Theme:
1. Networks, networking, communication: archaeology of interactions
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
CANCELLED Elites-Subjects Networks in the Medieval Levant and the Construction of Imperial Landscapes
Content:
Ibn Khaldun identified already in the 14th century a set of complex social mechanisms characteristic of ‘imperial societies’ of the Eastern Mediterranean, from the Byzantine epoch until his time. Such view was recently re-addressed and partly reassessed on the ground of contemporary hermeneutics by Gabriel Martinez Gros, in his “Brève histoire des émpires” (see note1), who considered ‘imperial societies’ as bipartite social-economic (and cultural) systems, where allogeneic elites of non-urban origin dominated over sedentary, productive and de-militarized urban majorities.
Case studies reflecting such a state of things are numerous in many historical periods, including the one considered in this frontal session.
As to medieval Levant in 11-16th centuries, allogeneic elites include above all Fatimid Arabs and Berbers, Seljuk and Mamluk Turks, Ayyubid Kurds, Latin European crusaders, all ruling on vast and articulated masses of (taxed) sedentary subjects, in their turn belonging to networked cultural-historical groups often long-settled in the region (as local Greek-Roman, Palestinian, Jewish, Egyptian And Syrian communities).
Within the elaboration of specific Imperial landscapes both parts appear to have played a crucial role:
- Elites selected meaningful decorative, architectural and urban forms able to broadcast imperial ideologies;
- Subject craftsmen, artists and traders were hired or recruited for the connected production processes, where their cultural-technological know-how was put to work and expressed.
The proposed frontal session aims at collecting Case studies from archaeological, historical and art-historical projects where such elites-subjects networking of needs and skills was brought into action for the material building of Imperial landscapes in the medieval Levant.
Note 1. Martinez-Groz, Gabriel. (2014). Brève Histoire des empires. Comment ils surgissent, comment ils s'effondrent. Paris:Seuil.
Keywords:
Medieval Levant, Great and little traditions, Elites-subjects networking, Islamic archaeology, Medieval archaeology, Imperial Identity and craftmanship
Session associated with MERC:
yes
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:
Main organiser:
Elena Casalini (Italy) 1,2
Co-organisers:
Michele Nucciotti (Italy) 2
Marta Lorenzon (Finland) 3
Affiliations:
1. University of Roma Tre
2. University of Florence
3. University of Helsinky
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