Jaroslav Thayer Folda III (b. 25 July 1940 Baltimore, Md.) is a

medievalist The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...

, in which field he is a

Haskins Medal The Haskins Medal is an annual medal awarded by the Medieval Academy of America. It is awarded for the production of a distinguished book in the field of medieval studies. Award The Haskins Medal is awarded by a committee of three; a chairman, and ...

winner; he is a scholar in the history of the art of the Crusades and the N. Ferebee Taylor Professor of the History of Art at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

. His area of interest for teaching and research is the art of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and the

Mediterranean world The history of the Mediterranean region and of the cultures and people of the Mediterranean Basin is important for understanding the origin and development of the Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Canaanite, Phoenician, Hebrew, Carthaginian, Minoan, Gre ...

. Folda's approach is art in historical context in which the work of art is examined in terms of form and function, meaning and content, along with what we can know about the patron, the artist, the workshop process by which it was produced, and the audience for whom it was intended. Folda's current research studies the issue of golden highlighting ( chrysography), with regard to its origins, development, and distinctive characteristics in

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

and Crusader

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...

painting and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

panel painting, mainly in the 13th century.

Family

Son of Jaroslav Thayer Folda, Jr and Rosalie née Gilbert. He is married to Linda Whitham with whom he has two daughters.

Education

*A.B. Princeton University, 1962. *Ph.D. The Johns Hopkins University, 1968. *N. Ferebee Taylor Professor of the History of Art, University of North Carolina, 1996 - .

Research and teaching interests

*Meaning and content in

medieval art The medieval art of the Western world covers a vast scope of time and place, over 1000 years of art in Europe, and at certain periods in Western Asia and Northern Africa. It includes major art movements and periods, national and regional art, gen ...

from c. 300 to c. 1500, with emphasis on works of art in their historical context *Medieval figural art with special emphasis on

manuscript illumination An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, the ...

, icons, panel painting,

metalwork Metalworking is the process of shaping and reshaping metals to create useful objects, parts, assemblies, and large scale structures. As a term it covers a wide and diverse range of processes, skills, and tools for producing objects on every scale ...

, and sculpture *Artistic interchange and cultural interpenetration in the medieval Mediterranean world *The art and history of the crusaders in the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...

, 1095–1291 *Methodology for the study of medieval art

Works

*''Crusader Manuscript Illumination at Saint-Jean d'Acre: 1275–1291'' (Princeton, 1976). *(contributor, pp. 251–288, and assisting editor) K.M. Setton, ed., ''A History of the Crusades'', vol. IV, H.W. Hazard, ed., The Art and Architecture of the Crusader States (Madison, 1977). *(editor) ''Crusader Art in the Twelfth Century'', British Archeological Reports, International Series, vol. 152 (Oxford, 1982). *(chairman, editorial committee) Hugo Buchthal, ''Art of the Mediterranean World: A.D. 100 to 1400'' (Washington, D.C., 1982). *''The Nazareth Capitals and the Crusader Shrine of the Annunciation'', College Art Association Monograph Series, vol. XLII (University Park and London, 1986). *''The Art of the Crusaders in the Holy Land: 1098–1187'', Cambridge, New York and Melbourne: Cambridge University Press, 1995. *''Crusader Art in the Holy Land: from the Third Crusade to the Fall of Acre, 1187–1291'', Cambridge University Press, 2005.Two indices for this book are located on the Cambridge University Press website. Go to http://www.cambridge.org/us/catalogue.asp?isbn=0521835836 Note: On the far left side of the page on that site, there is a box that says: resources and resolutions. Click on view material, which will link to each index as a pdf for downloading. *''Crusader Art: The Art of the Crusaders in the Holy Land, 1099–1291'', Aldershot and Burlington: Lund Humphries, 2008. ;Exhibition catalogues (selected contributions): *''The Crusader Period and the Church of Saint Anne at Sepphoris'', in Sepphoris in Galilee: Crosscurrents of Culture, Rebecca M. Nagy, et al., eds., North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, 1996, pp. 101–107. *''Crusader Art'', in:
The Glory of Byzantium: Art and Culture of the Middle Byzantine Era, A.D. 843-1261
', H.C. Evans and W.D. Wixom, eds., The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1997, pp. 388–391 (essay), and entries, nos. 258-262. *''Les Manuscrits enluminés dans les états de la Terre Sainte'', Les Croisades, L'Orient et l'Occident d'Urbain II à Saint Louis: 1096-1270, M. Rey-Delqué, ed., Milan and Toulouse: Electa, 1997, pp. 299–305 (published in both a French and an Italian edition). *''L'Arte dei Crociati e il Pellegrinaggio nei Luoghi Santi'', in: ''Terrasanta, Dalla Crociata ala Custodia dei Luoghi Santi'', ed. M. Piccirillo, OFM, Milan, Palazzo Reale: Skira Artifice, 2000, pp. 35–43 (essay), and entries on pp. 102, 106, 241, 248, 249. *Entries on eight crusader icons (nos. 214, 216, 223, 229- 232, 235), in:
Byzantium: Faith and Power, Byzantine Art 1261-1557
', ed.

Helen C. Evans Helen C. Evans is an United States of America, American art historian and curator specializing in Byzantine art. Evans has worked for the Metropolitan Museum of Art since 1991 and was co-curator along with William D. Wixom of its 1997 exhibition ...

, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art/New Haven and London: Yale University Press, (2004): pp. 355–356, 357-358, 365-366, 374, 374-375, 376, 377, 379-381. *2 essays (''What is Crusader Art?'' and ''Scriptoria and Workshops, Scribes and Painters in Crusader Syria/Palestine in the 13th Century''), an introduction and 5 catalogue entries (on crusader manuscripts: London, BL, Egerton MS 1139, Paris, BNF, MS fr. 2628, Dijon, Bibl. Mun., MS 562, Brussels, Bibl. Roy., MS 10175, and Perugia, Bibl. Capit. MS 6) for the Mannheim exhibition catalogue: ''Saladin und die Kreuzfahrer'', eds. A. Wieczorek, et al., Mannheim and Mainz, 2005, pp. 176–189, 204-215 (essays) and pp. 393–394, 404-407 (introduction and entries).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Folda, Jaroslav 1940 births Living people American art historians Historians of the Crusades American people of Czech descent University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty Fellows of the Medieval Academy of America Princeton University alumni Johns Hopkins University alumni