Aspetti del mondo rurale nelle fonti artistiche tra storia e storiografia (secoli IX-XV)

The surveys on the history of the countryside have known in the last half century an extraordinary development which has also involved the examination of the sources of art history, the results of which proceed independently in the overall interpretation of the rural landscape. It deals with the state of current historiography, followed by an excursus (IX-XV century) on the sources of art that represent the contexts of the agrarian area with particular reference to the labours of the months (XI-XIII century) and to their cultural references. The essay explains the recurring themes of rural activities and agricultural products, such as the wheat threshing, the grape harvest, the killing of the pig or the presence of wine and bread, which are not read as cataloguing of simple iconographic subjects, but as a didactic tale impregnated by symbolic and religious values , as well as technical practices. The close examination continues, also suggesting connections with the late medieval sources, especially in reference to tacuina sanitatis.