MARIAN PLAGUE COLUMNS IN JAROMĚŘ AND POLIČKA: A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON BAROQUE SCULPTURAL DECORATIONS OF THE BOHEMIAN URBAN PUBLIC SPACE IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

• Authors: Vojtíšková Jana , Polehla Petr
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

The present study sets Marian plague columns into a broader context based on fragmentally preserved sources as well as existing literature related to the topic (especially regional historiography, art history and historic preservation. Through the comparison of two minor East-Bohemian towns of a comparable population, it follows the factors playing a significant role in the creation of complex Baroque sculptural compositions. At the same time, it aims to identify the functions that the sculptures were to fulfil through their position in the public space. In this sense the study is inspired by the classic essay by Peter Burke called Conspicuous consumption in seventeenth-century Italy, which considers “the consumption” to be a specific form of communication. The composition of Marian plague columns can be perceived as an undeniable form of communication. From multiple perspectives, the article documents the key determinants, which are sometimes rather surprising, influencing the choice of partial components of the sculptural compositions as well as their overall impression – the communicative intention. Both Marian plague columns, to this day the most important monuments decorating the public space of the towns in question, are therefore approached in an interdisciplinary way especially in the context of the history of the towns, their manors and the East-Bohemian region. Therefore, the religious situation of both towns and their surroundings is not overlooked either. With regard to the fact that Jaroměř and Polička have been royal dowry towns, the Marian plague columns also reflect the relation to the Bohemian queen, which is expressed verbally as inscriptions on them. In particular, the artwork in Polička and the events related to its creation importantly signalize the “conspicuous consumption”.

Keywords

EN

KINGDOM OF BOHEMIA; EARLY MODERN TIMES; ROYAL DOWRY TOWNS; JAROMĚŘ; POLIČKA; MARIAN PLAGUE COLUMN; COMMUNICATION

• Publisher: Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice
• Journal: Mesto a dejiny
• Year: 2021
• Volume: 10
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 104 - 133

Contributors

author

Vojtíšková Jana

• Department of Auxiliary Historical Sciences and Archival Studies, Philosophical Faculty, University of Hradec Králové, Rokitanského 62, 500 03 Hradec Králové, Czech Republic

author

Polehla Petr

Identifiers

DOI

https://doi.org/10.33542/CAH2021-1-04