Investing in Sculpture: Power in Early-historic Scotland

• Autores: Meggen M. Gondex
• Localización: Medieval archaeology: Journal of the Society for Medieval Archaeology, ISSN 0076-6097, Nº. 50, 2006, págs. 105-142
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • THE SCULPTED STONES of Scotland have been used as a means of exploring Early-medieval art and ideology. Archaeological studies have also considered stone monuments within their physical setting, using landscapes to inform their social and political meanings. The following study looks at carved monuments in the context of their distribution and the relative amount of investment involved in their production. To understand the latter, a system of assessing relative investment in sculpture is devised and tested in three regional studies: Argyll and Bute, southern Pictland and Dumfries and Galloway. The resulting patterns and concentrations of investment in sculpture are then examined for underlying changes in structures of power. The patterns emphasise smaller units of power and combinations of secular and ecclesiastic control, and highlight the dynamic nature of power structures in Early-historic Scotland.