Conques Across Time

Inventions and Reinventions (9th-21st Centuries)

edited by Ivan Foletti and Adrien Palladino

Book cover: Conques Across Time

Hardback (Published)

(March 2025)

ISBN: 9791254699232

Price: $88.00

Out of stock

This volume reveals Conques as more than a historic siteit is a living testament to the enduring interplay between medieval heritage and contemporary imagination, challenging us to rethink the narratives that define the medieval past in todays world.


Conques, a small town of extraordinary medieval significance, has long captivated scholars and visitors alike. Renowned for its abbey church, an unparalleled collection of goldsmiths treasures, and a rich history of reinventions, Conques offers a unique lens through which to explore the intersections of art and history, both medieval and neo-medieval. In this volume, leading experts chart its transformation from a medieval monastic center to a modern cultural landmark, illuminating both its origins and its reinventions across the centuries. Spanning the Middle Ages to the twenty-first century, the bookthe first comprehensive monograph on the siteexamines the architecture, legendary histories, and strategies of representation that shaped Conques medieval identity, alongside modern interpretations molded by nineteenth-century restorations, twentieth-century century presentations, and Pierre Soulages celebrated engagement with the site. The result is a rigorous yet accessible reassessment of the myths surrounding medieval art and its modern reinterpretations. At its heart, this volume reveals Conques as more than a historic siteit is a living testament to the enduring interplay between medieval heritage and contemporary imagination, challenging us to rethink the narratives that define the medieval past in todays world. This volume is a principal outcome of the four-year research project Conques in the Global World: Transferring Knowledge from Material to Immaterial Heritage (20202024) funded by the European Research Executive Agency through the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Action.

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  • Introduction Ivan Foletti, Adrien Palladino
    • Conques (801-2024): Inventions and Reinventions
  • I. Fabricating the Middle Ages Ivan Foletti, Adrien Palladino
    • Early Rediscoveries (1800s-1830s)
    • Safeguarding: Prosper Merimee in Conques (1838-1860s)
    • Reviving Gallia Christiana, Restoring the Church (1870s)
    • Jean Taralon and the ""European"" Middle Ages (1950-1960)
  • II. Making Conques
    • From Conch to Conques: A Shell in the Mountains
      • In the Valley: The Geographical Context and Origins of the Abbey Ivan Foletti, Lei Huang, Martin F. Lesak
      • Sainte Foy as Sacred Focus Ivan Foletti
      • Managing and Ritualizing the Surroundings of the Conques Abbey Martin F. Lesak, Sabina Rosenbergova
    • Constructions and Images
      • Building the Abbey Church Lei Huang, Eric Sparhubert
      • Staging the Sacred: Liturgical Displays and Spatial Devices Lei Huang, Eric Sparhubert
      • The Times of the Cross on the Conques Tympanum Vincent Debiais, Cecile Voyer
    • Carolingian Presences
      • Charlemagne in Conques: Objects and Narratives Philippe Cordez
      • Referencing the Past Through Architecture Lei Huang, Eric Sparhubert
  • III. Translating Conques
    • Conques Beyond Conques
      • The Treasury Reconsidered: Renewal and Incorporation Cynthia J. Hahn
      • From Emperor's Portrait to Saint's Head Pavla Ticha
      • The Present of Stones: Making Reliquaries by Sedimentation Kris N. Racaniello
      • Conques, Rome, Jerusalem, and Barbastro: The True Cross and a ""Global"" Treasury Around 1100 Adrian Bremenkamp
      • Echoes of Conques: The Monastery's Networks Michele Luigi Vescovi
      • Translatio Fides in Wendat Culture: Naming Ancestral Landscapes Kris N. Racaniello
    • Re-Imagining Conques
      • Post-Medieval Processions and the Majesty of Sainte Foy Martin F. Lesak, Kris N. Racaniello
      • Festive Rituals at Conques in the 1870s Martin F. Lesak
      • Living Medievalism in the Fete de Sainte Foy Processions Today Kris N. Racaniello
  • IV. Modern/Modernist Conques
    • Objects in Motion: Exhibition Politics and the Treasury-as-Museum Kris N. Racaniello
    • Rouergue roman: Zodiaque's Conques Janet T. Marquardt
    • Pierre Soulages at Conques: A Century of Medievalism Philippe Cordez
  • Bibliography
  • Index of Names
  • Index of Places
  • Photographic Credits

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  • Edited by Ivan Foletti
  • Edited by Adrien Palladino