Search

(The organisation of the prefecture of annona during the principate): Standing at the head of the grain administration, the equestrian prefect (praefectus annonae) was responsible during the early Empire for the process of supplying the capital with grain – the main staple of the Eternal City’s inhabitants’ diet. The article outlines the organisational background to the whole project, as well as the personal involvements of various emperors because of the political importance of the process of supplying Rome with grain.

(The Tradition of Representing the Deceased in the Roman Empire from the 1st to the 3rd Century CE in Light of Literary Sources and Selected Portraits from Rome and Egypt): This article discusses how the ancient Romans experienced the loss of their loved ones and what customs were associated with commemorating the dead. The aim of the paper is to show the variability in the way the dead were represented in the period from the 1st to the 3rd century CE. This is made possible thanks to analyses of various ancient written sources and several archaeological discoveries, including portraits from the Fayum, mummy masks and death masks.

In this brief paper 22 objects comprising Roman engraved gemstones and finger-rings made of both gold and glass are presented, all of which are curated in the Archaeological Museum of İznik in south-eastern Marmara, Turkey. These objects are significant as very few gemstones have been published from Bithynia. Two of the finds were excavated from a necropolis area of Nicaea. A catalogue of these artefacts will be provided at the end of this paper. Rzymskie gemmy i pierścionki ze złota i szkła z Nicei w Bitynii [południowo-wschodnia część regionu Marmara]): W tym krótkim artykule zaprezentowano 22 rzymskie grawerowane gemmy, złote i szklane pierścionki, które znajdują się w Muzeum Archeologicznym w İzniku w południowo-wschodniej części regionu Marmara w Turcji. Są to istotne eksponaty, ponieważ bardzo niewiele kamieni szlachetnych z Bitynii doczekało się publikacji na swój temat. Dwa spośród znalezisk odkryto na terenie nekropolii w Nicei. Na końcu artykułu zostały opisane złote i szklane pierścionki znajdujące się we wspomnianym muzeum. (Nikaia ve Bithynia’dan Roma Dönemi’ne Ait Bazı Gliptik Buluntular ile Altın ve Cam Yüzükler): Bu kısa yazıda İznik Arkeoloji Müzesi’nde saklanmakta olan Roma Dönemi’ne ait 22 adet gliptik örneği ile altın ve cam yüzükler tanıtılmaktadır. Bu çalışma Bithynia Bölgesi'nden şu ana değin çok az sayıda değerli taş yayınlandığı için önemlidir. İznik Müzesi'nde bulunan buluntulardan ikisi Nikaia Örenyeri’nin nekropollerinde ortaya çıkarılmıştır. Makalenin sonunda bu müzede bulunan altın ve cam yüzükler da tanıtılacaktır.

(Venvs Caelestis on the coins of Julia Soaemias – problems regarding their interpretation in the historical context): This article concerns the coins of Julia Soaemias, the niece of Julia Domna and mother of Emperor Elagabalus, on the reverse of which the goddess Venus is depicted. The paper discusses the iconography and ideology of the coins and attempts to determine the role of this Roman goddess with regards to the self-presentation of Julia Soaemias, especially in the context of her son’s religious activities.

(Zenobia’s appearance in the Historia Augusta: associations and inspirations): This paper analyses the description of Zenobia’s appearance in the Historia Augusta (HA Tyr. Trig. 15.8, 30.15). Descriptions of what the rulers mentioned in Historia Augusta looked like have yet to be comprehensively researched. Most articles focus on general remarks about their authorship and the similarities to the work of Suetonius, with no attempt being made to analyse specific descriptions as a separate topic. Thus, individual features of Zenobia’s physiognomy have so far not been discussed in published literature concerning the Palmyrene queen. Her appearance is in several respects identical to that of Diadumenian (HA Dd. 3.2–3), which tells us a lot about the creation of the passages by the editor of the Historia Augusta. Moreover, what has not been noticed in the literature before is that Zenobia's appearance resembles that of Giddenis, a woman from one of Plautus' comedies (Pl. Poen. 1112–1113). Therefore, this article is not only important with regards to research concerning the female body in antiquity, but it also draws attention to the previously unexplored influence of Plautus on the Historia Augusta.

The Book De medicina of the Etymologiae of Isidore of Seville. Critical Reflections on the Organization of Knowledge in ‘Modern’ Edition and Medieval Codices): In this article, various Etymologiae codices are contrasted with the basal edition of Wallace Martin Lindsay in order to illustrate the edition’s shortcomings. For this purpose, the so far disregarded Cod. 25(2) from the Biblioteca de la Real Academia de la Historia in Madrid is also taken into account. The paper discusses the multilayered differences between Lindsay’s edition and the medieval codices regarding their organization of knowledge. However, despite these differences Lindsay’s work was deeply influential amongst researchers during the 20th century – scholars usually just adopted his idea of Isidore’s Etymologiae without further questioning. Finally, the article stresses the need for a revision of Lindsay’s edition using modern digital editing techniques, which take paratextual elements and printed incunabula into consideration. (Księga De medicina z dzieła Etymologiae Izydora z Sewilli. Krytyczne uwagi na temat organizacji wiedzy we „współczesnej” edycji i średniowiecznych kodeksach): Poszczególne kodeksy Etymologiae Izydora z Sewilli zostały w artykule zestawione z podstawowym wydaniem Wallace’a Martina Lindsaya w celu uwypuklenia niedoskonałości tej edycji. Z tego powodu uwzględniono również pomijany dotąd kodeks Cod. 25(2) z Biblioteki Królewskiej Akademii Historii w Madrycie. Artykuł omawia wielowarstwowe różnice pomiędzy wydaniem Lindsaya a średniowiecznymi kodeksami, zwłaszcza w zakresie organizacji wiedzy. Wydanie Lindsaya, mimo tych różnic, miało w ubiegłym wieku ogromny wpływ na badania historyczne – uczeni na ogół bez zastrzeżeń przyjmowali jego interpretację Etymologiae. W artykule podkreślono konieczność rewizji wydania Lindsaya z wykorzystaniem nowoczesnych technik edycji cyfrowej, które uwzględnią elementy paratekstowe oraz drukowane inkunabuły.

(Hungarians as pars aliqua gentis Massagetum. Traces of erudition in the late antique and early medieval periods in the work of Archdeacon Thomas of Split. Part 2. The Perception of the Massagetean. 2) The “Hunnic” context, 1. Huns and Hungarians): Thomas of Split is considered to be the first known author in the territories ruled by the Arpads who identified Hungarians with Huns (however, such an identification was known in Europe from the beginning of the 10th century). Earlier, in the first decades of the 13th century, Attila was added to the genealogy of the ruling dynasty, even though there were statements in that century that excluded Attila and promoted Saint Stephen. This duality in the perception of Attila needs to be explained primarily by the pragmatism of the circles gathered around the royal court. The accounts known from other sources that link the motifs of the city, sword, and treasure of Attila with Hungary, once considered arguments proving the early development of a Hun-Hungarian identity there, arose outside the area of that monarchy and there is no indication that, except for the first account, they were known there. There is no evidence that shows the Archdeacon of Split knew at least the last two. Also, proper names and toponyms that resemble in terms of pronunciation, or in terms of spelling the name of Attila, recorded in the period preceding the creation of HISTORIA in testimonies in western Europe have nothing in common with the name of the ruler of the Huns. The identity of Huns and Hungarians, together with the references to both Attila as the ferocissimus persecutor christianorum (that could be understand as a synonym for flagellum Dei) and Hungarian invasions, all of which are to be found in Thomas’ work, seem to reflect the accounts of many medieval sources. At the same time, echoes of the last two motifs also appear in Hartvik’s LEGEND OF KING STEPHEN, which was known to Thomas.

(Selected motifs on Italian coins from 1922–1943 as an example of the reception of Roman numismatic motifs. Expressing new content through references to tradition): This text is devoted to the phenomenon of the reception of iconographic motifs appearing on Italian coins from 1922–1943, which have analogies in Roman coinage. Iconographic motifs from Italian coins, despite their stylistic similarity to motifs from Roman coins, contain new elements that change the symbolic content. References to Roman patterns on Italian coins were not accidental and served to create the desired image of the country, which was often different from historical reality.

El proyecto ValorAcinipo se ha diseñado desde la generación de conocimiento histórico/arqueológico, teniendo en cuenta las Acciones Estratégicas buscando impulsar las áreas rurales frente al reto demográfico y de cohesión social y territorial, atendiendo, a su vez, a la transformación digital y la igualdad de género como principio rector. Este proyecto actúa como herramienta para la transición digital con un carácter transversal e interdisciplinar. Tradicionalmente, las Humanidades han sido poco consideradas como una disciplina científica capaz de afrontar los retos a los que se enfrenta nuestra sociedad. Sin embargo, desde este proyecto presentamos una iniciativa consolidada de investigación arqueológica y de aplicación de tecnologías no invasivas para la documentación y reconocimiento del patrimonio cultural, con la intención de generar materiales y recursos digitales de calidad para una sociedad que apuesta por proyectos ecológicos, sostenibles, inclusivos y accesibles, aunando los recursos patrimoniales y naturales, con el apoyo de iniciativas empresariales y las instituciones públicas, para conseguir modelos de producción y servicio basados en los objetivos medioambientales.

Dos keros de madera del Museo Quyllur Ñan de Vinchina están registrados con una localización genérica del área de procedencia del NOA, desconociéndose otros datos, como no sea que ingresaron juntos a la colección. Decorados con diseños de motivos geométricos incisos, e inciso con color negro por aplicación de pintura en uno de los keros, se adscriben al Período Inka regional. Estos vasos libatorios conformarían el consabido par «gemelo» ceremonial, presentando franjas decoradas horizontales en el tercio superior de sus cuerpos con motivos incisos semejantes, difiriendo el diseño, vertical, de la franja inferior, que ocupa dos tercios del cuerpo.

Reseña de: Barahona Oviedo, Marisa, Presas romanas y altomedievales de la cuenca media del río Tajo, análisis constructivo y funcional, Anejos de AESPA, XCVII, CSIC, Madrid 2023, 335 pp. ISBN: 978-84-00-11238-7.

Reseña de: Bejarano Osorio, A. M. y Bustamante-Álvarez M. (eds): La casa del Mitreo de Augusta Emerita. Monografías arqueológicas de Mérida (3), 2023. Edición Consorcio Ciudad Monumental Histórico-Artística y Arqueológica de Mérida. Mérida: pp. 718.

Se presentan tres objetos de bronce con características formales similares, identificados tradicionalmente como specilla (sondas) de uso quirúrgico. Su hallazgo en el yacimiento de València la Vella (Riba-roja de Túria, València) aporta nuevos datos sobre la distribución espacial de este tipo de instrumental, asociado probablemente al mundo islámico. El análisis aborda su morfología, funcionalidad y paralelos tanto en la península ibérica como en el ámbito mediterráneo, contribuyendo al conocimiento de las prácticas médicas en la transición entre la Antigüedad tardía y la Alta Edad Media.

Paleolithic art evolved from simple figurative representations; it signified the transition from Homo inspiciens to Artifex inspiciens. Later, Aurignacian primary sexual characteristics were replaced by Gravettian female figures with their secondary sexual characteristics highlighted. The postpartum period of raising the newborn, which defines secondary altriciality, explains their relevance. These images could be called Altricial Venus due to their intention to reflect the essential feminine sexual traits needed to bring children to their own fertile stage. The reasons for this substantial progress must be found in an evolution due to learning, which is responsible for intellectual development. It is based on inferences that link the cause and the effect of any event, and cognitive evolution expanded the time interval between them due to two factors: social environment and intuition. They provided a prior common cultural environment and the creative spark from the unconscious. This was the leap from Artifex inspiciens to Artifex intelligens, and as women participated in the first images of art, then we could also say Artifex feminina.

Iconographic themes alluding to salvific parousia created in the mosaic floors depicting divinities and heroes of the Villa del Casale in Piazza Armerina, dating back to the 4th century AD, and attributable to the new forms of philosophies and mystery religions known and professed within the Roman elite classes for whom the large monumental villas were intended during the Late Empire.

This study contributes to clarify certain aspects of Antonello Gagini's marble Tribune for the Cathedral of Palermo through the analysis of the 1701 engraving by Diego De Loya and the comparison between this and other iconographic, textual and material sources. Furthermore, through the analysis of decorations and frames of the pilasters of the dismembered Tribune, placed in the Chapel of Santa Rosalia since 1801 ca., it is revealed that the pilasters we see today are the result of a 19th-century assemblage and that through the study of the cuts in the marble, it is possible to trace their original appearance and hypothesize their placement in the monument.

An ancient testimony to the fame of the Bergamasks as iron craftsmen comes to us from Ludovico Ariosto’s Satira I: «in sin che i Bergamaschi / se levino a far chiodi». The fame, in fact, also concerns neighbouring Brescia and, for both territories, should refer not only to simple forms of craftsmanship, such as nail making, but also to more elaborate works, for which the adjective “artistic” can be used without problem. My proposal consists of a focus on the production of wrought iron objects in the Brescia and Bergamo area between the Renaissance and the eighteenth century: keys, locks, knockers, scissors, tinder knives, irons, fireplace tools, gratings, gates, signs, decorative accessories; I would tend not to dwell, however, on armour and weapons, as they constitute a separate sector, already much studied. I will focus on the nature of the artefacts, their decorative dimension and the techniques used. I will try to consider their peculiarities compared to examples made in the same period in other areas and the changes they underwent over the centuries. It will also be interesting to assess their relationship with local painting and sculpture and to reflect on the iconographic links they maintain with the territory (e.g. the Bergamasque knockers reproducing the traditional local viper). I will also deal with the depiction of metal objects in Brescian and Bergamasque paintings, from the case of the scissors depicted in Giovan Battista Moroni’s Tailor to that of the fireplace irons painted by Giacomo Ceruti.

This article aims to reconstruct, in the form of an interview, the history of the Forlenza company, a jewelry studio active in Rome since the 1960s, engaged in unexpected collaborations that go beyond the typical industry commissions. In 2005, the company expanded beyond its traditional production activities by closely collaborating with the Rome School of Aerospace Engineering, and in 2016, with the prestigious Vatican Medagliere. I have had the pleasure of getting to know Gianfranco Forlenza, born in 1942 and the founder of Forlenza Jewelry, located at 79 Via Tagliamento, in his studio-laboratory. During our conversations, which took place from November 2021 to May 2022, he recounts his long and illustrious career filled with public recognition, displaying an impressive memory for dates and figures. Today, the family tradition is carried on by Gianfranco’s two sons, Michele and Alessandro, who bring new energy to Forlenza’s production with a contemporary twist. While maintaining the distinctly artisanal character, they highlight in their jewelry the synthesis of historical craftsmanship and modern design. The company, over time, has become a well-known Roman entity recognized for its goldsmithing expertise and has been chosen for two significant commissions. In 2005, upon the request of the Rome School of Aerospace Engineering, engaged in the UniSat program focused on the design and launch of microsatellites, Forlenza produced six golden spheres for the UNISAT-4 triple spacecraft. In 2016, the Vatican Medagliere entrusted Forlenza with the restoration of 64 settings from the collection of 595 works created by the famous Italian engraver Luigi Pichler between 1819 and 1820. Originally, Emperor Francis I of Austria had commissioned the pieces to be presented as a gift to Pope Pius VII. In these restorations, and truly in all of family’s work, we see how the knowledge of traditional goldsmithing techniques and craftsmanship can effectively bridge the gap between seemingly distant worlds, enabling Forlenza to tackle unimaginable challenges.

The study takes its cue from new and relevant iconographic and iconological acquisitions of the famous Triumph of Death in Palermo which link the fresco to the story of blessed Matteo d'Agrigento, the friar companion of San Bernardino da Siena and protagonist of the Franciscan Observance reform in Sicily, leading to Salvatore Tramontana's hypothesis of an involvement in the creation of the fresco of the young Antonello da Messina.

The article “narrates” the probable discovery of a plant endemic to the island of Crete, Origanum dictamnus, in the Hellenistic-Roman district of Agrigento: an atypical place, which however becomes useful to advance a research with aesthetic characteristics, and to remember some information on the botanical knowledge of the Minoans and their presence in Sicily. Through this plant, whose identification is not certain, and despite the fact that it is impossible to reconstruct its itinerary, customs, agricultural knowledge, mythical, archaeological and geographical events of the ancient Cretans will be exposed, finally focusing on the curiosities of Origanum dictamnus and its medical properties.

This paper aims to collect and analyse the main historical and naturalistic “notices” about the coastline of Syracuse, contained in technical reports of the military engineers, who worked on the coastal defence system against corsair incursions (16th century), and in the erudite tradition. When possible, the information will be integrated with cartographic data or artistic representations. The evaluation of the acquired elements will offer an original reconstruction of the coastal landscape and relationship between human activities and territory from ancient to modern times.

It was 1963 when a serious infection forced Ettore Sottsass to a delicate, long stay in a hospital bed. In a period of time poised between "the darkness of death" and the inevitability of hope in life, Sottsass dreams, confides, plans, reflects on the history and potential of the humblest of materials: ceramic. The scattered sheets of a written dream retrace the thousand-year journey of a collective manual making which often resurfaces in contemporary creative aspiration.

The article Alice Rahon. Surrealist journey to discover the marvelous presents the biography and production of the artist and poet Alice Rahon (1904, Chenecey-Buillon, France-1987, Mexico City, Mexico). Describing her life, passions, meetings, formal and ideological choices, the text retraces the most significant stages of her identity as an artist. Alice Rahon, still little known today, brought important innovations to the art world, such as the sgraffito technique, an innovative practice that consisted of scratching the surface of paintings to reveal the lower layer of contrasting color. The strong suggestions received from the places she visited (Spain, India, Mexico) and the encounter with Surrealism guided her on a long journey to discover the marvelous.

This study examines a series of nine unpublished paintings, dating between the 16th and 18th centuries, whose iconography derives from a lost prototype by Rogier van der Weyden, documented only through a drawing released from his workshop. This is the Madone embrassée par l'Enfant whose replicas have been cataloged several times with more and more additions, until recently reaching over 200, also distinguished by the different iconological meanings they have assumed over time, while maintaining the same composition. The new replicas demonstrate even more the diffusion of the model, both half-figure and full-figure.

In Loredana Longo’s works, one often sees an aesthetic contrast between the material used and the way it is treated: explosions, blows, impacts, are the actions reserved for the plastic definition of the final object that appears discomposed, but visually mindful of the energy released. In her works, precious or traditional materials – silk, gold, velvet, clay – are treated in an unconventional way. In the Carpet series (2012-2020), the artist uses an electric soldering iron to engrave iconic phrases on Persian carpets; a similar thing happens in Victory/tapestry (2016-2021), where scenarios of conflict and tragedy appear in negative on velvet, through burns. Raw materials, belonging to the construction sector, are the raw material for some important works such as Floor (2011-2013), in which the artist exploits the aggregating capacity of concrete to create walkable installations, through a mixture of impoverished concrete and common objects (clothes or low-cost porcelain). Particular attention is also paid to ceramics, which takes shape after a long, often performative process. In Gold Heel (2018), the artist interacts with a punching bag that he hits forcefully when the clay is still raw: the sculpture is then fired, leaving visible the artist's imprints. In the Creative Execution series (2019), painted clay vases are arranged in a row and then detonated with gunpowder and electric igniters; the resulting decomposed shape is then blocked by the firing process. We therefore propose an analysis of the techniques used by Loredana Longo in some works that favor malleable raw materials, but worked with a vigor and a method outside traditional schemes. Attention is also paid to social and political references, then moving on to their definition in the framework of the languages of contemporary art.

This paper is dedicated to the image of the Adoration of the Magi imprinted in the center of a thin golden bractea exposed at the Archaeological Museum of Locri, in Calabria. Dating back to the early Byzantine period, the lamella is not an isolated case, rather, it fits into a wider context of bracteates made with the same technique and bearing different sacred representations dating back to the same time (6th – 10th-century) and found throughout the southern part of the Peninsula, especially in the Ionian Calabria. It also belongs to a wider context of precious artifacts (coins, amulets, medallions and jewelry in general) that bear the same theophanic representation and that is believed to protect against evil those who possess them by virtue of the depictions they contain. It would seem that these small objects have spread in the West thanks to the practice of pilgrimages: the story of the Magi, in fact, becomes exemplum and archetype for Christian pilgrims who, like the three Kings, they face a long journey to reach the Holy Places in Palestine. Through the iconographic analysis of the scene of the Epiphany, the document proposes to signal and motivate the interdependence between these small objects and the monumental depictions of the scene, offering an explanation to the diffusion of the image. It will also try to demonstrate the continuity between Greek-Roman pagan culture and Christian art of the early centuries through the deepening of two important aspects: 1. the dependence on pre-existing models of the image of the enthroned Virgin and the offering Magi; 2. the apotropaic value conferred on this kind of Christian objects related to magical-religious practices banned by the Church.

The essay analyzes in depth, according to a historical-aesthetic view, one of the earliest Italian texts concerning pre-cinema. Francesco Avelloni’s play La lanterna magica (1788), is presented as a historical account of how the magic lantern worked and what the intended audience was.

Rediscovered in the 1960s, the figure of Francesco La Marra (1728-1787), a master originally from Martina Franca who arrived in Naples in 1748, just one year after Francesco Solimena’s death, continues to reveal new surprises. La Marra's reputation has primarily endured thanks to a series of etchings based on designs attributed to Mattia Preti, Luca Giordano, and Francesco Solimena—the Raccolta dei Cinquanta Disegni Originali, published posthumously in Naples in 1792 by the Terres brothers—and his fame as a marginal figure in the Neapolitan artistic scene. However, La Marra was not merely the creator of numerous figurative sketches, often distinguishable by their defined neoclassical style, nor did he confine himself to producing pastiches of others' compositions. Like one of his principal influences, Luca Giordano, La Marra distinguished himself by his ability to surprise and deceive with drawings executed à la manière de Solimena, Giordano, and Francesco De Mura. His graphic corpus, along with his rarer and exquisitely refined oil sketches on paper, long believed to be 18th-century French works, continues to unveil new discoveries. On this occasion, new attributions are presented in the collections of the Louvre, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Prado, the Albertina, and the State Museum of Copenhagen.

This contribution intends to illustrate an unprecedented aspect of the personality of the sculptor Pietro Tenerani and the architect Luigi Poletti, highlighting how their friendship, which blossomed in Rome around 1826, was a bond so strong as to have repercussions both on a human level and on on the artistic choices of both, in a continuous exchange of ideas and projects that also influenced other colleagues of the time. Tenerani chose Poletti to restore both the house where he went to live, in via delle Quattro Fontane 173-175, and the ateliers that he had gradually purchased on the same street, thanking him with a chalk representing the portrait of his friend. Poletti, for his part, not only involved the sculptor in the restoration site of the basilica of San Paolo f.m., where the two collaborated together in the chapel of San Benedetto, but named him first in the list of his closest friends in his will, giving him a painting from his prestigious collection.The two artists were also united by a particular attention towards the education of young people: Tenerani through the desire to open his own plaster cast gallery to the public, Poletti through teaching and the establishment of a scholarship. The concrete result of the friendship between Poletti and Tenerani was Carlo, the sculptor's son, who had studied with Poletti and became an architect and engineer. As such, he built a new palace on the land purchased by his parent in what would be called Via Nazionale, managing to set up the plaster cast gallery his father had dreamed of.

The emperor Hadrian (117 – 138 AD) is known for his contribution to Roman architecture characterized by an equilibrium between respect for tradition and innovation. This article will analyze the main architectural works, such as the Pantheon, the temple of Venus and Rome, Hadrian’s Villa (Tivoli) and the Mausoleum, promoted throughout his reign, highlighting how these landmarks not only reflect the architectural taste of the time but also Hadrian’s adherence to Pythagorean philosophy. Through the study of ancient literary sources, archeological data and the most recent historigraphical readings , it will reflect on how Hadrian used architecture to express his role as refounder of Rome, a Kosmocrator (ruler and builder of the world) and a Pythagorean scholar in the pursuit of harmony with the cosmos. The results highlight an exact correspondence between Pythagorean school precepts and the political and architectural expressions of this emperor. This study will, not only, contribute to a better understanding of Hadrianic architecture as the expression of imperial power, but also as necessary vehicle of philosophical communication and a new political ideology.

Portraits of the XV and XVI centuries sometimes feature unusual accessories - zibellini. They repeat the shape of wild animals from the Mustelidae: ermines, martens, sables. Such jewelry was made of animal fur, sometimes complemented by muzzles, earrings and paws made of precious metals and stones. Typically ladies wore zibellini on shoulders, held them in hands or attached them to the girdles with gold chains. The fashion for zibellini spread rapidly, first occupying Italy in twenty years and then spreading over Europe. Proactive discussion is being held about the function of the zibellino. In the XIX century one believed that fur was aimed to attract fleas and lure them away from the costume and hair. We consider the version about the meaning of zibellini as a talisman during pregnancy far more convincing. In Ovid’s Metamorphoses (IX, 280-323) the marten was directly connected with the servant Galanthis who helped Heracles to be born and as punishment was turned into a beast. It was in the form of the marten that Galanthis often appeared on special birth trays deschi da parto. In the context of pregnancy zibellino was depicted by Masaccio, Apollonio di Giovanni, Leonardo da Vinci, Lorenzo Lotto, Paolo Veronese; the accessory repeatedly appears in inventories of property. We managed to discover a mention of the zibellino in the Venetian wedding ceremony and prove that the connection with pregnancy was attached to the accessory from the very moment of its acquisition - on the occasion of the girl’s wedding, and was subsequently expressed in direct connection with the wedding belt. Our study also provides a rare example of a golden zibellino head from Musée Cluny, which has not previously been considered as part of an accessory. The zibellino was a luxurious piece of jewelry with the help of thus a lady could demonstrate her wealth and status. At the same time, it served as an amulet during the period of greatest fragility and defenselessness of the Renaissance woman.

In 1915 Giacomo Balla and Fortunato Depero, signing the Futurist manifesto Ricostruzione futurista dell’universo, extended the field of action of the Futurists to every aspect of everyday life. This first publication was followed by a series of programmatic texts that proposed, at least in theory, the ‘reconstruction’ of every sphere of contemporary living. Thus the Case d’Arte were founded, veritable atelier-workshops where artists tried their hand at the most original creations - often working together - in the most diverse fields: from fashion to furniture, but also publishing, advertising and design tout court. Heirs to the Wagner’s ideal of Gesamtkunstwerk, the Futurists broke down the fences separating the ‘major’ and ‘minor’ arts. But if between Central and Northern Italy there were many Case d’Arte, in Southern Italy the reality was quite different: the only two Case d’Arte founded in Palermo were those of Pippo Rizzo and Vittorio and Gigia Corona (Cf. Crispolti, 1980; Ruta, 1985; Gueci, Troisi, 2018). Laying the foundations of the research on the previous studies carried out in this field, the project’s first objective is a concrete historical valorisation of Palermo’s second futurism, a field of research that has experienced moments of intense activity but which - despite this - still remains a topic explored only at the margins. Through an overview of that brief but intense period of creative fervour, the aim will be to restore the analogies of the work of Sicilian masters compared to the great names of futurism such as Depero, Balla and Prampolini, but above all to highlight their identifying characteristics of ‘Mediterranean-ness’ (Cf. Di Stefano, 1975, 1985; Ruta, 2012). Recognition through writings, exhibitions and works will make it possible to analyse its founding aspects and highlight the intrinsic limits of a provincial cultural reality .

This article studies the composition of the altar and retablo of Saint Anthony of Padua in the church of San Francisco in Priego de Córdoba (Spain), and its primitive foundation, as well as the existing sculpture of this saint in the church of San Pedro in this same town, venturing the hypothesis that its author was Alonso Cano, as it shows similar features to the one in the Museum of Fine Arts in Granada.