Visualizing Russian Imperialism : Neo-medieval Churches in the 19th-Century South Caucasus

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F00216224%3A14210%2F25%3A00143056" target="_blank" >RIV/00216224:14210/25:00143056 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://www.umeni-art.cz/cz/detail/7sSVUp" target="_blank" >https://www.umeni-art.cz/cz/detail/7sSVUp</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

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Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Visualizing Russian Imperialism : Neo-medieval Churches in the 19th-Century South Caucasus

Original language description

From the nineteenth century onward, the Russian Empire increasingly employed medieval visual language in its ecclesiastical architecture. This phenomenon can be observed across the entire empire—from major cities such as Moscow and St Petersburg to peripheral regions, for example the South Caucasus. The Russian Empire showed particular interest in this area, and it was here that construction activity in neo-medieval styles, especially Neo-Byzantine and Old Russian, was most intense. Their visual language sharply contrasted with the deeply rooted architectural traditions of the region, which raises the question of why these particular styles were chosen. This article argues that the revival of medieval forms became one of the tools through which the Russian Empire promoted and legitimized its political and ideological ambitions. Newly built churches thus functioned as deliberate visualizations of imperial power, and architecture served as a powerful medium of propaganda, expressing various ideological concepts addressed to the inhabitants of the Caucasus. The article further demonstrates how specific neo-medieval styles were used to articulate different aspects of imperial ideology.

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

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OECD FORD branch

60401 - Arts, Art history

Project

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Continuities

I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace

Publication year

2025

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

UMĚNÍ = THE ART : ČASOPIS ÚSTAVU DĚJIN UMĚNÍ AKADEMIE VĚD ČR

ISSN

0049-5123

e-ISSN

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Volume of the periodical

73

Issue of the periodical within the volume

3

Country of publishing house

CZ - CZECH REPUBLIC

Number of pages

11

Pages from-to

309-319

UT code for WoS article

001685775600009

EID of the result in the Scopus database

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