Faculty of History and Cultural Studies
Gold and Silver Metalwork from the Carolingian Period to the Baroque
Course Description
Gold and Silver Metalwork from the Carolingian Period to the Baroque
This seminar examines the history, craftsmanship, functions, and cultural meaning of goldsmiths’ and silversmiths’ work from the Carolingian period (8th century) through to the Baroque era (18th century). We will explore a broad range of objects, including liturgical vessels such as chalices, portable reliquaries, monumental shrines; insignia, such as crowns and sceptres; and items of personal, ceremonial, or symbolically charged significance, such as jewellery.
A central component of the course is an introduction to the principal techniques of historical metalwork — including repoussé, granulation, filigree, and enamelling — alongside their technological development, diffusion and adaptation across the early medieval and early modern Euro-Mediterranean world. In discussing these works, we will consider how such objects were used, what functions they fulfilled in sacred and secular environments, and what they reveal about identity, status, memory, piety, and representation in pre-modern societies.
Goldsmiths’ and silversmiths’ works constitute one of the most significant areas within the applied arts; notably, several of the earliest signed artworks of the medieval period belong to this category. As such, the seminar introduces students to broader historiographical questions of craftsmanship, artistic authorship, and material culture.
The seminar will be delivered primarily in a lecture-based format and taught in hybrid mode: students in Gießen will attend in person, while external participants join online.
Faculty
Faculty of History and Cultural Studies
Department
Department of Art History
Lecturer
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
13/04/2026 - 17/07/2026
Mode and Time
Synchron
Tuesdays: 12 - 2 p.m.
Class Format
Seminar
Online Tool for Teaching
Zoom
Language of Instruction
English
Target Group
Bachelor, Master, PhD, Teacher Training
open to students of the following fields: Art History, Art Pedagogics, Medieval History
Prerequisites
English B2
Examination Format
paper
ECTS
4 ECTS
ECTS without Examination
also possible
Politische Theologien
Course Description
- Zusammenhänge von Religion und Politik aus christlich-theologischer Perspektive
- Ansätze, Herausforderungen, Impulse und Grenzen politischer Theologien
(Literatur: Lukas Bormann/Ansgar Kreutzer (Hg.), Politische Theologien. Aufbrüche und Neukonzipierungen, Freiburg 2025)
Faculty
Fakultät für Geschichts- und Kulturwissenschaften
Department
Institut für Katholische Theologie
Lecturer
Prof. Dr. Ansgar Kreutzer / Prof. Dr. Bernhard Emunds (Frankfurt/M.)
Study Period (dd/mm/yy)
14/04/2026 - 17/07/2026
Mode and Time
Synchron
Dienstags: 14:15 Uhr
Class Format
Vorlesung
Online Tool for Teaching
BigBlueButton
Language of Instruction
Deutsch
Target Group
Bachelor/Master
Prerequisites
Deutsch B1-B2
Examination Format
mündliche Prüfung
ECTS
3 ECTS