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Das Lektüreseminar diskutiert jüngst publizierte Arbeiten oder aber weitgehend abgeschlossene Manuskripte. Die Texte werden im Voraus an die Teilnehmenden verschickt und dann gemeinsam mit den Autorinnen und Autoren diskutiert.

Despite the excellent research into the symbolism and materiality of (precious) stones in theological and art-theoretical discourses on medieval and early modern lapidaries, no comprehensive study is dedicated to the heliotrope, or bloodstone: A green jasper speckled with red spots resembling blood, the material properties of this species of stone perfectly aligned with the artistic search for ways to represent and substantiate the salvific message of the Incarnation and Passion. The stone’s popularity arose from the belief that, unlike other stones, the heliotrope not only symbolized the blood of Christ, but materialized Christ Himself. Between the tenth and twelfth centuries, Byzantine artists produced a remarkable number of splendid heliotrope cameos, carved with scenes of Christian iconography, including depictions of Christ Pantokrator, the Virgin Mary, Martyr Saints, and the Crucifixion. These circulated across state borders and made their way into Latin Western ecclesiastical and secular court collections over the following centuries. 

Given the widespread presence of these objects in collections worldwide, it is surprising that bloodstone cameos have yet to play a more prominent role in the broader academic discourse on gemstones. This study addresses this lacuna by investigating the functions, iconography, and symbolic meanings of heliotrope cameos, drawing upon previously underexplored historical written sources and engaging with current discourses on the materiality of stones. Adopting a transregional approach shaped by the concept of ›connected histories‹, this analysis further illustrates how the geographical circulation of these objects endowed them with a dynamic role as signifiers, facilitating the transmission and mediation of ideas and notions of lithic agency between the Byzantine cultural sphere and the early modern Western tradition.

Johannes Gebhardt is Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Art History at the University of Leipzig, where he received his PhD in 2018 with a thesis on moveable altarpieces, highly popular early modern devices for the staging of cult images. In February 2024 he was One-Month-Research Awardee at Dumbarton Oaks (Byzantine Department) in Washington D.C. In 2022/2023 he was Villa I Tatti/Museo Nacional del Prado Joint Fellow (Postdoc) in Florence and Madrid. Furthermore, Johannes received fellowships from the Bibliotheca Hertziana, Rome, and the Gerda Henkel Foundation, Düsseldorf. His current research focuses on early modern material culture from a transregional perspective (Europe – Viceroyalties of New Spain and Peru), with a particular emphasis on cult images, art theory, materiality and, most recently, on blood (current book project: ›Blood. Dimensions of Liminality in Early Modern Hispanic Art‹).

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