Longobards. Longobards (568-774 d.C.)Longobards, Longobards, structure that governs the serial site, has decided to promote the creation of a photographic campaign on the seven monumental complexes that compose it. You imagine it, fruit of the journey and the shots by photographer Pasquale Palmieri, they brought the catalog to life “Lombard Light”, published by the publishing house “The Golds”. The photographic catalogue“Luce Longobarda” is a journey through the wonderful history of the Lombards in Italy and across territories which preserve these unique monuments: the Gastaldaga area with the Lombard temple and the Episcopal complex aCividale del Friuli (UD); the monumental area with the monastic complex of San Salvatore – Santa Giulia aBrescia; thethe castle with the Torba Tower and the Church of Santa Mariaoutside the gates aCastelseprio Torba (VA); the Basilica of San Salvatore aSpoleto (PG); the Tempietto del Clitunnoin Campello sul Clitunno (PG); the complex of Santa Sofia aBenevento and the Sanctuary of San Michele aMonte Sant'Angelo (FG).
“The photographed architecture, as well as expressing art forms ofan extraordinary beauty, identify the places marked by the presence of the Lombards, documenting the decisive role that this population of Nordic origin had in the history of the Italian peninsula"comments Angela Maria Ferroni, Official of the UNESCO Office of the Ministry of Culture.“These Lombard places tell us about a very current past, of a story of invasion, but also of integration between different cultures. This is also the UNESCO site “The Lombards in Italy. Longobards (568-774 d.C.)”, a set of different places, united by being all expressions of that "will to power", that programmatic design ofLombard elites who wanted to establish continuity with the unsurpassed Roman civilization.”
“Ten years after its inclusion in the UNESCO List, which took place on June 25th 2011, the time was now ripe forgo on a journey photography through the speaking stones of the monuments of seven cities which make up the serial site of the Lombards in Italy, to observe changes in the way we perceive them”says the architect and photographer Pasquale Palmieri. “I set off on this trip without a specific plan, but moved by two attractions. As an architectthe push was investigate the complexity and the continuous transformation of space, moving among its infinite information, trying to understand the spirit of the place and the elements with which man intended to identify. As a photographer, instead, I moved like an explorer of unknown spaces, knowing that we are part of those visionaries convinced of using an expressive medium in which unpredictability and randomness play a primary role".
The photographic campaign, which is part of the project financed by the Ministry of Culture pursuant to Law 77/2006, was born from the need totell through renewed images, the beauty and representativeness of the seven goodsbelonging to the site, but, above all, from the desire to narrate them on the occasion oftenth anniversary of UNESCO recognition, which was celebrated in a historical period, that of the pandemic, certainly very complicated, but which at the same time allowed the photographer Pasquale Palmieri to portray the Lombard monuments from new and different points of view from the usual.
“The images created by the skill of Pasquale Palmieri –commented Antonella Tartaglia Polcini, Presidente Associazione Italia Lombardorum– they contribute admirably to making us alive, scenarios present and close to the observer, architecture and environments that express identity, size, traditions and above all indelible traces of the influence of the Lombards on the spiritual and cultural development of Europe, in the transition from the ancient world to the civilization of the Middle Ages. The catalog opens up a close horizon and offers a privileged contact of ideal and real proximity with the essence of the goods represented, of which reveals the profound and authentic meaning of testimonies of civilization".
After the presentation on Friday 1st April, it will be possible acquistarethe photographic catalogue“Lombard Light”on the website of the publishing house “Gli Ori”, tramite Amazon, at the bookshops and bookshops of museums and various Italian cultural institutions.
Pasquale Palmieri
Pasquale Palmieri lives and works in Benevento, where he combines photography with the profession of architect. In the perennial cultural ambiguity of who, as an architect, consumes images trying to produce spaces for man, the meeting with the artist takes place, the craftsman. In photography he prefers documentation, the representation of space and the documentation ofart in progress, in all its forms, from figurative ones to cinema. He has held numerous exhibitions and publications of his works.
L'Associazione Italia Lombardorum
L'Associazione Italia Lombardorum – formally incorporated in 2009 from the Municipalities of Benevento, Brescia, Campello sul Clitunno (PG), Castelseprio (VA), Gornate Olona (VA), Cividale del Friuli (UD), Monte Sant'Angelo (FG), Spoleto (PG) and by the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities – it is the structure ofmanagement of the UNESCO Site; it is non-profit and deals with start-ups, coordinate and monitor network actions relating to valorisation, promotion and awareness of the UNESCO site.Protection, conservation and enhancement of cultural heritage, raising awareness of local communities, promotion of socio-economic developmentthey are therefore the main guidelines along which the actions that the Association pursues are developed with the support of the local coordination offices, established by the founding municipalities and also through partnerships with different public and private entities, in order to expand and develop thethe “longobard rete” in unorganized route of interactions with local stakeholders.
From 25 June 2011the ancient people of the Lombards were brought to international attention thanks to the registration of the site "The Lombards in Italy. Longobards (568-774 d.C.)" in theUNESCO World Heritage List. The site includes the most important Lombard monumental remains existing on Italian territory, from north to south of the peninsula, where the dominions of the Kingdom and the Lombard Duchies extended, who formed what has been defined as the first Italian 'nation'. In particular: the Gastaldaga area with the Lombard temple and the Episcopal complex in Cividale del Friuli (UD); the monumental area with the monastic complex of San Salvatore – Santa Giulia in Brescia; thethe castle with the Torba Tower and the Church of Santa Mariaoutside the gates in Castelseprio Torba (VA); the Basilica of San Salvatore in Spoleto (PG); the Tempietto del Clitunno in Campello sul Clitunno (PG); the Santa Sofia complex in Benevento; the Sanctuary of San Michele in Monte Sant'Angelo (FG).
These goods, the result of rigorous edcareful selection, they represent, each for its own specific typology, the most significant or most preserved model among the numerous testimonies spread across the national territory and, as a whole, they reflect the universality of Lombard culture at its peak. They therefore represent the quintessence of the artistic and architectural heritage ofthe tribes of the Lombards which expressed themselves in monumental forms only after their settlement in Italy, following a long period of migration which saw them cross the countries of north-eastern Europe from Scandinavia. The Lombards arrived in Italythey assimilated the Roman tradition, the spirituality of Christianity, Byzantine influences, and they knew how to integrate them with the Germanic values they brought, giving life to a new and original culture which saw its peakbetween VII and Secular VIII d.C.
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