Visual Reflections on History and Kingship in the Medieval English Great Church

The images of royalty set up on the western face of the choir-screen or pulpitum of medieval English great churches formed an enduring iconographic tradition which was found across England and was apparently without continental parallel. Discussing in detail the remains of the choir-screen at Salisbury cathedral and the records of the screen at Durham cathedral, this article suggests their potential antecedents in 12th-century representations of lineage. It then explores their probable meanings and functions for contemporary audiences, with reference to liturgy, history and clerical identity.     

Identity and Place: the testament of designated heritage in Hong Kong

This paper examines the extent to which the identity of Hong Kong as a place, and of the Hong Kong Chinese as people, is expressed by the official heritage locations (the seventy-five Declared Monuments) designated by Hong Kong's Antiquities and Monuments Office. The discussion takes account of other heritage initiatives, in particular two recent monuments that commemorate the 1997 Handover of Hong Kong to China. Conclusions are that designated heritage in Hong Kong, more by chance than by deliberate strategy, reflects significant elements of the identities of the Hong Kong people and of Hong Kong as a place. However, more important to the Hong Kong Chinese person's sense of identity than built heritage are the bonds of kin and associated social events.     

Constructing National Identity: The Image of the Medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania in Lithuanian Art from the 1920s to the 1990s

Abstract

This article provides an overview of the ways in which the image of the medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania, intended to awaken the national pride and contribute to the building of the national identity, was constructed by artistic means in the Republic of Lithuania during the 1920s and 1930s. It contains a brief discussion on the genesis of the image of the Grand Duchy, including the selection of appropriate historical heroes and events, and the main aspects of their interpretation. The article analyses some of the most striking and influential examples of the image of medieval Lithuania, such as the celebrations of the 500th anniversary of the death of Grand Duke Vytautas the Great in 1930 and art works created for that purpose, the decoration of public buildings (for example, the Museum of War and the Officers’ Club in Kaunas, and Lithuania’s pavilion in the New York World Fair of 1939). It also looks briefly at the dissemination of the image of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in popular culture. The article also touches on isolated efforts by a number of intellectuals to warn of the dangers inherent in the extreme glorification of the past. The image of the medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania, created in interwar Lithuania, was preserved during the period of Soviet occupation. After the restoration of Lithuanian independence in 1990, this image had a significant influence on the mentality and culture of Lithuanian society at the turn of the millennium. In this respect the situation in Lithuania could be treated as a case study, for a similar relation to the past can be encountered in other European post-Communist countries faced with the problem of creating a new identity.     

Place, Culture and Identity: Summer Music in Upper Galilee

The Kfar Blum festival is an annual chamber music festival at a kibbutz in northern Israel involving three public bodies. Soon after its inauguration, it was dominated by audiences of élite groups who gave it a specific character and made it a highly desirable social event. The demand created for participation caused the festival to change in character, and what had been an artistic celebration became a cultural commodity. This challenged the overall purpose of the festival and brought changes in artistic direction, as new audiences were sought through programmes with wider appeal. The Kfar Blum festival is an example of a contested arena reflecting social trends in Israel. Place becomes a metaphor for social trends.     

民族文化认同与北朝史官制度的发展

鲜卑民族之于北朝史官制度的设立、推进和创造,对发挥史学的民族文化认同功能起了重大的作用。北魏在继承汉魏著作官制的同时,发展出完备严谨的国史编纂制度。北朝几代史家则提出了促进民族文化认同的史学思想。至北齐,史官制度与史家主体二者之间良好的互动催生了设馆修史这一新的机制,其对传统史学影响深远。这是北朝积极推进民族文化认同所结出的硕果,同时也有力地促进了当时和日后的民族文化认同。     

试论蓬莱水城的历史地位与价值

一、蓬莱水城是我国古代著名的军事港口 ,具有重要的军事战略意义 ;二、蓬莱水城是具有独特建筑风格的军事要塞 ;三、蓬莱水城是我国古代北方主要的对外贸易口岸 ,对促进中外经贸往来发挥了积极的作用 ;四、蓬莱水城作为我国古代北方的重要门户 ,对加强中外文化交流起到了桥梁作用。