"Claustrum animae" or the Edification of the Soul. The Building Scenes in the Cloister of Santa Maria la Real de Nieva (Segovia)

This paper aims to examine the building scenes preserved in the cloister of the former Dominican convent of Santa Maria la Real de Nieva in Segovia, founded by Catherine of Lancaster in 1399. These sculptural reliefs had been previously interpreted as mere representations of the Dominican friars, ac...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Diana Lucía Gómez-Chacón
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universidad Complutense de Madrid 2015-05-01
Series:Anales de Historia del Arte
Subjects:
Online Access:http://revistasculturales.ucm.es/index.php/ANHA/article/view/48691
Description
Summary:This paper aims to examine the building scenes preserved in the cloister of the former Dominican convent of Santa Maria la Real de Nieva in Segovia, founded by Catherine of Lancaster in 1399. These sculptural reliefs had been previously interpreted as mere representations of the Dominican friars, actively involved in the construction of the convent, genre scenes useful for the study of medieval building systems, or even portraits of the friars who inhabited the convent around 1400. Nonetheless, these scenes could have been originally conceived as an instrument for the spiritual edification of the religious community, and most especially, of its novices, in a time when the Order of Preachers was being reformed.
ISSN:0214-6452
1988-2491