A Radical Turn? Reappropriation, Fragmentation, and Variety in the Postclassical World (3rd-8th c.)

This thematic issue draws on the papers presented at the conference “Radical Turn? Subversions, Conversions, and Mutations in the Postclassical World (3rd-8th c.)” that took place last autumn in Brno, Czech Republic. Its aim is to contribute to the rehabilitation of the period of “Late Antiquity”, which has often been neglected in scholarly circles as a mere transitional period between the classical past and the medieval future. Individual papers reflect on the cultural production of this period from the perspectives of different disciplines (art history, classical philology, archaeology, and history), offering new insights on various aspects of late antique.

Introduction

Ivan Foletti, Marie Okáčová & Adrien Palladino, A Radical Turn? "Late Antique" Anxiety, Rupture, and Creative Continuity

Articles

Ivan Foletti & Marie Okáčová, An Age of Fragmentation. Evidence from Late Antique Literary, Visual, and Material Cultures

Jana Mikulová, The Variability of Late Latin Authors' Means for Marking Direct Discourse

Chiara Croci, “Abbreviated” Depictions? Questions on the Earliest Christian Images 

Alberto Virdis, Fragmentation as a Visual Principle: From Cloisonné to Early Stained Glass

Katharina Meinecke, Ornamental Surfaces. A “Global Trend” in Late Antique Afro-Eurasia

Chronicles & debates

Marco Aimone, Two Byzantine Capitals “with Pine Cones at Their Corners” and Their Monograms. Technical, Stylistic, and Historical Observations

Renate Johanna Pillinger, Wunder Jesu auf ausgewählten (römischen) Zwischengoldgläsern