POMOC · Charles IV and the power of marvellous objects
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2019-02-01 → 2020-07-31
- EU contribution
- €146,591
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF-EF-ST
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Charles IV and the power of marvellous objects
The project ´Charles IV and the power of marvellous objects´ (2019-2020) took as its subject one of the most important and influential rulers in the fourteenth century Europe, Charles IV of Luxembourg, king of Bohemia (1347-70), king of Romans (1346-78), and Holy Roman Emperor (1355-70) and the precious objects associated with him. Charles accumulated many of the most sacred relics of Christendom and it was during his reign that Prague gained its reputation as a repository of the most holy relics, a reputation which could only be surpassed by Paris or Rome. What is less known is the fact that, in addition to relics, Charles IV also amassed various precious objects both of ´western´ and ´eastern´ provenances. Many of them were subsequently transformed and converted to religious purposes in innovative ways. Though the relevant literature on Charles IV contains numerous remarks on precious items dispersed within diverse monographs, which are without a doubt a valuable part of the historiography of art, the objects under examination are usually considered independently from their former function and original historical and cultural context. Following the predominant nation-centered narrative and its myths, they focused mainly on the national dimension of the objects and undervalued the multicultural and trans-national features. Thus, the present project had two principal objectives: (1) To study in depth a specific group of precious objects of diverse provenance which Charles IV acquired, assembled and commissioned to be adjusted and to show what purpose these objects served him. (2) Through the lens of the objects to pioneer a new, transnational and truly European image of Charles IV, who so far has conventionally been studied predominantly in the fragmented manner of nation-based narratives, within separate national historiographies.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
The present study aims to investigate from a new perspective the collecting activities of Charles IV, king of Bohemia (1347-70), king of Romans (1346-78), and Holy Roman Emperor (1355-70). It proposes to go beyond narratives based on the nation-state and western-oriented research concepts, thereby renovating historical and artistic connections that national historiographies have obfuscated. In doing so, it will frame the topic trans-nationally. Rather than writing a large-scale synthesis based mainly on secondary sources, this research objective will be achieved by using a micro-historical approach focusing on a specific group of reused objects that are associated with Charles IV. At the centre of the project are Charles IV and the precious objects of diverse provenance which he acquired, assembled and commissioned to be adjusted. Being removed from the cultural context for which they were originally made and which determined their social values, the objects underwent, in different social and cultural contexts, transformation and subsequently integration with the new audience. They created multiple connections with the past and contributed significantly to the construction of the imperial self-image of Charles IV who was not only one of the most capable and effective rulers whom Europe had ever seen but also one of the greatest 'collectors' since the period of Classical antiquity.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD · OxfordCoordinatorUnited Kingdom
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union