Visions of medieval castles in fourteenth and fifteenth

The texts and images vehiculated by the medieval mind are profoundly symbolic and their symbolism can be manifest in various ways. When it comes to the image of the castle in visual representations we unavoidably come across the kind of symbolism of parts representing the whole (pars pro toto). In other words, the criterion of selecting the visual representations of castles was not dependent on the entirety of the castle shown in the picture, I included in the selection towers, fragments of walls, gates and other components of a medieval castle that were shown. As a consequence, my shortlist comprises large cities such as Constantinople. This selection generosity (that could be viewed as objectionable by some) is backed by Duby’s definition of the medieval city according to which the city is “a castle much stronger than the other castles.”

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