A Companion to Early Modern Rome, 1492-1692

Reviews / Votes

"The volume is an outstanding summary of the state of research and a showcase for innovative work across a range of disciplines. Each essay presents a succinct and focused discussion, with an analysis of previous literature and a conclusion that outlines possibilities for future research. Contributions by several leading Italian scholars are presented in translation. Covering an admirably comprehensive range of topics, the chapters chart exciting prospects particularly for collaboration and interdisciplinary work [...] This is an important and enjoyable book, which does greater justice to the entirety of the Roman experience in the early modern period than any similar compilation. The editors must be thanked not only for the unusual degree to which the studies relate to one another but also for the remarkable unity of style- something that is all too rare in volumes of collected papers- that makes this book relevant both for scholars seeking the 'state of the question' and for non-academics and students."
Kathleen Christian, in: College Art Association Reviews, November 2019 [Click here for full review.]


"A Companion to Early Modern Rome, 1492-1692 brings together a wide array of scholars to present snapshots of Rome, provide the most up-to-date survey of recent scholarship, and give insights into future avenues to explore. While each chapter stands alone well, taken together a richer picture of early modern Rome emerges, one in which the various aspects of its history come fuller into dialogue with one another. [...] On the whole, this is a masterful collection."
Robert John Cines, in: Journal of Jesuit Studies 6 (2019)


"The volume includes a multidisciplinary study of early modern Rome by focusing on the 16th and 17th centuries by re-examining traditional topics anew. This volume will be of tremendous use to scholars and students because its focus is very well conceptualized and organized, while still covering a breadth of topics. The authors celebrate Rome's diversity by exploring its role not only as the seat of the Catholic church, but also as home to large communities of diplomats, printers, and working artisans, all of whom contributed to the city's visual, material, and musical cultures".
Roland H.Bainton Prizes



"This volume, part of Brill's useful Companions series, aims to be invaluable to scholars of early modern Rome. To that end, the three editors, each a giant in the field, have compiled thirty brief articles across a wide range of disciplines and approaches. They explicitly seek to counter simplistic narratives that reduce every aspect of the city to a papally-directed Counter-Reformation narrative, or that fall back on narrow attempts to pinpoint moments of rise and fall. In this, they succeed admirably. The Rome that emerges from these articles is dynamic, complex, and polycentric. The editors' introduction beautifully explicates the layers of symbolism and metaphor that enwrap the city, and the thirty-three authors are experts writing at the top of their game. This volume will become the certain starting point for future research on any of its given topics. [...] the Companion to Early Modern Rome represents a major accomplishment, immediately necessary both in the classroom and in research preparation. In its careful attention to producing a history that celebrates nuance and complexity, while remaining focussed, clear and readable, it should serve as a model for all aspects of early modern scholarship".
Emily Michelson, in Archivum Historicum Societatis Iesu.