Architectural Culture of the Early Modern Eastern Adriatic

Project Information

AdriArchCult

Grant agreement ID: 865863

DOI

10.3030/865863

EC signature date 24 March 2020

Start date 1 September 2020

End date 31 August 2026

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)

Total cost

€ 1 999 750,00

EU contribution

€ 1 999 750,00

Coordinated by

UNIVERSITA CA' FOSCARI VENEZIA
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 3 - AdriArchCult (Architectural Culture of the Early Modern Eastern Adriatic)

Reporting period: 2023-09-01 to 2025-02-28

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Between the 15th and 18th c., the Eastern Adriatic, partitioned between Venetian and Dubrovnik Republics, the Kingdom of Hungary-Croatia and the Habsburg and Ottoman Empires, was politically transformed into a vast archipelago, including mainland coastal towns divided from the hinterland. Insularity became the area's main characteristic in terms of almost exclusive dependence on maritime communications. The project explores the impact of this change, focusing on architecture as the most evident materialisation of a culture and its transformations. The goal is to examine the architectural culture in question regarding both its consumption and production as factors of political and economic consolidation of different political entities interacting through war and commerce. Moreover, the quick spread of the revival of antiquity and the Catholic Revival fuelled the need for architectural creation with specific functional and symbolic characteristics, setting cultural standards. On the other hand, the economics of the production of architecture consisted of interrelated systems of the provision of materials (esp. Istrian stone) and organisation of construction sites, which, given the ease of sea transport, resulted in a fluctuating and floating market of architectural goods.
This approach will provide an original contribution to the understanding of cultural practices that not only produced specific buildings, the most significant among which are now listed as World Heritage sites, but also put into circulation ancient and modern models, techniques and materials for a European-wide audience. Moreover, by investigating the trans-border and trans-confessional character of the Eastern Adriatic architectural market, the research will offer an innovative model for studying such phenomena across Europe. The result will be a dynamic vision of the architectural production of a region that connects the various faces of European culture.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The initial phase of the project was devoted to personnel recruitment. The group initially included 3+1 PhD students, 3 post-doctoral researchers, 7 external experts, 1 project manager, and 1 IT developer. Moreover, two visiting scholars, relying on their own funding, have been included in the project's activities.
Research activities have been conducted both individually and collectively through regular research exchanges (colloquia, on-site seminars, co-authored papers, and the database).
The group attended regular in-person and online meetings and workshops in Venice and continued disseminating the project results through conference attendance and the establishment of a network of collaborations.
Collectively, the group has worked toward the realisation of the project's research goals and the accomplishment of its outcomes in accordance with the DoA:

• Workshops and seminars organisation: we set up a full-fledged programme, both online and in person, of colloquia, seminars, and workshops on the key themes of the project;
• Symposia attendance: the group has presented the research results in project-organised sessions at seven large conferences and several thematic conferences;
• Doctoral theses: 3+1 PhD students have been selected and co-opted. In 2024, three PhD candidates have completed their degrees summa cum laude, while the co-opted PhD candidate has submitted his thesis in 2025 and is currently awaiting a viva;
• Publication of 45 essays on the architectural culture of early modern Eastern Adriatic by the PI and other group members;
• Several other publications, including peer-reviewed monographs, have been submitted and accepted for publication;
• A database on architectural production and the circulation of knowledge has been set up and is currently being populated with archival and bibliographical data;
• For the realisation of a digital platform presenting the project's results and research materials—linked to online publications—we created an overarching webpage. webpage (https://pric.unive.it/projects/adriarchcult/home).

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The group’s research has contributed to broadening the understanding of the project’s topics and has partially revised its research hypotheses through a more nuanced understanding of historiographical issues. This was supported by the creation of a shared Zotero bibliographic database on Eastern Adriatic architecture. Moreover, the main database on archival data and books related to architectural phenomena has been established, providing preliminary insight into the dynamics of the Early Modern architectural market in the Eastern Adriatic. This database serves as a key analytical tool until the end of the project, at which point it will be made available as an open-access resource.

The project has been granted a 12-month extension due to restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic during its first two years, enabling the team to continue working toward the following goals:
• Launched and developed two Open Access book series (“Archipelagus,” Brepols, and “Art and Architecture of the Adriatic,” Edizioni Ca’ Foscari), featuring research outcomes by project members and translations of important historiographical works from lesser-spoken languages, primarily Slovenian and Croatian. The first two titles are in press, with publication expected in May 2025.
• Workshops and symposia organization: organized a major event on the core project topics—an exhibition on the Renaissance emulation of Eastern Adriatic antiquities in collaboration with the Archaeological Museum in Pula (summer 2026), accompanied by a workshop and a symposium.
• Doctoral theses: completion of the one remaining PhD thesis.

An integrative project on Marche and Friuli as contact regions has received funding through the FARE program of the Italian Ministry of University and Research. This project will generate one PhD thesis, two workshops, and one international conference, while also creating an archival-artworks database complementary to the AdriArchCult database.

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