction in relation to the use and depiction of images of justice, and proposes that certain changes in such images can be read as responses to developments in the law and in the secular justice system. An introduction defines the essential elements of the subject and the main objectives of the thesis. As the thesis takes a social historical perspective, the first chapter provides details to establish the historical context for the following case studies. The main body of the thesis adopts a thematic approach. The second chapter examines the interrelationship of divine and secular justice through an analysis of images depicting the Last Judgment, or referencing its imagery. First it looks at several monumental representations of the Last Judgment, addressing developments in the artistic treatment of the torments of Hell in the context of changes in contemporary legal punishment practices. The chapter then explores further the relationship of earthly punishments and divine imageries, in a work not previously studied as an image of justice. The congruence in these artworks of sacred and secular elements allows a discussion of the interrelationship of these terms in relation to the contemporary conception and practices of justice. Further chapters examine how a new and increasing emphasis on the judge in the prosecution procedure from the early thirteenth century is mirrored in the artistic representation of secular and judicial authority after that period. This is first addressed by analysing images of the trials of Christ as examples of ‘secular’ justice in a religious or ‘sacred’ context, and exploring how contemporary issues relating to the administration of justice contribute to an understanding of changes in the iconography of these scenes. A fourth chapter addresses images more overtly associated with secular and judicial authority, offering a new perspective on these images as expressions of contemporary societal interests, many arising from the justice system, leading to their use as exemplars, to guide and inform. The thesis contributes to the debate on the distinction between the terms ‘sacred’ and ‘secular’ in the late medieval period, exploring how analysing artworks can lead to a better and more nuanced appreciation of the application of those terms in relation to the contemporary notion of justice. Further, my research has indicated that what could account most comprehensively for certain changes in the use and depiction of such images may be found in specific aspects of a justice system in transition.

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This paper focuses on the evolution of the theme the Triumph of Death, the representation of the personification of death and the dead in the late Middle Ages. The first part of this thesis represents different points of view of art historians and historians concerning the death and the afterlife. There follows a short description and analysis of the cultural environment especially regarding literature which closely relates to the visual art and the representation of death. The last part describes three themes of death and the most important representations in frescoes, panels, bas-reliefs of the Triumph of Death evincing the main idea and the underlying structure and composition. Two different ways of representation can be distinguished: the Triumph of Death in the shape of the apocalyptic rider as appearing in the Revelation of Saint John the Evangelist and the Triumph of Death based on Petrarch's poem the Trionfi.

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This thesis investigates the role of queens in ninth and tenth century Italy. During the Carolingian period the Italian kingdom saw significant involvement of royal women in political affairs. This trend continued after the Carolingian empire collapsed in 888, as Italy became the theatre of struggles for the royal and imperial title, which resulted in a quick succession of local rulers. By investigating Italian queens, my work aims at reassessing some aspects of Italian royal politics. Furthermore, it contributes to the study of medieval queenship, exploring a context which has been overlooked with regard to female authority. The work which has been done on queens over the last decades has attempted to build a coherent model of early medieval queenship; scholars have often privileged the analysis of continuities and similarities in the study of queens' prerogatives and resources. This thesis challenges this model and underlines the peculiarities of individual queens. My analysis demonstrates that, by deconstructing the coherent model established by historiography, it is possible to underline the individual experiences, resources and strengths of each royal woman, and therefore create a new way to look at the history of queens and queenship. The thesis is divided into four main thematic sections. After having introduced the subject and the relevant historiography on the topic in the introduction, in Chapter 2 I consider ideas about queenship as expressed by narrative and normative sources. Chapter 3 deals with royal diplomas, which are a valuable resource for the understanding of queens' reigns. Chapter 4 analyses queens' dowers and monastic patronage. Chapter 5 examines the experience of Italian royal widows. Finally, the conclusive chapter outlines the significance of this thesis for the broader understanding of medieval queenship.

Neste trabalho, pretendemos investigar a dimensão cívica da retórica mendicante presente nas obras hagiográficas compostas pelos frades Menores no século XIII italiano. Além disso, queremos contribuir para o aprofundamento das discussões teóricas acerca da hagiografia medieval, favorecendo a identificação e o estudo dos elementos retóricos comuns a essa prática letrada. Queremos igualmente colaborar com a reflexão historiográfica sobre a atuação dos mendicantes no ambiente citadino, pelo viés da hagiografia produzida pelos frades nas regiões centro-setentrionais da Itália, em meados do século XIII. Nosso ponto de partida é a hipótese de que o corpus santoral mendicante constitui, efetivamente, uma obra de cunho retórico, cujas premissas se assentam numa determinada concepção de sociedade que tem na moralidade os vínculos definidores dos laços sociais. Destarte, acreditamos também que estas obras sintetizam e propõem o cerne dos valores propugnados pelo minoritismo acerca da transformação moral da sociedade e se associam a uma específica retórica cívica, expressa na defesa de certa imagem idealizada da cidade. Levando em conta o tempo e o lugar, verificamos que as Vidas de santos escritas pelos frades Menores coincidem, em grande medida, com o período mais conturbado da história comunal italiana, o que nos faz ver que a concomitância do fenômeno hagiográfico e do político não foi fortuita. A legitimidade dos religiosos no trabalho citadino e o grande prestígio que alcançaram foram conseqüências do empenho predicativo direto e também dos sucessos que a retórica hagiográfica mendicante alcançou naquele século. / In the present work, we intend to investigate the civic dimension of mendicant rhetoric in the hagiographic works composed by the Friars Minor in the thirteenth century in Italy. Additionally, we aim at deepening the theoretical discussions about the medieval hagiography in order to identify and investigate rhetorical elements that are common to this literary practice. We also wish to collaborate with the historical analysis on the mendicantss performance in the city environment, from the perspective of the hagiography produced by Friars in Central-Northern Italy in the mid-thirteenth century. Our starting point is the hypothesis that the corpus of the mendicant sacred biographies is indeed a work of rhetorical nature, whose premises are based on a certain conception of society whereby morality works as a social connection. Thus, we also believe that these biographies synthesize and present the values defended by Franciscan friars about the moral transformation of society, and are associated with a specific civic rhetoric expressed in the defense of a particular idealized image of the city. Considering the time and the place, we see that the lives of saints written by the Friars Minor coincide largely with the most turbulent period of Italian communal history, which leads us to the conclusion that the concurrence of the political and hagiographical phenomena was not fortuitous. The legitimacy of the religious preaching in the city and its great prestige were a direct consequence of the work done by the Friars and also of the success that the hagiographic rhetoric reached in that century.

Neste trabalho, pretendemos investigar a dimensão cívica da retórica mendicante presente nas obras hagiográficas compostas pelos frades Menores no século XIII italiano. Além disso, queremos contribuir para o aprofundamento das discussões teóricas acerca da hagiografia medieval, favorecendo a identificação e o estudo dos elementos retóricos comuns a essa prática letrada. Queremos igualmente colaborar com a reflexão historiográfica sobre a atuação dos mendicantes no ambiente citadino, pelo viés da hagiografia produzida pelos frades nas regiões centro-setentrionais da Itália, em meados do século XIII. Nosso ponto de partida é a hipótese de que o corpus santoral mendicante constitui, efetivamente, uma obra de cunho retórico, cujas premissas se assentam numa determinada concepção de sociedade que tem na moralidade os vínculos definidores dos laços sociais. Destarte, acreditamos também que estas obras sintetizam e propõem o cerne dos valores propugnados pelo minoritismo acerca da transformação moral da sociedade e se associam a uma específica retórica cívica, expressa na defesa de certa imagem idealizada da cidade. Levando em conta o tempo e o lugar, verificamos que as Vidas de santos escritas pelos frades Menores coincidem, em grande medida, com o período mais conturbado da história comunal italiana, o que nos faz ver que a concomitância do fenômeno hagiográfico e do político não foi fortuita. A legitimidade dos religiosos no trabalho citadino e o grande prestígio que alcançaram foram conseqüências do empenho predicativo direto e também dos sucessos que a retórica hagiográfica mendicante alcançou naquele século. / In the present work, we intend to investigate the civic dimension of mendicant rhetoric in the hagiographic works composed by the Friars Minor in the thirteenth century in Italy. Additionally, we aim at deepening the theoretical discussions about the medieval hagiography in order to identify and investigate rhetorical elements that are common to this literary practice. We also wish to collaborate with the historical analysis on the mendicantss performance in the city environment, from the perspective of the hagiography produced by Friars in Central-Northern Italy in the mid-thirteenth century. Our starting point is the hypothesis that the corpus of the mendicant sacred biographies is indeed a work of rhetorical nature, whose premises are based on a certain conception of society whereby morality works as a social connection. Thus, we also believe that these biographies synthesize and present the values defended by Franciscan friars about the moral transformation of society, and are associated with a specific civic rhetoric expressed in the defense of a particular idealized image of the city. Considering the time and the place, we see that the lives of saints written by the Friars Minor coincide largely with the most turbulent period of Italian communal history, which leads us to the conclusion that the concurrence of the political and hagiographical phenomena was not fortuitous. The legitimacy of the religious preaching in the city and its great prestige were a direct consequence of the work done by the Friars and also of the success that the hagiographic rhetoric reached in that century.

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This thesis discusses the appropriation of antique art in Italy during the fourteenth century. In order to do that, it considers the surviving antiquities in late medieval Italian cities and examines their reception and perception by contemporary authors and artists. Following the introductory chapter, which sets out the aims of the thesis and provides a brief historical background of the period, this study is divided in two parts. Part I examines the awareness of ancient art in the Trecento by looking at late-medieval Italian texts. After an introduction of the relevant texts and a presentation of the biographical background of their authors, the chapters explore the reliability of the writers, their references to antique art and their particular interests towards antique art. They also examine the textual evidence on attitudes towards antiquity, contrasting the different approaches of intellectual and popular audiences, and discuss a number of surviving antique works that were placed in public places and were charged with ideological intent, meaning and power. Part II approaches the subject of the appropriation of antique art in the Trecento from a different angle and deals with the reaction of artists toward ancient art. It discusses the emergence of a new iconography that reflects themes arising from encounters with classical literary texts, explores instances of antique sculpture portrayed in fourteenth-century paintings, and examines the antique sources of various Trecento motifs and compositions. The Appendix is a detailed list of antique works of art that were visible in Trecento Italy, along with a discussion of their history and the relevant primary and secondary bibliography.