Experimental Investigation of Influences of Traffic Load on the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Stará Boleslav

Long-term dynamic loads represent a serious factor which compromise the safety and durability of historical buildings. Though the daily traffic may cause only low level vibrations, which an undamaged structure could safely resist, extreme values of traffic loads over longer periods can be critical having as a consequence the initiation of cracks or the growth of existing ones, such that they may endanger the structure. Good maintenance including control measurements or monitoring can aid in early damage detection and timely planning of remedial actions. The preceding statements are supported by an investigation of the effects of ambient vibrations mainly due to traffic loads on the Basilica of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Stará Boleslav. Attention is aimed at a structural fault, its rehabilitation and prognosis for the future.

Prace Konstantego Wojciechowskiego przy katedrze we Włocławku a koncepcja „stylu wiślano‑bałtyckiego”

The Włocławek Cathedral dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the most important Gothic churches in the lowlands of northern Poland. However, overshadowed by the Cathedrals in Poznań and Gniezno, it is considered a building that is more modest in scale and less artistically valuable. An important issue related to the history of the church is its restoration that was carried out in the last two decades o the 19th century, initially according to the plans of Tadeusz Stryjeński from Cracow and then led by the Warsaw architect Konstanty Wojciechowski (1841–1910). Wojciechowski re-Gothycized the building, giving it a ‘cathedral’ form featuring a magnificent façade with two high towers. These works coincided with the growing popularity of the idea of the ‘Vistula-Baltic Gothic’ as the Polish national style in church construction. The Warsaw architect used the forms of the cathedral he rebuilt to develop his own vision of the church in the ‘Vistula-Baltic style’, competitive to the solutions used by Józef Dziekoński. The incarnation of this vision was the church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Łódź, followed by a series of smaller buildings erected in villages and in small towns within the Russian partition, in which the architect repeated his pattern on a smaller or larger scale. The culmination of Wojciechowski’s creative path was the Church of the Holy Family in Częstochowa (the current Cathedral), built from 1901.

Heroines, Great Ladies

Heroic and noble women appear mainly in Poussin’s historical and religious works. Women achieve heroic status in his Landscape with the Ashes of Phocion Collected by His Widow, and Coriolanus. What I call “great ladies” appear in Landscape with Numa Pompilius and the Nymph Egeria, and the Arcadian Shepherds (second version). Great ladies are represented in Old Testament scenes such as the Finding of Moses, Eliezer and Rebecca, and Esther Before Ahasuerus. But the Virgin Mary in his New Testament scenes most perfectly fulfills the designation “great lady,” in his Annunciation, Holy Family on the Steps, Assumption of the Virgin, the and The Seven Sacraments: Marriage (two versions).

The monastic heritage in the Saronic gulf (Greece). Architectural and environmental surveys of the architecture and coastline

The research itinerary is aimed at getting to know the monastic complexes in the Saronic Gulf (Greece) with operations of an investigative nature, to which are added references on religious and environmental themes which, in relation to architecture, expose the compositional and structural beauty of the Greek coastline. The study presents the survey of some Monasteries in the Saronic Gulf in southern Greece, such as the Monastery of the Spring Fountain on the island of Poros, the Monastery of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary on the island of Hydra and the Monastery of St. Nicholas in Spetses.

Diagnosis and Structural Assessment of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Chapel in Prague (CZ)

This paper illustrates the results of the activities of analysis and structural assessment of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary chapel, in Prague. The chapel, an oval-shaped building covered with a dome, was built at the end 16th century and can be considered the last example of renaissance architecture and at the same time the first example of baroque architecture in Prague: it is a significant testimony of the close connection between local artists and their Italian teachers. The building closed to visitors during the last decades for the presence of some structural damages and because severely degraded due to lack of maintenance, was reopened in the 2017 after a notable restoration process. This paper gives attention to the interdisciplinary approach used to diagnosis and structural assessment of the chapel, based on the activities of the “knowledge path,” the subsequent structural analysis and the intervention design. Particular attention was paid to the contribution of the historical review, geometric laser scanner survey and mechanical characterization of the structural materials. All these steps result necessary to identify potential vulnerabilities and to enable the understanding of the effective structural models, also in view of proposing adequate retrofit solutions. A numerical model of the chapel was prepared and calibrated. Finally, the structural assessment for the vertical and seismic loading was performed.

The image of Paradise in «The Sermon on the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin» by Ioanikii Galiatovskii

The article attempts to analyse the image of paradise in “The Sermon on the Annunciation of the Holy Virgin" from the collection "The Key of Understanding" (1659) by Ioanikii Galiatovskii. Paradise in his sermon is depicted as a hierarchical structure of the nine Angelic Choirs: the Angels, the Archangels, the Principality, the Authority, the Mastery, the Parish, the Throne, the Cherubim, and the Seraphim. Comparing the angelic choirs of Galiatovskii and the depiction of celestial choirs in «The Mirror of Theology» (1618) by Cyryl Trankvylion Stavrovetskyi, one can see some differences, including a change in the sequence of arrangement of angelic choirs and in the semantics of names, which Galiatovskii supplements with explanations of the saints' presence on all choirs. The theme of the Annunciation that becomes the beginning of the salvation of the human soul is brought closer to the understanding of paradise. If one compares the preaching on Gospel with a painting one can easily grasp substantial differences in the interpretation. Galiatovskii does not follow the biblical story of the Annunciation, which tells how did the Archangel Gabriel appear to the Holy Virgin and inform her of the birth of Christ. Instead, he interprets this event in anagogical (spiritual sense), describing paradise and the Blessed Virgin in a similar way. Visual art closely follows the biblical text when depicting the Annunciation – the Holy Virgin and the Archangel, who holds a white lily that means god news, are surrounded by several tiny angels that are holding a white lily flower (like in the painting by the French artist Philip de Champaign "Annunciation", 1644). Interestingly, the interpretation of the Annunciation in Ioanikii Galiatovskii’s writing is close to the theme of the Assumption. One might mention the painting "Assumption of the Virgin" (1475 - 1476) by the Italian artist Francesco Botticini, who depicted the Holy Virgin standing next to the hierarchical structure of the nine Angelic Choirs.

Cum iubilationibus et dulci symphonia: The Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Bruder Philipp's 'Marienleben' Cum iubilationibus et dulci symphonia: Die Darstellung der Himmelfahrt Mariens in Bruder Philipps 'Marienleben'

This paper examines the narrative of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary as depicted by Bruder Philipp in his religious epic 'Marienleben' around 1300. By comparing the episode to its source, the 'Vita rhythmica', and reading it against Philipp's Carthusian background, this paper aims to bring to light various techniques of adaptation. The article will show how Philipp both condenses his source by restructuring it while at the same time expands it by drawing on his liturgical background to adapt relevant passages connected to the feast of the Assumption. Kurzfassung: Der Aufsatz untersucht die Darstellung der Himmelfahrt Mariens in Bruder Philipps 'Marienleben', einem geistlichen Epos um 1300. Indem die Episode zum einen im Vergleich mit ihrer Vorlage, der 'Vita rhythmica', und zum anderen vor dem kartusianischen Hintergrund des Autors gelesen wird, werden Bearbeitungstechniken herausgearbeitet. Es soll gezeigt werden, auf welche Weise Bruder Philipp seine Quelle verdichtet und sie zugleich erweitert, indem er für die Liturgie des Assumptio-Festes relevante Passagen an seinen liturgischen Hintergrund anpasst.