Functions and Decorations: Art and Ritual at the Vatican Palace in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance

In 2000 a conference held at the Dutch Institute in Rome brought together a group of Vatican scholars to discuss and debate current research and consider the future for Vatican scholarship. This large format volume contains ten essays that examine the relationship between the art and decorative schemes of the Vatican and their function, especially with regard to papal liturgy and ceremony. The authors focus on art from the late medieval and Renaissance periods with plentiful photographs throughout.