Lecture by Dr. Verena Krebs 'Ethiopian Queens and 'Ferenji' Painting'

"Ethiopian Queens and 'Ferenji' Painting: Global Histories of Medieval Art," a talk by Dr. Verena Krebs, FRHistS, Medieval Cultural Realms and Their Entanglements, Historical Institute, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Germany

Ethiopian painting is often perceived as an isolated branch of Orthodox Christian sacred art. Yet, the visual and material culture from the late medieval Christian kingdom of Solomonic Ethiopia reveals a web of political and artistic connections that spanned continents. This talk delves into the role of Solomonic queens and princesses as patrons who actively commissioned and imported sacred art objects from workshops across medieval Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean to consolidate and showcase their political power in late fifteenth- and early sixteenth-century Ethiopia, highlighting African-European artistic interactions that reconfigure the history of pre-modern cultural entanglement.

Sponsored by the Center for Visual Culture, Medieval Studies, MECANA, and the Office of the Provost, Bryn Mawr College