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After the Black Death: Painting and Polychrome Sculpture in Norway, 1350‒1550 (completed)

This interdisciplinary project was based in Conservation Studies (2014-2018) and centred on late-medieval liturgical objects. 

About the project

Sculpture of a man with a beard and a crown. Photo.
St Olav, Skjervøy altarpiece, KHM C3000, raking light. Photo: Helene Skoglund-Johnsen.

The project engaged conservators, heritage scientists and historians, who jointly investigated late-medieval objects now in Oslo and Bergen. Materials research revolved around circa 25 folding altarpieces, shrines and sculptures, particularly those categorised as imports to Norway in the period after the first wave of Bubonic Plague (1349) until the Reformation (1536). Analyses of wood, paint and gilding formed foundations for decoding damages and tracing transformations over time. Multi-disciplinary results appear in more than 20 publications and a museum exhibition, which address dendrochronology, deterioration and changes in attitudes to this category of object in Norwegian museums.

Financing

The Research Council of Norway, project no. 231592

Cooperation

Results

Results for the project include:

  • 22 journal articles in peer-reviewed journals, edited books or conference pre-prints
  • 1 PhD thesis (article-based)
  • 1 monograph
  • 1 gallery guide
  • 1 museum exhibition (permanent, from January 2019)

Read the final report for the project (pdf)

Publications

  • Streeton, Noëlle Lynn Wenger (2020). Transformation: Exhibiting results from the project 'After the Black Death: Painting and Polychrome Sculpture in Norway' .
  • Streeton, Noëlle Lynn Wenger (2019). Reformasjonen tok flere hundre år . [Business/trade/industry journal]. Apollon.
  • Streeton, Noëlle Lynn Wenger (2019). Transformation: Faith and Sacred Objects in the Middle Ages.

View all works in Cristin

Tags: Conservation; chemistry of artists’ materials; history; material culture; late-medieval social history; politics of cultural heritage
Published Nov. 30, 2020 2:28 PM - Last modified Mar. 11, 2024 9:40 AM

Contact

Participants

Detailed list of participants