From the fourteenth to the sixteenth century, European monarchies saw a gradual centralisation of power. This was accompanied by the dissemination of political ideas that contributed to the making of a new image of the prince, which relied on visual instruments to assert and construct the prince’s sovereign power. Royal and princely residences were at the centre of this phenomenon. In these privileged spaces, the sovereign accommodated an expanding entourage, and received messengers and guests from other courts. Consequently, it was in these buildings that court society developed in the first place.

By placing a particular emphasis on the decor of those state-rooms, this workshop aims to increase our insights into the relations between the architecture, decoration, and rituals of monarchical power in state-rooms from the late middle ages to the beginning of the early modern period.

This workshop will take place in Lisbon (Archaeological Museum of the Carmelite Convent, in the old Carmelite church) on 15 and 17 March, and in Sintra (Sintra National Palace) on 16 March.

The workshop is organised by Torsten Hiltmann (Münster), Miguel Metelo de Seixas (Lisbon), and João Portugal (Lisbon) as part of the Portuguese-German research project ‘In the Service of the Crown: The Use of Heraldry in Royal Political Communication in Late Medieval Portugal’ (Instituto de Estudos Medievais / Die Performanz der Wappen, Dilthey Fellowship), funded by the Volkswagen Foundation. It is supported furthermore by the following institutions: PSML/Palácio Nacional de Sintra; Associação dos Arqueólogos Portugueses; Instituto Português de Heráldica.

 

Organisation: IEM-FCSH/NOVA, Universität Münster
Organizers: Miguel Metelo de Seixas, Torsten Hiltmann, João Portugal

 

Free admission. Limited seating, reservation is required [this workshop is now fully booked].

This workshop is currently booked. However you can send an email to iem.geral@fcsh.unl.pt to be considered in a waiting list if someone cancels their registration. You will only be contacted in case a vacancy reopens.