Topographies of devotion.
Visual cultures of pilgrimage in the 14th and 15th century

As part of the International Medieval Congress 2017 (Leeds, 3-6 July 2017), we are inviting twenty-minute papers for a session on the visual culture of pilgrimage piety in the 14th and 15th century.
The medieval pilgrimage routes were spaces of cultural and material exchange upon which diverse travellers set off on a common path. The research focus on the link between geography and religion over the last few years has considerably broadened our understanding of medieval art and architecture. The proposed session seeks to provide perspectives on images, church spaces, sacred topographies and material culture of pilgrimage with a regional concentration on the Holy Roman Empire, focusing in particular on the following areas of interest:

accounts of pilgrimage journeys in illuminated manuscripts and prints

the relation of pilgrimage churches and routes to the surrounding landscape

social dimensions of accessibility and mediation in topographies of pilgrimage

visual and tactile practices of veneration related to churches and artworks

Please send your abstract (max.150-words) and a short biography to the session organiser (isabella.augart@uni-hamburg.de) before 10th September 2016.