Demarginalizing Medieval Africa: Images, Texts, and Identity in Early Solomonic Ethiopia (1270-1527)
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: History of Art
Abstract
This project intends to shed new light on the art, history, and culture of the Ethiopian Empire during a period going from the rise of a new dynasty which claimed to descend from the biblical King Solomon in 1270 to its near collapse in 1527. The colourful hieratic images that decorate Ethiopic manuscripts produced during this time span - conventionally known as the early Solomonic period (1270-1527) - are unlike anything else produced in sub-Saharan Africa and embody the spiritual aspirations and cultural identity of the artists who made them.
The Ethiopian Empire was the longest-lived empire in Africa after that of Ancient Egypt. However, while there have been thousands of publications on the arts of Ancient Egypt, the visual culture of Ethiopia continues to be marginalized and misinterpreted. Most survey books of medieval art and manuscript illumination overlook the evidence afforded by the tradition of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Likewise, many survey books of African art disassociate the heritage of Ethiopia from the rest of the continent. Ethiopian art thus remains unjustly at the periphery of academic discourse about African and medieval art, and at the fringes of debates about medievalism and orientalism, while the work of Ethiopian artists continues to be inappropriately looked at to identify a succession of foreign "influences" from non-African contexts rather than to understand the cultural, religious, and socio-political significance of their activities.
It is high time for an approach that pays attention to the representational intentions of Ethiopian artists. By looking at the illustrations in medieval Ethiopic manuscripts, focusing especially on hitherto neglected examples in collections in Germany and the UK, this project will transform our understanding of this material through a range of ground-breaking publications and activities that will reconstruct the vibrant cultural and religious history of the Ethiopian Empire. An analysis of the interrelationship between text and image in Ethiopian manuscript will further our understanding of the activities and concerns of Ethiopian illustrators and scribes. The project will also consider manuscripts that shed light on the life and devotional activities of Christian Ethiopians and that illuminate the relations between the Ethiopian Church and the other Oriental Orthodox Churches of Egypt, Syria, and Armenia. By publishing and disseminating this material widely - exposing and critiquing the Eurocentric theoretical approaches that shaped the founding of the field and inform it still - the project will produce research on medieval illuminated Ethiopic manuscripts that pays attention to the socio-cultural background which determined their production, ensuring that the artistic heritage of Ethiopia receives the consideration it deserves.
The Ethiopian Empire was the longest-lived empire in Africa after that of Ancient Egypt. However, while there have been thousands of publications on the arts of Ancient Egypt, the visual culture of Ethiopia continues to be marginalized and misinterpreted. Most survey books of medieval art and manuscript illumination overlook the evidence afforded by the tradition of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Likewise, many survey books of African art disassociate the heritage of Ethiopia from the rest of the continent. Ethiopian art thus remains unjustly at the periphery of academic discourse about African and medieval art, and at the fringes of debates about medievalism and orientalism, while the work of Ethiopian artists continues to be inappropriately looked at to identify a succession of foreign "influences" from non-African contexts rather than to understand the cultural, religious, and socio-political significance of their activities.
It is high time for an approach that pays attention to the representational intentions of Ethiopian artists. By looking at the illustrations in medieval Ethiopic manuscripts, focusing especially on hitherto neglected examples in collections in Germany and the UK, this project will transform our understanding of this material through a range of ground-breaking publications and activities that will reconstruct the vibrant cultural and religious history of the Ethiopian Empire. An analysis of the interrelationship between text and image in Ethiopian manuscript will further our understanding of the activities and concerns of Ethiopian illustrators and scribes. The project will also consider manuscripts that shed light on the life and devotional activities of Christian Ethiopians and that illuminate the relations between the Ethiopian Church and the other Oriental Orthodox Churches of Egypt, Syria, and Armenia. By publishing and disseminating this material widely - exposing and critiquing the Eurocentric theoretical approaches that shaped the founding of the field and inform it still - the project will produce research on medieval illuminated Ethiopic manuscripts that pays attention to the socio-cultural background which determined their production, ensuring that the artistic heritage of Ethiopia receives the consideration it deserves.
Publications
Bausi A
(2024)
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History
Bausi, Alessandro
(2023)
<> in Etiopia? Su un tratto linguistico nel più antico testo documentario etiopico (le costruzioni del tipo ??mfalaga falagu, <>)
in Documenti scartati, documenti reimpiegati. Forme, linguaggi, metodi per nuove prospettive di ricerca
Dege-Müller S
(2023)
A Handlist of Illustrated Early Solomonic Manuscripts in German Public Collections
in Aethiopica
Gianfrancesco Lusini
(2021)
Manoscritti etiopici della città di Roma La collezione Zanasi-Li Volsi
in Catalogo Nazionale dei Manoscritti Etiopici in Italia
Jacopo Gnisci
(2022)
Savona, Archivio Storico Diocesano: Atti dei martiri
in Catalogo Nazionale dei Manoscritti Etiopici in Italia
Jacopo Gnisci
(2021)
Evidence for the History of Early Solomonic Ethiopia from Tämben Part II: Abba Yo?anni
in Rassegna di Studi Etiopici
Description | - Exhibition at UCL Cloisters reached a large audience of students and members of the public. - Collaboration with Manar al-Athar gave general public access to Open Access digital images of the heirtage of Ethiopia and Eritrea. |
First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
Sector | Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
Impact Types | Cultural,Societal |
Description | Funding to support travel for project-organized conference provided by Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures (more info on partnerships) |
Amount | € 3,000 (EUR) |
Organisation | University of Hamburg |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | Germany |
Start | 06/2022 |
End | 07/2022 |
Description | ICMA Sponsored Session |
Amount | $3,600 (USD) |
Organisation | International Center of Medieval Art |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United States |
Start | 04/2022 |
Description | The Laidlaw Research and Leadership Programme |
Amount | £3,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | University College London |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2022 |
End | 08/2023 |
Title | Individual records of illuminated Ethiopic manuscripts in UK/German collection |
Description | A number of Open Access entries focusing on illuminated Ethiopic manuscripts have been added or updated by Sophia Dege-Müller and Vitagrazia Pisani. All relevant collections in Germany have been scoped and relevant manuscripts were identified in Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig; Bayerische Staatsbibliothek; Museum Fünf Kontinente; Universitätsbibliothek Tübingen). The scoping is still ongoing for UK collections as the pandemic has impacted on researchers capacity to move. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2021 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | It makes available information on previously uncatalogued Ethiopic manuscripts in UK/German collections. |
URL | https://betamasaheft.eu/ |
Description | Bodleian Libraries |
Organisation | University of Oxford |
Department | Bodleian Library |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Through this collaboration the Bodleian Libraries have agreed to give us access to a series of unpublished illuminated Ethiopic manuscripts in their collection which will be used for several outputs connected to the project. |
Collaborator Contribution | Grant and facilitate access to their manuscript collections and to unpublished data about these works. |
Impact | We have started with the cataloguing of these works |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | Cambridge University Libraries |
Organisation | University of Cambridge |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Provide institutions with information on the TEI cataloguing of Ethiopic manuscripts and with information on their collection. |
Collaborator Contribution | Provide team members with access to materials in their collection relevant to te project. |
Impact | This collaboration is ongoing and outputs will be published in 2022-23. |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | Mäzgäbä S??lat: Treasury of Ethiopian Images |
Organisation | University of Toronto |
Country | Canada |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We are contributing information to the study, distribution, and publication of images from relevant Ethiopic manuscripts documented by Prof. Michael Gervers and his colleagues. |
Collaborator Contribution | It is difficult to estimate this at current stage of project (hence the 000 entry given above) we have been allowed to use images from their database in our work and blogs free of charge (usually 5$/image). |
Impact | Images have already been included in research outputs, such as our blog. |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | Manar al-Athar |
Organisation | University of Oxford |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | AHRC-DFG project provided digital and human resources as well as expertise on the region. |
Collaborator Contribution | Manar provided host website and training as well as expertise on the technical procedures. |
Impact | The manar al-athar website offers a repository of Open Access images for publication on a number of sites in Africa and the Middle East. A group of undergraduate students from UCL was hired to include and add metadata photos of Ethiopia by the co-PI and trained by Miranda Williams (from Manar). This collaboration: expanded Manar's geographical coverage; improved visibility of Ethiopian heritage; provided students with a valuable upskilling work activity. |
Start Year | 2022 |
Description | Annual conference ORBIS AETHIOPICUS - Den Beta Israel auf der SpurFrühe Zeugnisse der äthiopischen Juden |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Annual conference ORBIS AETHIOPICUS in Weimar, Germany. Audience mostly Germans, from different areas of academia. Title of my presentation (in German): Den Beta Israel auf der SpurFrühe Zeugnisse der äthiopischen Juden (Tracing the Beta Israel - Early evidence of the Ethiopian Jews). |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Annual meeting: International Conference of Medieval Studies, Universtiy of Leeds - conference talke |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Invitation to a panel at the annual International Medieval Conference, Leeds University. Gave a talk with the title: "Expanding Borders through the Cross: Missionary Activities of Orthodox Christian Saints among the Betä ?sra'el" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://imc.leeds.ac.uk/dbsql02/AQueryServlet?*id=30&*formId=30&*context=IMC&chosenPaperId=33184&ses... |
Description | Conducted a workshop day for the Orit Guardians program, in the Department of Biblical Studies, Tel Aviv University, 11 August 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Conducted a workshopday with Ted Erho for the Orit Guardians program, in the Department of Biblical Studies, Tel Aviv University, 11 August 2022. Title of the workshop: "Reading the Orit: Beta Israel and Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Scriptures: Interaction and Isolation" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Conference talk at: 18th World Congress of Jewish Studies Hebrew University Jerusalem, 2022, 8. August 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | I was invited to give a talk during a panel at the 18th World Congress of Jewish Studies Hebrew University Jerusalem, 2022, 8. August 2022. Title of the talk: "The Beta Israel Manuscript Corpus: Classification and Textual Analysis." |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.jewish-studies.org/cooperation-with-iosot/ |
Description | Conference talk during: Illuminating the Eastern Christian World, 30 June - 1 July 2022. Universtiy of Hamburg |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Together with my colleague Vitagrazia Pisani I gave a talk during the conference: Illuminating the Eastern Christian World, 30 June - 1 July 2022. University of Hamburg. Title of our talk: The People Behind the Book: Colophons, Scribal Notes and Additiones in Medieval Ethiopic Manuscripts. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.aai.uni-hamburg.de/en/ethiostudies/research/demargin/news/20220630.html |
Description | Lecture | Ethiopic Scriptures, Pitt Rivers Museum |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Collaborative presentation with César Merchán-Hamann (curator at the Bodleian Libraries) on the Bodleians collection of Ethiopic manuscripts. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/event/ethiopic-scriptures |
Description | Lecture | All that glitters is not gold: Metalwork in Early Solomonic Manuscripts, KU Leuven |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presented new research on the history of book illustration in Ethiopia. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://theo.kuleuven.be/en/research/research_units/ru_bible/tetra-seminar/TeTra2022 |
Description | Lecture | Ethiopia and Byzantium, All Souls, Oxford |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presented research findings at All Souls College, Oxford. Received feedback and provoked lively debate over new issues considered by the project in its forthcoming publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://talks.ox.ac.uk/talks/id/c5f46b4e-13db-47a9-985d-2ae9c3158d68/ |
Description | Lecture | Imperial Imagery and Sacred Space in Early Solomonic Ethiopia, NYU |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presented research results from paper on topic of sacred space (the first of its kind for what concerns the field of Ethiopian art). Obtained valuable and positive feedback. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://as.nyu.edu/research-centers/marc/events/fall-2022/jacopo-gnisci--imperial-imagery-and-sacred... |
Description | Lecture | On Ethiopian ritual objects and Church paraphernalia: Restitution and Tabotat, St Theosevia Centre for Christian Spirituality, Oxford |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Talk focusing on questions of representation, repatriation and restitution of Ethiopian artefacts in dialogue with representatives of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the UK. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Lecture | Sacred Space in Gannata Maryam, University of Bristol |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
Results and Impact | Sacred Space in Gannata Maryam [University of Bristol, History of Art Seminar Series, October 4, 2022. The lecture was attended by scholars and a large group of undergraduate students and sparked discussions around the study of African art. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | http://www.bristol.ac.uk/arthistory/events/regular/research-seminars/ |
Description | Lecture | Spineless Wonders, Slade School of Fine Art | Holy Men and Holy Books |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Jacopo Gnisci gave a paper for Spineless Wonders, a study event celebrating the Slade's sesquicentennial. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://www.ucl.ac.uk/slade/research/slade-research-centre-archive/spineless-wonders |
Description | Lecture | Visualizing Holiness, Pembroke College, Oxford |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presented research findings. Received feedback and provoked lively debate over new issues considered by the project in some of its forthcoming publications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
URL | https://www.pmb.ox.ac.uk/event/eastern-christianity-lecture-seminar-series-9th-edition |
Description | Masterclass Video | The Bargello Cross, i Tatti, Florence |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Together with participants in workshop recorded a masterclass video on Ethiopian cross at the Bargello museum in Florence that aims to introduce the object, and a range of questions associated to it, to a wider audience. Video will be subtitled in Amharic to reach audiences in Ethiopia. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | Navigating a Global Middle Ages With Illuminated Manuscripts |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | This blog uses manuscripts and other types of material culture to present updates, news, recent research and reflections on the global medieval and contemporary world, with a particular focus on the Northern Horn of Africa. In addition to showcasing research by project members, the blog will feature contributions by emerging and established scholars in the field, as well as articles by talented students who are only just starting to engage with our global past. We especially welcome articles from students based at universities in the Caucasus, Middle East and North, West and East Africa and on manuscripts and other material traditions from these regions. We also hope to draw attention to recent initiatives that further our knowledge of the material culture of people which inhabit modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021,2022 |
URL | https://www.ucl.ac.uk/art-history/research/demarginalizing-medieval-africa/navigating-global-middle-... |
Description | Response | Yale Lectures in Late Antique and Byzantine Art and Architecture |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Jacopo Gnisci acted as respondent to a stimulating paper given by Mikael Muehlbauer, American Council of Learned Societies entitled "Staging Late Antiquity: An 11th Century Revolution in Ethiopian Architecture." The paper and the response were well received (I received positive feedback from several colleagues which opened up discussions to further joint initiatives). |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://ism.yale.edu/news/yale-lectures-late-antique-and-byzantine-art-and-architecture?utm_source=S... |
Description | Seminar | London Society for Medieval Studies | Psalters in Early Solomonic Ethiopia (1270-1527) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presentation on Psalters in Ethiopia by Jacopo Gnisci (UCL), Sophia Dege-Müller (Hamburg) delivered to the London Society for Medieval Studies. The presentation was followed by a lively Q&A. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.history.ac.uk/events/psalters-early-solomonic-ethiopia-1270-1527 |
Description | Talk during conference, "La musique en Afrique et sa diffusion dans le monde à l'époque moderne (1300-1650)", Tours June-July 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Presentation at an academic conference in Tours in France entitled "La musique en Afrique et sa diffusion dans le monde à l'époque moderne (1300-1650)". The talk briefly described the developments in Ethiopic antiphonaries in the 15th and 16th centuries. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://cesr.cnrs.fr/actualites/manifestations/64e-colloque-international-d'études-humanistes-la-mus... |
Description | Workshop | The Bargello Cross, i Tatti, Florence |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | International workshop at i Tatti to discuss significance of an early Solomonic cross at the Bargello, conisdered a wide range of topics from restitution to provenance and iconography. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |