From Wilderness to Paradise

From Wilderness to Paradise presents an in-depth study of the large mosaic pavement in the East Church at Qasr el-Lebia in Cyrenaica, Libya. The pavement, which survives almost in its entirety, consists of fifty panels, each containing a different image. Despite being described as ‘the finest and mo...

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Príomhchruthaitheoir: Chick, Jane
Formáid: Online
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Foilsithe / Cruthaithe: Archaeopress Publishing 2025
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Rochtain ar líne:https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/99984
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author Chick, Jane
author_browse Chick, Jane
author_facet Chick, Jane
author_sort Chick, Jane
collection Directory of Open Access Books
description From Wilderness to Paradise presents an in-depth study of the large mosaic pavement in the East Church at Qasr el-Lebia in Cyrenaica, Libya. The pavement, which survives almost in its entirety, consists of fifty panels, each containing a different image. Despite being described as ‘the finest and most interesting set of Christian mosaics yet found in Libya’ (Illustrated London News, December 1957), subsequent studies have generally dismissed the pavement as a random selection of images with no symbolic meaning and no overarching scheme. This book argues that the remarkably rich and complex mosaic should be understood as a coherent whole.A discussion about reading imagery in Late Antiquity precedes a meticulous iconographical study. Within the pavement’s overall coherence, the grid layout allows the panels to be read in different directions, rather like a crossword puzzle, their meaning shifting with each change of focus. Particular attention is paid to small groups of images related either by subject matter or location, and the discussion shows how the placement of certain panels impacts the surrounding imagery, giving meaning over and above the significance of individual motifs. The iconographical study concludes by considering the mosaic from the viewpoint of those moving across the pavement and the phenomenological responses this interaction may have elicited. It suggests that as the images passed fleetingly underfoot, a journey unfurled and one was led from a chaotic oceanic wilderness in the east, to a more orderly paradisiacal world further west.
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publishDateRange 2025
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spelling doab-20.500.12854ir-1574002025-07-30T08:01:12Z From Wilderness to Paradise Chick, Jane Social Science Archaeology History Africa North bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HD Archaeology bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HB History::HBJ Regional & national history::HBJH African history From Wilderness to Paradise presents an in-depth study of the large mosaic pavement in the East Church at Qasr el-Lebia in Cyrenaica, Libya. The pavement, which survives almost in its entirety, consists of fifty panels, each containing a different image. Despite being described as ‘the finest and most interesting set of Christian mosaics yet found in Libya’ (Illustrated London News, December 1957), subsequent studies have generally dismissed the pavement as a random selection of images with no symbolic meaning and no overarching scheme. This book argues that the remarkably rich and complex mosaic should be understood as a coherent whole.A discussion about reading imagery in Late Antiquity precedes a meticulous iconographical study. Within the pavement’s overall coherence, the grid layout allows the panels to be read in different directions, rather like a crossword puzzle, their meaning shifting with each change of focus. Particular attention is paid to small groups of images related either by subject matter or location, and the discussion shows how the placement of certain panels impacts the surrounding imagery, giving meaning over and above the significance of individual motifs. The iconographical study concludes by considering the mosaic from the viewpoint of those moving across the pavement and the phenomenological responses this interaction may have elicited. It suggests that as the images passed fleetingly underfoot, a journey unfurled and one was led from a chaotic oceanic wilderness in the east, to a more orderly paradisiacal world further west. 2025-03-15T08:00:36Z 2025-03-15T08:00:36Z 2025-03-14T05:36:30Z 2024 book https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/99984 9781803277318 https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/157400 eng open access image/jpeg n/a https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/99984/1/external_content.pdf Archaeopress Publishing Archaeopress Publishing Ltd 59b4663a-f67e-4c39-b0e5-149245151ec1 Knowledge Unlatched 9781803277318 Knowledge Unlatched (KU) KU Open Services Archaeopress Publishing Ltd open access
spellingShingle Social Science
Archaeology
History
Africa
North
bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HD Archaeology
bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HB History::HBJ Regional & national history::HBJH African history
Chick, Jane
From Wilderness to Paradise
title From Wilderness to Paradise
title_full From Wilderness to Paradise
title_fullStr From Wilderness to Paradise
title_full_unstemmed From Wilderness to Paradise
title_short From Wilderness to Paradise
title_sort from wilderness to paradise
topic Social Science
Archaeology
History
Africa
North
bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HD Archaeology
bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HB History::HBJ Regional & national history::HBJH African history
topic_facet Social Science
Archaeology
History
Africa
North
bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HD Archaeology
bic Book Industry Communication::H Humanities::HB History::HBJ Regional & national history::HBJH African history
url https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/99984
work_keys_str_mv AT chickjane fromwildernesstoparadise