Recasting histories of sound and matter : Erasmus and the Bells of Averbode

Journal article

Champion, Matthew S.. (2023). Recasting histories of sound and matter : Erasmus and the Bells of Averbode. Sixteenth Century Journal: journal of early modern studies. 54(1-2), pp. 73-98. https://doi.org/10.1086/727948
AuthorsChampion, Matthew S.
Abstract

Erasmus’s epigrams “On six restored bells” (ca. 1501) draw attention to their material origins in bells remade for the Premonstratensian Abbey of Averbode following a calamitous fire. In doing so, they allow an exploration of the tensions between holy matter speaking with present, embodied, sanctified voices, and a world where resonant matter is marginalized and past material voices speak to the soul through words on the page. By tracing bell cultures in the period, and emphasizing the dense resonances of bronze as a material, this article shows how Erasmus’s approach to sound and matter both resonates with and transforms classical traditions and the local cultures of religious reform in the Low Countries.

KeywordsErasmus; On six restored bells; Bell cultures; religious reform
Year01 Jan 2023
JournalSixteenth Century Journal: journal of early modern studies
Journal citation54 (1-2), pp. 73-98
PublisherUniversity of Chicago Press
ISSN0361-0160
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1086/727948
Web address (URL)https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/727948
Open accessPublished as non-open access
Research or scholarlyResearch
Page range73-98
Publisher's version
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All rights reserved
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Controlled
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online2023
Publication process dates
Deposited09 Sep 2024
ARC Funded ResearchThis output has been funded, wholly or partially, under the Australian Research Council Act 2001
Grant IDDE 200101479
Additional information

© 2024 Sixteenth Century Society. All rights reserved.

Research for this article was supported by the Australian Research Council (DE 200101479).

Place of publicationUnited States
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