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Some instances of architectural design in the protection of Celto-Roman ruins
No full textThe program for enhancing ancient remains involves contributions from maintenance, restoration, and contemporary architectural design. The varied approaches in conserving and enhancing archaeology highlight a multidisciplinary and multisectoral method aimed at public enjoyment of the heritage. Preservation often requires restrictive restoration techniques, which can limit creativity but also inspire innovative solutions that respect the heritage. Different nations, shaped by their unique cultural formations, have developed specific ways of interpreting their past, primarily through local archaeology, seen as ‘the childhood of every country’. Globalization has impacted archaeological practices, leading to a blending of cultural and interventionist approaches, especially evident in modern European archaeological museums. These institutions reflect a mix of expressive museographic practices despite the ongoing search for cultural identity and origins. In this contribution, several exemplary case studies regarding the coverage interventions of Celtic-Roman/Celto-Roman ruins have been examined. The aim is to illustrate some possible approaches to protective coverings in the archaeological field, while being aware that it would be necessary to extend the reasoning to a greater number of case studies and that respecting the editorial space granted, forces us, rightly, to a more appropriate synthesis.
Digital art as a future vehicle of contemporaneity: NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens)
No full textNFTs are the main tool for certifying the authenticity and ownership of digital artworks. An NFT is an immutable digital certificate secured via blockchain, a secure technology that ensures the integrity of information without the need for intermediaries. The use of NFTs has become popular since 2017, with the public sale of the first digital artworks and has opened up new opportunities in the art market even within traditional channels such as auction houses. NFTs are often linked to conceptual art and are rapidly evolving along with the concept of "beauty", with works that sometimes explore deformed realities or obsessive aspects. The work of art becomes a metaphor for our world, in which value grows through discussion and social reaction, fuelling a cycle that reflects our often absurd and contradictory reality. The growing popularity of NFTs also raises concerns related to sustainability, as blockchain technology requires a large amount of energy, contributing to CO2 emissions. Digitization, blockchain, the metaverse and cryptocurrencies are rapidly transforming the art market, leading to a new virtual economy and a change in interactions between artists and society, and fostering a more direct system between artists and audiences. In the era of digital humanism, we should aim for a synthesis between the human and the machine and avoid a distorted one-sided vision; it is necessary to be able to understand the impact of new technologies, including artificial intelligence, without being overwhelmed by them. Artificial intelligence and robotic art are gaining ground, but we need to ask ourselves who the real author is, the programmer, the robot or both
Immagini sacre di proprietà dei laici nelle chiese medievali di Napoli (secoli X-XII)
No full textDonations of money and properties to sacred images were not unusual in medieval Europe, but in 10th-12th century Naples they could imply an uncommon feature: in fact, images were often in the full possession of the donors, who gave them in custody to a church, usually located in the same district where they lived. Basing on textual evidence, this paper discusses typology, format, iconography, and location of this particular kind of ‘private’ images and analyses the social and economic implications deriving from their specific status. It also examines the impact of this practice on the city’s rituality and religious identity.Donazioni di beni e immobili a immagini sacre non erano insolite nell'Europa medievale, ma nella Napoli dei secoli X-XII potevano implicare una caratteristica non comune: infatti, le immagini erano spesso in pieno possesso dei donatori, che le davano in custodia a una chiesa, solitamente situata nello stesso quartiere in cui vivevano. Sulla base di testimonianze documentarie, in questo articolo si discutono tipologia, formato, iconografia e collocazione di questo particolare tipo di immagini ‘private’, e si analizzano le implicazioni sociali ed economiche derivanti dal loro specifico status. Si esamina inoltre l'impatto di questa pratica sulla ritualità e sull'identità religiosa della città
Graziani "claustrali". I primi manoscritti miniati del Decretum Gratiani all'interno delle comunità di regolari
No full textThe Decretum Gratiani was probably composed in Bologna, Italy, prior to the mid-twelfth century and rapidly became one of the most widely utilised textbooks in medieval Western Europe. The text began to be illuminated shortly thereafter. Professional lay craftsmen, presumably working in collaboration with the nascent urban law schools, likely played a role in devising this novel illuminated book. Nevertheless, since Gratian’s work encompassed Church legislation, the scriptoria of ecclesiastical institutions must have been involved. This article examines the illuminated copies clearly associated with specific monastic or canonical communities to ascertain any common features that distinguish them as ‘cloistered’ Gratians.
Il Decretum Gratiani fu probabilmente composto a Bologna prima della metà del XII secolo e divenne rapidamente uno dei libri di testo più utilizzati nell'Europa occidentale medievale. Poco dopo il testo iniziò a essere miniato. Artefici laici professionisti, che presumibilmente lavoravano in connessione con le nascenti scuole di diritto urbane, hanno verosimilmente partecipato all'ideazione di questo nuovo libro miniato. Tuttavia, poiché l'opera di Graziano riguardava la legislazione della Chiesa, gli scriptoria ecclesiastici dovettero essere coinvolti. Questo articolo esamina le copie miniate chiaramente associate a specifiche comunità monastiche o canonicali per accertare eventuali caratteristiche comuni che le distinguano come Graziani “claustrali”
Wittgensteinian Network e Wittgensteinian Oracle. Due strumenti umanistico-digitali dentro e oltre l’indagine terminologica
No full textThis paper aims to illustrate the functioning of Wittgensteinian Network [WN] and Wittgensteinian Oracle [WO]. [WN] and [WO] are two websites designed to assist scholars and researchers in exploring and deepening the philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein. [WN] is a website designed to facilitate the lexicological investigation of key terms of the so-called context principle in the texts of the ‘early Wittgenstein’. [WO] is a tool that uses artificial intelligence, and specifically GPT technology, to explore Wittgenstein's philosophical work. More specifically, [WO] is a website that consists of a series of customised GPT models designed to answer questions related to the specific manuscript or typescript of Wittgenstein's Nachlass to which they are associated. The aim of the paper is to highlight both the potential and limitations of these two humanistic digital tools in the study of a particular complex idea - the context principle - and of its development within Wittgenstein's philosophical thought.Questo articolo si propone di illustrare il funzionamento di Wittgensteinian Network [WN] e Wittgensteinian Oracle [WO]. [WN] e [WO] sono due siti web progettati per assistere studiosi e ricercatori nell'esplorazione e nell'approfondimento della filosofia di Ludwig Wittgenstein. [WN] è un sito progettato per facilitare l'indagine lessicologica dei termini chiave del cosiddetto principio del contesto nei testi del “primo Wittgenstein”. [WO] è uno strumento che utilizza l'intelligenza artificiale, e in particolare la tecnologia GPT, per esplorare l'opera filosofica di Wittgenstein. Più precisamente, [WO] è un sito web che consiste in una serie di modelli GPT personalizzati, progettati per rispondere a domande relative allo specifico manoscritto o dattiloscritto del Nachlass di Wittgenstein a cui sono associati. Lo scopo dell'articolo è quello di evidenziare sia le potenzialità che i limiti di questi due strumenti digitali umanistici nello studio di una particolare idea complessa - il principio del contesto - e del suo sviluppo all'interno del pensiero filosofico di Wittgenstein
Old Fears, New Hopes. Flemish TV fiction and National Identity in the 21st Century
No full textThe overarching narrative about TV drama and TV more generally is one of continuous change. Taking a step back, in this paper I reflect on changes and continuities in the past 25 years. Starting in the late 1990s, I discuss the challenges facing European serial drama production as the market increasingly commercialised, digitised, and globalised. From a product typically associated with domestic markets, popular mostly with national audiences, it turned into a transnational commodity, as U.S. drama had been for a long time. Taking the case of Flanders, a small region and TV market, as a starting point, I discuss how these evolutions had an impact on the quantity and quality of drama, with particular attention to the issue of national identity. I argue that, despite many changes and new challenges, including increasing competition, domestic fiction continues to occupy a privileged position in Flanders. Fears about the viability of Flemish drama are not new, but rather the reiteration of old worries, which have challenged the industry – and academics – for at least a quarter century now. Streaming, in particular, carries competition to a new level, but it also creates new possibilities for coproduction and transnational distribution
Inspector Maigret and the Teleromanzo: A Case Study of Early Italian Television
No full textThe "teleromanzo", or "romanzo sceneggiato" (here translated as "TV novel") is a most peculiar narrative genre of early RAI. It significantly shaped early Italian television, becoming a cornerstone of RAI’s production from its mid-1950s inception. Broadcast from 1954, teleromanzi symbolized RAI’s educational mission under Italy’s state broadcasting monopoly, which lasted until 1972. Inspired by two of the three John Reith’s public service broadcasting principles, teleromanzi aimed to educate and entertain, improving cultural literacy and public consensus aligned with the ruling party.
Teleromanzi are defined by three features: literary sources, theatrical staging, and installment structure. They adapted mainly 19th-century classics to entertain and teach Italian to a largely illiterate population. Early technical constraints necessitated theatrical staging, perpetrated by using stage actors known for clear diction and cultural gravitas. The installment structure fostered a loyal audience, ensuring ongoing interest and value assimilation, particularly of Catholic values.
By the 1960s, RAI experimented with serial elements, also adapting works by authors like Georges Simenon into series such as "Le inchieste del Commissario Maigret"(1964- 1972), directed by Mario Landi and starring Gino Cervi. This series hybridized teleromanzo and serial formats, maintaining installment narratives while introducing recurring characters and figurative stereotypes.
Its success underscored the effectiveness of teleromanzo’s blend of education and entertainment, influencing contemporary television narratives, while reflecting Italian television’s evolution and societal changes, beyond demonstrating rare chronological progression and thematic coherence.
As a matter of fact, this Maigret series has much more in common with the teleromanzo and its cultural aura than with the rules of television seriality properly speaking, which were still unknown in Italy at that time. It testifies to an experimental phase of seriality, or a pre-serial seriality, whose most fertile aspect lies precisely in its capacity to integrate the formula of the teleromanzo and to enrich it with potentially serial elements, while retaining the auratic and humanist dimension imposed by the cultural educational project designed by early Rai of the monopoly
Legitimacy and Rationalization in European Criminal Law: A Critical Analysis of the Criminalization of Migrant Smuggling
No full textThe article critically examines the legitimacy of European criminal law through the perspective of migrant smuggling incrimination. By analyzing the complex intersection of legal principles and migration policies, the research investigates whether applying a principled criminalization approach can resolve existing systemic legitimacy challenges in European criminal law. The study systematically deconstructs migrant smuggling as a legal concept, evaluates its alignment with broader criminal law functions, and critically assesses the legal and ethical implications of current European Union incrimination strategies. Through a comprehensive methodology examining normative frameworks, interests, and legal principles, the research aims to provide a nuanced evaluation of criminal law rationalization in the European context. After defining the conduct and differentiating it from related concepts in the Introduction, Section 1 explores the relationship between migrant smuggling and the functions of European criminal law. Section 2 undertakes a step-by-step analysis of the criminalization process, examining all relevant interests and principles. Section 3 critically assesses the adequacy of this process’s outcomes, followed by concluding observations on the broader implications for European criminal law legitimacy
A Curious Competition for a Protestant Church in the Netherlands
No full textIn recent years various scientific studies have been published focusing on church building in the Netherlands in the post-war period. From an international perspective, however, the certain developments remain if not unknown at least underexposed. One of them is a competition for a Reformed Church in 1963 between architects that would set their mark on architecture in the Sixties and Seventies. Although the location was not within a major city, but on the outskirts of a smaller one, it highlights a crucial moment, or as Belgian architectural historian Marc Dubois, echoing Geert Bekaert, called it, "a pivotal moment" in the history of the Netherlands heralding the end of the ecclesiastical pillarization. This article offers an accurate reconstruction of the competition, that was held between different architects who would later be considered as the main exponents of the Structuralist movement
The Discovery of Abandoned Villages in Abruzzo. Exploring the Potential of Drawing as a Research Method
No full textThis research underscores the vast importance of architectural drawing in the examination of cultural and material heritage in hamlets grappling with a slow abandonment. The representation of towns and villages holds great significance, as it forms the basis for potential architectural, economic, and social endeavours, while also enabling the establishment of communal areas where diverse communities can nurture their shared visions. In order to delve deeper into the subject, an atlas of municipalities in Abruzzo with populations below 500 offers a remarkable chance to stimulate reflection on the factors influencing a drawing that can shape narratives of abandonment through the use of various descriptive methods and tools. Moreover, this endeavour allows for the exploration of new avenues for future sustainable development and revitalization, fostering a sense of identity and gaining pride within these communities