"Introduced by Joanna Cannon, this volume of essays by postgraduate students at the Courtauld Institute, University of London, explores some of the ways in which art was used to express, to celebrate, and to promote the political and religious aims and aspirations of those in power in the city-states of central Italy in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.

By concentrating on individual cases such as these, the essays provide sustained consideration, at the same time raising crucial issues concerning the role of art in the public life of the period. These illustrated studies introduce new material and advance new arguments, and are all based on original research. Clear presentation ensures that they are also accessible to students and scholars from other disciplines."--BOOK JACKET.