Located on the eastern outskirts of the modern settlement of Lentini, halfway between Catania and Syracuse, the rock church of Santa Margherita still preserves traces of medieval mural paintings linked to an artistic culture of Byzantine origin. This decoration is divided into two distinct decorative phases, the oldest dating back to the mid-13th century while the most recent is to be dated between the late 13th century to the early 14th century. The reconstruction of its iconographic content, as well as its stylistic analysis, highlights the active participation of Sicily in the “Mediterranean” artistic circulation, especially after the fourth Crusade. The similarities between the Lentini frescoes and contemporary pictorial products in Puglia, Basilicata and elsewhere in the Mediterranean are linked to the network of correspondences identified in Sicily. Taking into account the historical, topographic and territorial context of Lentini, these ties seem to depend on the strong presence, along interconnected routes, of establishments belonging to the military orders of the Holy Land.
Dislocata alla periferia orientale dell’abitato moderno di Lentini, a metà strada tra Catania e Siracusa, la chiesa rupestre di Santa Margherita conserva ancora tracce di una decorazione pittorica medievale pertinente a due diverse fasi. Lo studio propone di datare la fase più antica alla metà del XIII secolo e di collocare la più recente tra la fine del XIII secolo e gli inizi del secolo successivo. La ricostruzione del programma iconografico e l’analisi stilistica consentono di mettere in evidenza la partecipazione del decoro pittorico ai fenomeni di circolazione “mediterranea” che coinvolgono la Sicilia specialmente dopo la quarta Crociata. Le tangenze rintracciate con coeve attestazioni pugliesi, lucane e oltremarine si associano alla fitta maglia dei confronti rintracciati sul territorio e, tenendo conto del peculiare contesto storico e topografico, sembrano collegarsi alla radicata presenza, lungo assi viari interconnessi, di stabilimenti degli ordini militari di Terrasanta.
Mémoire byzantine en Sicile orientale : la décoration picturale de l’église rupestre de Sainte-Marguerite à Lentini (Syracuse) et la culture artistique « méditerranéenne »
Giulia Arcidiacono
2019-01-01
Abstract
Located on the eastern outskirts of the modern settlement of Lentini, halfway between Catania and Syracuse, the rock church of Santa Margherita still preserves traces of medieval mural paintings linked to an artistic culture of Byzantine origin. This decoration is divided into two distinct decorative phases, the oldest dating back to the mid-13th century while the most recent is to be dated between the late 13th century to the early 14th century. The reconstruction of its iconographic content, as well as its stylistic analysis, highlights the active participation of Sicily in the “Mediterranean” artistic circulation, especially after the fourth Crusade. The similarities between the Lentini frescoes and contemporary pictorial products in Puglia, Basilicata and elsewhere in the Mediterranean are linked to the network of correspondences identified in Sicily. Taking into account the historical, topographic and territorial context of Lentini, these ties seem to depend on the strong presence, along interconnected routes, of establishments belonging to the military orders of the Holy Land.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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