Research Aims and Approach | Progress so far | Future Plans and Publication
This three-year project is researching representations of the Damned in Hell in the frescoes in churches on Crete. The churches were built during the Venetian domination of the island in the 13th to 17th century. The Damned in Hell are associated with the triumphant scene of the Last Judgement in frescoes and mosaics in both Latin (Roman Catholic) and Orthodox (Byzantine) churches. It depicts the souls of the sinners who have been cast into Hell suffering various gruesome tortures and torments, according to the precepts set out in the Book of Revelation.
We will be studying the intentions behind their commission, the religious and political aspirations and the moral and legal parameters in contemporary cross-cultural Cretan society.
The unique context of the frescoes on Crete is the period in which the island was part of the Venetian Empire (1211-1669) when Latin and Orthodox populations lived side-by-side. What is particularly striking about these representations is who is suffering in Hell – including Latin Bishops and monks, western sinners and common criminals – suggesting a perspective for understanding the sometimes antipathetic relationships between the two populations on the island. The extended period of cross-cultural encounter on Venetian-Dominated Crete offers an important opportunity to research the way different cultures influence each other in the Late Medieval to the Early Modern periods and to provide insights which can be relevant today. The subject also has a wide range of cultural connotations, since it reflects religious and moral beliefs, social structures and expectations and the most common illegal activities (e.g. live stock theft).
The representations of the Damned in Hell on Crete will be studied alongside similar scenes in churches from Italy, Cyprus, Cappadocia and Thessaloniki to provide a comparison and analysis within the wider geographical and cultural context of the Byzantine and post-Byzantine world. The project will explore every aspect of the scenes of Hell, studying the style, subject and context of the scenes through workshops and field trips to Crete, Venice and other centres of Byzantine art.
Our team aims to create a corpus of material accessible to scholarship.
