3.23 TS – Byzantium after Byzantium in Albania: Architectural and Artistic Continuity

This Thematic Session aims to dissect the profound and lasting influences of Byzantine architecture and art in Albania after the decline of the Byzantine Empire. With a focus on the continuity and adaptation of Byzantine aesthetic and structural elements, this discussion will explore how these elements were preserved, interpreted, and transformed in post-Byzantine Albanian territories. Panelists will examine various case studies involving religious and secular buildings, iconography, frescoes, and other artistic expressions that exhibit Byzantine characteristics. The session will provide a multidimensional analysis of the cultural and historical contexts that facilitated this artistic continuity, highlighting the regional peculiarities and the broader Balkan interactions.

A General Overview of the Surviving Painting in the Church of Saint Mary at Barmash, Kolonjë (1616): Preliminary Observations and Comparisons

The Church of Saint Mary in Barmash remains a representative monument of painting from the second decade of the seventeenth century. Closely related to other overlooked or nearly abandoned monuments in the Kolonjë region—such as those at Lashova, Postenani, and Shalësi—it holds significant value both for scholars of art and for the broader understanding of…

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The First Phases of Mural Painting in the Monasteries of St. Mary of Driano, Prophet Elijah, and St. Cyricus and Julitta in Dropull. A Comparative Analysis of Artistic Execution Processes and the Materials Employed

The execution techniques and preparatory phases characterizing mural paintings in three emblematic monasteries within the Drino Valley, situated in southern Albania’s Dropull region, are critically evaluated through systematic investigation. This paper focuses on the methodological analogies identified among the late sixteenth-century frescoes, relating two of them to the work of the monk-painter Nikephoros (whose work…

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Paleographic and Codicological Observations on the Post-Byzantine Manuscripts of the Central State Archives of Tirana

This paper presents paleographic and codicological observations on a group of post-Byzantine Greek manuscripts preserved in the collections of the Central State Archives of Tirana, dating from the 17th to the 19th centuries. These manuscripts, primarily of liturgical, philological, and philosophical content, represent significant evidence of the continuity of the Greek-Byzantine scribal tradition in Albanian…

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