Working with Limestone by Vibeke Olson

Working with Limestone by Vibeke Olson

This new volume in the AVISTA series focuses on the study of medieval limestone. As the principal building material in the Middle Ages and a prized medium for architectural sculpture, limestone played a significant role in medieval artistic manufacture. The choice of material inherently informed the final product, thus understanding the material and its uses gives insight into the medieval creative process and the production-driven choices that were made by masons and sculptors. Quality limestone was a highly sought-after commodity that was often shipped across great distances; yet in other instances, masons made do with locally available resources. Through an intensive study of medium, many broader topics can be addressed, for instance the economics of medieval construction, the artistic process, or the application of modern technology in understanding and preserving medieval buildings and sculpture. The papers collected in this volume present the depth and scope of recent scholarship in the field, through a wide-ranging overview of the state of the discipline of medieval stone studies. They address such methodological approaches to the study of limestone as the use of neutron activation analysis to determine quarries of origin, issues of labor and transportation, as well as issues faced in the cleaning and conservation of limestone. This volume is the first comprehensive study in English that investigates limestone as an essential component of large-scale medieval artistic production, and as such, it is a valuable resource for both students and scholars in the field.

'The volume makes a fine contribution to an area of investigation that has long been neglected or addressed only to specialists, but which is becoming both welcome and useful to a wider audience' Charles T Little, Metropolitan Museum of Art, in caa.reviews 'Working with Limestone is a useful compendium of recent technical investigations of Romanesque and Gothic limestone sculpture and architecture.' Technology & Culture

Vibeke Olson is Associate Professor in the Department of Art and Art History, University of North Carolina, Wilmington, USA

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780754662464
ISBN 10	0754662462
Title	Working with Limestone
Author	Vibeke Olson
Series	Avista Studies In The History Of Medieval Technology Science And Art
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Routledge
Year published	2011-02-28
Number of pages	288
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable