Colour & Space. Interfaces of Ancient Architecture and Sculpture.: Proceedings of the 10th International Round Table on Polychromy in Ancient Sculpture and Architecture
https://doi.org/10.34780/m1czf303
Synopsis
This volume presents a compilation of papers focused on the phenomenology of colour in both architecture and sculpture. It specifically highlights interactions of polychromy within spatial settings, as well as architecture and sculpture’s shared technological and artistic knowledge base. Research on ancient polychromy has evolved significantly since the first scientific pigment analyses in the 1830s, and the «International Round Table on Polychromy in Ancient Architecture and Sculpture», established in 2009, serves as a testament to this progress. The present volume features a selection of papers from the 10th Meeting of the International Round Table, jointly hosted by the German Archaeological Institute in Berlin (DAI) and the Antikensammlung Berlin in 2020. The case studies and comprehensive analyses presented range chronologically from the Greek Archaic to the Medieval periods, and cover a geographic range that includes the Mediterranean Basin and Great Britain. Papers explore various themes, such as the potential of spatial re-contextualisations to offer new insights into colour choices and materials, the dynamics of colour as a medium influencing form and synaesthetics, as well as symbolisms and meanings, particularly in the use of specific colours such as purple, black, gold, and blue. Additionally, a final section on ongoing museum research showcases ground-breaking polychromy studies and experimental visualisation strategies. This volume reflects a collaborative effort to move beyond the traditional academic separation of architecture and sculpture. It advocates for viewing colour (and surface treatments in general) as enduring interfaces between architecture and sculpture, emphasising conceptual and technological connections that challenge conventional taxonomies.
Keywords:
polychromy, ancient architecture, ancient sculpture, Greco-Roman, Medieval, colour reconstructions, scientific pigment analysis, material analysis, museum research, colour phenomenology, spatial re-contextualization, synaestheticsChapters
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Colour and Space: Old Questions – New Answers?
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The Frieze of the Siphnian Treasury at Delphi : Interactions between Colour and Space in a Panhellenic Sanctuary
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Finding Colours on Pre-Roman Iberian Sculpture and Architecture
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Marbles and Metals in the Forum of Augustus in Rome: a Unitary Project and its Polychromy
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Exploring Ancient Colour at the Villa dei Papiri at Herculaneum: the Peplophoros and its Setting
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Painted Marble Sculptures and their Broader Context in the Villa of Poppaea at Oplontis
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Wall Decorations and Polychromy in Hellenistic Houses
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Hermogenes in Colour – Magnesia, Didyma, and other ‹Polychrome White› Temples
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The Mid-Republican Temple A at Largo Argentina in Rome: Colour, Form, and Culture
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Creating Sacred Spaces Through Colour Choice in the Roman-Egyptian Tombs of Terenouthis
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Σκιά and χρῶμα – The Importance of Preliminary Drawing
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Purple for the δῆμος: Art and Luxury in Greek Coroplastic Polychromy of the 4th–3rd century B.C.
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The Colours of the Circus: a Prolegomenon to the Semantics of Faction Colours
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The Colour Black and the Sculpture of Classical Antiquity : Shades of Meaning in an Architectural Context
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Coloured Medieval Sculpture: Blue, Red, and Gold Between East and West
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Dressed for Battle: Investigations of an Etruscan Architectural Gigantomachy
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New Research on the Polychromy of an Archaic Grave Stele and Finial in the Form of a Sphinx in the Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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News from the Pilina Research Project: Identifying a Lime Painting Technique on Greek Terracotta Figurines (4th-3rd cent. BC)
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The Polychromy of English Medieval Alabaster Panels Preserved in Aquitaine (France) : From Material Analysis and Experimentation to Physical and Digital Reconstruction
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Epilogue: Answers, More Questions, and Ways Forward