Art History

PIO FRANCESCO PISTILLI
PIO FRANCESCO PISTILLI

The course aims to achieve the following objectives:
- Provide students with advanced analytical tools for the study of Medieval architecture in Italy and Europe (from the 7th to the 14th century), employing both a thematic and chronological approach.
- Enable students to acquire a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.
- Develop individual skills in analysing, interpreting, and connecting architectural monuments with their broader historical and artistic contexts.

The course's aim is to provide the knowledge necessary to understand medieval architecture in both Western Europe and the Mediterranean area.
In particular, we aim to enable students to acquire:

a) Ability to understand medieval architecture from the perspective of history, design, and construction.
b) Ability to communicate using the specific vocabulary of the discipline.
c) Independent critical judgment, encouraging active participation in the analysis of monuments, also through on-site visits.

It is preferable, but not essential, to have a basic knowledge of medieval architectural history.

Norman architecture: from the English Channel to Southern Italy during the "Età della Contea” (1030-1130).

The course focuses on Norman cathedrals as well as monastic centers (both male and female) and the military architecture (castles and keeps) of Southern Italy and Sicily in the “Age of the County” (1030-1130), always having as a reference the dialogue with Normandy and England, after the Battle of Hastings and the conquest of William the Conqueror (1066). The aim is to offer an updated overview of the status quaestionis, at European level, taking into account – for each monument examined – the historical events, literary sources, archaeological data and the architectural class to which it belongs.

Lessons:

1. From Vikings to Normans (Presentation of the programme)
2 and 3. "Età della Contea" in Southern Italy
4. post 1046-1085. Between completed, unfinished, and lost architecture in the peninsular territories
5 and 6. - 1076-1090. Robert Guiscard's Vulture: the cathedrals of Melfi and Acerenza, the “Incompiuta” of Venosa
7 and 8. 1061-1090. The "via uticense" in Calabria and Abbot Robert de Grantmesnil: S. Maria of Santa Eufemia and Mileto
9. Robert Guiscard, Archbishop Alfano I, and the Norman cathedral of Salerno
10. Cosenza. The lost cathedral of Bishop Arnolfo
11. The Terra di Lavoro and the exception of the cathedral of Aversa
12. Bohemond and the mausoleum of Canosa (1111)
13 and 14. The last decade of the 11th century and the birth of sacred architecture in Sicily
15 and 16. Abbot An(s)gerio, Catania and the episcopal complex
17. The “Terra di Bari”
18. The cathedral of Troia at the time of Bishop Guglielmo II
19 and 20. Roger II. from Calabria to the Regnum Siciliae, from S. Maria della Roccella to Cefalù cathedral
21. Conclusions

Texts to study to prepare for the exam:

- M. D’Onofrio, Precisazioni sul deambulatorio della cattedrale di Aversa, in Arte medievale, 2. Ser., VII, 1993, pp. 65-79.
- M. D'Onofrio, V. Pace, La Campania (Italia Romanica, 4), Jaca Book, Milano 1981, pp. 42-48, 102-107, 204-207.
- Da I Normanni Popolo d’Europa (Catalogo mostra - Roma 1994), a cura di M. D’Onofrio, Venezia 1994, le seguenti schede:
1) L. Musset, La questione normanna, pp. 7-11;
2) J.-J. Bertaux, L’architettura religiosa, pp. 35-42;
3) J. Decaens, L’architettura militare, pp. 43-51.
- P. Belli D'Elia, La chiesa medievale: la parola alla fabbrica, in La cattedrale di Acerenza. Mille anni di storia, Edizioni Osanna, Venosa 1999, pp. 65-117.
P. Belli D'Elia, Puglia Romanica, Jaca Book, Milano 2003, pp. 93-105, 107-125, 171-185.
- P. F. Pistilli, Castelli normanni e svevi in Terra di Lavoro. Insediamenti fortificati in un territorio di confine, San Casciano val di Pesa 2003, pp. 1-38.
- P. F. Pistilli, Tra incompiuto e inesistente. L'abbazia normanna della SS. Trinità di Venosa, in Cantieri e maestranze nell'Italia medievale (De Re Monastica II), a cura di M.C. Somma, Fondazione CISAM - Spoleto 2010, pp. 375-412.
- M. Vaccaro. Palinsesto e Paradigma. La metamorfosi monumentale nella Salerno di Roberto il Guiscardo, Pisa 2018, pp. 44-71.
- M. Tabanelli, Architettura sacra in Calabria e Sicilia nell'età delle Contea normanna, Roma 2019, pp. 13-38, 55-82, 84-96, 161-168.
- P. F. Pistilli, Marcatori di domini. L’edilizia sacra a trazione normanna nell’età delle Contee, in Evomedio, I, 2024, pp. 185-210.
- Da Calabria greca, Calabria latina. Segni monumentali di una coesistenza (secoli XI-XII), a cura di M. Tabanelli e A.Tranchina, Roma 2020, i seguenti saggi:
1) V. Chaix, Les Normands en Calabre au XIème siècle: leur influence sur l’architecture ecclésiale et la liturgie, pp. 99-111;
2) M. Tabanelli, Le cattedrali del conte Ruggero: pluralità e dialettica nell’architettura sacra tra Calabria e Sicilia, pp. 113-132;
3) P. F. Pistilli, La cattedrale di Cosenza in retrospettiva: l’orma della fondazione normanna, pp. 133-141.
- T. Bella, La cattedrale di Catania. Un cantiere normanno nella contea di Sicilia, Franco Angeli, Milano 2023, pp. 43-64.

The following texts, that served as base for the preparation of the course, are suggested as further readings, for those who wish to expand their knowledge on the topic:

- C. Bozzoni, Calabria Normanna, Officina Edizioni, Roma 1974.
- M. D'Onofrio, V. Pace, La Campania (Italia Romanica, 4), Jaca Book, Milano 1981.
- I Normanni Popolo d’Europa (Catalogo mostra - Roma 1994), a cura di M. D’Onofrio, Venezia 1994.
- M. Baylé, L'architecture normande au Moyen-Age, Presse Université de Caen, Caen 1997.
- La cattedrale di Acerenza. Mille anni di storia, Edizioni Osanna, Venosa 1999.
- P. Belli D'Elia, Puglia Romanica, Jaca Book, Milano 2003.
- G. Carbonara, Iussu Desiderii. Montecassino e la architettura campano-abruzzese, Bentivoglio, Roma 2014 (I ediz. Roma 1979).
- M. Vaccaro. Palinsesto e Paradigma. La metamorfosi monumentale nella Salerno di Roberto il Guiscardo, Pisa 2018.
- M. Tabanelli, Architettura sacra in Calabria e Sicilia nell'età delle Contea normanna, Roma 2019.
- Calabria greca, Calabria latina. Segni monumentali di una coesistenza (secoli XI-XII), a cura di M. Tabanelli e A.Tranchina, Roma 2020.
- K. Kappel, Normannitas come eredità fragile. L'Incompiuta di Venosa, in Studi e ricerche di storia dell'architettura. Rivista dell'Associazione Italiana di Storia dell'Architettura, n. 11, a. 6, 2022, pp. 22-43.
- Norman Connections. Normannische Verflchtungen zwischen Skandinavien un Mittelmeer, Schnell-Steiner, Regensburg 2022
- T. Bella, La cattedrale di Catania. Un cantiere normanno nella contea di Sicilia, Franco Angeli, Milano 2023.
- A. Tranchina, Monaci sullo stretto. Architettura e grecità medievale tra Calabria e Sicilia, Silvana Editoriale, Cinisello Balsamo 2023.

The course consists of lectures supported by PowerPoint presentations, as well as visits to monuments and museums.

Note: The PowerPoint presentations (in PDF format) will be available on the "Moodle Sapienza" platform (https://elearning.uniroma1.it) on the teacher's website in the relevant tab "Architettura Medievale - LM89 (a.a. 2025-2026)".

Attendance is not mandatory, although it is highly recommended.
Furthermore, students unable to attend the course are encouraged to view the PowerPoint presentations uploaded on the Moodle Sapienza platform (https://elearning.uniroma1.it). It is also advisable to contact the teacher (according to the times listed on the University website) for further information, or to facilitate the preparation of the exam.

Oral exam at the end of the course.
The assessment will consider the knowledge acquired by the student both in class, during visits, and through the study of the bibliography, as well as the way in which this knowledge is communicated and the student's autonomy in approaching the topics.

The exam includes both general questions relating to the course syllabus and questions on specific monuments or urban planning interventions, such as:

1) Context and reference areas.
2) Typology of architectural models.
3) Typology and development of urban forms.
4) Patrons.
5) Design principles and construction sites.
6) Apprenticeship of architects and craftsmen.
7) The construction history of buidings (religious, secular, or military).

• Lesson 1: From
  Vikings to Normans (Presentation of the programme)
  • Books: See Texts: Musset, Bertaux, Decaens 1994.


• Lessons 2 and 3: "Età
  della Contea" in the Southern Italy 
  • Books: See Texts: D'Onofrio, Pace 1981; D'Onofrio 1994; Vaccaro 2018; Tabanelli 2019; Vaux 2019.


• Lesson 4: Between completed, unfinished, and lost in the peninsular
  lands: the status quaestionis
  • Books: See Texts:Cfr. Testi: Belli D'Elia 1999; Vaccaro 2018; Tabanelli 2018 e 2019; Pistilli 2018 e 2024.


• Lessons 5 and 6: 1076-1090. Robert Guiscard's Vulture: the cathedrals of Melfi and Acerenza, the “Incompiuta” of Venosa 
  • Books: See Texts: Belli D'Elia 1999; Pistilli 2010 e 2024.


• Lessons 7 e 8: 1061-1090. The "via uticense" in Calabria and Abbot Robert de Grantmesnil: S. Maria of Santa Eufemia and Mileto 
  • Books: See Texts:Tabanelli 2019.


• Lesson 9: Robert Guiscard, Archbishop Alfano I, and the norman cathedral of Salerno 
  • Books: See Texts: Vaccaro 2018.


• Lesson 10: Cosenza. The lost cathedral of Bishop Arnolfo
  • Books: See Texts: Pistilli 2020.


• Lesson 11: In Terra di Lavoro and the exception of the cathedral of Aversa
  • Books: See Texts: D'Onofrio, Pace 1981; D'Onofrio 1993 e 1994; Pistilli 2003.


• Lesson 12: Bohemond and the mausoleum of Canosa (1111)
  • Books: See Belli D'Elia 2003.


• Lessons 13 and 14: The last decade of the 11th century and the birth of sacred architecture in Sicily
  • Books: See Texts: Tabanelli 2018 e 2019; Bella 2023.


• Lessons 15 e 16: Abbot An(s)gerio, Catania and the episcopal complex 
  • Books: See Texts: Tabanelli 2018 e 2019; Bella 2023.


• Lesson 18: The "Terra di Bari"
  • Books: See Texts: Belli D'Elia 2003.


• Lesson 19: The cathedral of Troia at the time of Bishop Guglielmo II
  • Books: See Texts: Belli D'Elia 2003


• Lessons 19-20: Roger II. From Calabria to the Regnum Siciliae, from S. Maria della Roccella to Cefalù cathedral
  • Books: See Texts: Tabanelli 2018 e 2019.


• Lesson 21: Conclusions


• Visit to Salerno: cathedral and S. Benedetto