Between Scriptura et Pictura: Meditation on the Domus Dei and the Devotion of the Holy House of Mary
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsSee the enclosed PDF file
Comments for author File: 
Comments.pdf
Author Response
Reviewer 1
1) The title was changed to “Between Scriptura et Pictura: Meditation on the Domus Dei and the devotion of the Holy House of Mary” to emphasize the importance of the abode of God in meditative exercises, according to theological metaphors about the mystery of the incarnation and the divine motherhood of Mary. Also, to point out its relationship with the devotion of the Holy House in pilgrimage sites.
2) Corrections of the mistakes indicated by the reviewer 1 were done.
3) I added the mention of primary sources referred in the articles recommended by reviewer 1. I added detailed information about the theological arguments of the Church Fathers in the notes.
3) The argument regarding the Second Annunciation in the letter M was improved, emphasizing the iconographic motif of the palma mortis as a sign of Mary's triumph as a vehicle for the incarnation of Christ in the plan of salvation. In this case, the arguments of the mystery of the Assumption referred by St. Ildefonsus of Toledo on the incorruptibility of Mary's body were considered, due to her condition of divine motherhood, because she was the “Temple of God” since she gave her acceptance in the Annunciation.
4) I in the first version the term Domus Aurea (golden house) in the sense proposed by the historian Antonio Rubial (included in the Bibliography) to designate the golden abode of God which symbolically alludes to the Ark of the Covenant, the Temple of Solomon and the palace of King of Kings. But to avoid confusion with the House of Nero, as indicated by reviewer 1, I replaced it to Domus Dei (abode of God) and I use aurea palatium Dei particularly in the case of the Hylle jewel which, due to its materiality, represents God’s golden palace of divine light.
5) Following the indications of reviewer 1, in the final conclusion the importance of the shape of the letters in its theological aspect was highlighted, according to patristic arguments to represent the domus Dei as a metaphor for the double nature of Christ (divine and human) and motherhood divine of Mary.
All these is marked in yellow
Reviewer 2
1) The introduction was modified and the description of the initial letters of the study was put in the foreground. A textual cite of Jeffrey Hamburger was used at the beginning of the introduction as a hook to attract attention, as suggested by reviewer 2.
2) The corrections were made as indicated by reviewer 2 and each of his comments was attended to.
2) To focus on the main thesis of the study, the work was restructured, as recommended by reviewer 2. The structure of the work addresses three main purposes: first, the initial letters as a visual metaphor for the domus Dei, as an object of meditation on the mystery of the incarnation and divine motherhood of Mary. Secondly, these initial letters evoke the sacred space of the Holy House of Nazareth and its replicas (probably the sanctuary of Walsingham). They probably served to remember the experience of pilgrimage journeys or for practical mental pilgrimage during the practice of Mary's small office. Thirdly, delve into the importance of the artifact, the form and the materials where the Annunciation scene is represented. In this case a comparison is made between the initial letters in the book of hours with the Hylle jewel.
5) Figures 2 and 3 were switched to coincide with the manuscript restructuring.
6) Detailed images were added (Figure 1 and 2).
7) The image of the seal of Our Lady of Walsingham, mentioned in the manuscript, was added (figure 5a).
8) Theorical approach of Jeffrey Hamburger and of David Morgan were indicated. It was clarified how the term "image-object" coined by Baschet was considered in this study.
9) More than representing a sacred space in the initial letters and other religious objects mentioned in this sstudy, I maintain they were used to "evoke" or make present (by devotee’s imagination/memory) a holy place. Instead of "sacred space" I decided to replace it with the term locus sanctus.
10) The final version was reviewed by an English-speaking translator.
All this is marked in green.
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsOverall, the article does not contain a clear argument and does not progress logically. While it includes a wealth of ideas, these are most of the times disconnected from the point of the article. I suggest eliminating passages which are out of the scope of the article and do not contribute to the argument, and rethinking the structure and transitions between the paragraphs. The article should be proof-read by a native speaker, as many improvements are possible in terms of style. The paper includes very few footnotes and the bibliography should be updated with more recent studies.
Here follow some more detailed comments.
§1 introduction: the hook is missing; the paper needs a more catchy beginning. I suggest to start directly with the description of the miniature
l.15-16: this sentence needs to come at the end of the introduction, where you define the purpose of the study.
l.21: Sunday mass?
l.21-22: reformulate the sentence as "a note urges the owner to pray…"
l.23: advisors of
l.21-25: avoid repeating "book"
l.25: eliminate "thinking"
l.31: "who was sent"
l.34: "the English territories"
The first two paragraphs do not fulfill the function of an introduction. They contain a lot of contextual elements but the reader does not understand the connection between them, nor does the introduction contain a clear starting point and research question. I therefore suggest to rewrite the introduction to the paper by starting from the description of the miniature and by following a logical order.
Then I would immediately add the illustration of the miniature. This way, the reader would be able to follow your argument more easily.
l.40: "this manuscript", which one ? The beginning of this paragraph is disconnected from the previous one.
l.40: reformulate the sentence as "that depict…"
l.44-46: reformulate the sentence, because there is no contradiction (ornamental+symbolic and devotional implications)
l.50: "a hybrid form or device", combining writing and painting
l.51: "polysemes": explain this term
l.44-60: this general information about illuminated letters is important but should feature elsewhere in the paper. It is important that you go to the point of your argument early in the paper, and then explain more in details, using secondary literature.
l.61: "the House of the Annunciation" is enough
l.62: "meditative" exercise
l.60-65: this part should follow the description of the image at the very beginning of the introduction.
l.65: how so ?
l.60: Position yourself more clearly with regard to the state-of-the-art.
l.68-74: avoid repeating "various"
l.75-84: this paragraph takes you away from the more specific argument announced in l.60-65 and the specific context described in l.66-74.
I do not understand in which sense these images are objects. Because they are part of a book? Connect Baschet’s definition more clearly to the specific type of image that you are analyzing.
l.86-89: this part should feature in the introduction.
l.103: what is the source of this saying ?
Figure 1 should include a closer detail, allowing the reader to better see the figures of the Angel and Mary.
l.115: can we really speak of an "architectural space" here ?
l.122: provide a justification for this interpretation.
l.132-136: these interpretations based on texts are quite far from the "material culture methodology" announced in the summary of the paper.
l.170-181: without a detail, it is difficult for the reader to follow your interpretation.
l.185: which letter? It would be useful to include an illustration here, because the reader has still not seen the depiction of Mary’s house that is the subject of this paper.
l.204, 206: references in italics while that was not the case until then.
l.256: not a "site"
l.259: why is the miniature of the book an "image-relics" ?
l.306: you come back to general considerations about the function of these letters. The progress of your argument should be clearer and more logical.
l.310: I do not see the relationship with the mysteries.
l.318: or simply "Horace"
l.331-333: how were these books used? were they carried on pilgrimages? or simply read at the church? what was the function of the particular book you are commenting on?
l.361-362: the argument about the representation of space in this image is weak.
When were these pilgrim badges produced? are they contemporary to the letters in the book?
l.586: why do you take this painting specicifally as an example?
Section 5 "Materials and Methods" should not feature in an academic article. References are to be mentioned and discussed in the course of the paper only.
Comments on the Quality of English Language
The article requires language editing. It contains a lot of repetitions and the syntax is sometimes inadequate. The style could be improved.
Author Response
Reviewer 1
1) The title was changed to “Between Scriptura et Pictura: Meditation on the Domus Dei and the devotion of the Holy House of Mary” to emphasize the importance of the abode of God in meditative exercises, according to theological metaphors about the mystery of the incarnation and the divine motherhood of Mary. Also, to point out its relationship with the devotion of the Holy House in pilgrimage sites.
2) Corrections of the mistakes indicated by the reviewer 1 were done.
3) I added the mention of primary sources referred in the articles recommended by reviewer 1. I added detailed information about the theological arguments of the Church Fathers in the notes.
3) The argument regarding the Second Annunciation in the letter M was improved, emphasizing the iconographic motif of the palma mortis as a sign of Mary's triumph as a vehicle for the incarnation of Christ in the plan of salvation. In this case, the arguments of the mystery of the Assumption referred by St. Ildefonsus of Toledo on the incorruptibility of Mary's body were considered, due to her condition of divine motherhood, because she was the “Temple of God” since she gave her acceptance in the Annunciation.
4) I in the first version the term Domus Aurea (golden house) in the sense proposed by the historian Antonio Rubial (included in the Bibliography) to designate the golden abode of God which symbolically alludes to the Ark of the Covenant, the Temple of Solomon and the palace of King of Kings. But to avoid confusion with the House of Nero, as indicated by reviewer 1, I replaced it to Domus Dei (abode of God) and I use aurea palatium Dei particularly in the case of the Hylle jewel which, due to its materiality, represents God’s golden palace of divine light.
5) Following the indications of reviewer 1, in the final conclusion the importance of the shape of the letters in its theological aspect was highlighted, according to patristic arguments to represent the domus Dei as a metaphor for the double nature of Christ (divine and human) and motherhood divine of Mary.
All these is marked in yellow
Reviewer 2
1) The introduction was modified and the description of the initial letters of the study was put in the foreground. A textual cite of Jeffrey Hamburger was used at the beginning of the introduction as a hook to attract attention, as suggested by reviewer 2.
2) The corrections were made as indicated by reviewer 2 and each of his comments was attended to.
2) To focus on the main thesis of the study, the work was restructured, as recommended by reviewer 2. The structure of the work addresses three main purposes: first, the initial letters as a visual metaphor for the domus Dei, as an object of meditation on the mystery of the incarnation and divine motherhood of Mary. Secondly, these initial letters evoke the sacred space of the Holy House of Nazareth and its replicas (probably the sanctuary of Walsingham). They probably served to remember the experience of pilgrimage journeys or for practical mental pilgrimage during the practice of Mary's small office. Thirdly, delve into the importance of the artifact, the form and the materials where the Annunciation scene is represented. In this case a comparison is made between the initial letters in the book of hours with the Hylle jewel.
5) Figures 2 and 3 were switched to coincide with the manuscript restructuring.
6) Detailed images were added (Figure 1 and 2).
7) The image of the seal of Our Lady of Walsingham, mentioned in the manuscript, was added (figure 5a).
8) Theorical approach of Jeffrey Hamburger and of David Morgan were indicated. It was clarified how the term "image-object" coined by Baschet was considered in this study.
9) More than representing a sacred space in the initial letters and other religious objects mentioned in this sstudy, I maintain they were used to "evoke" or make present (by devotee’s imagination/memory) a holy place. Instead of "sacred space" I decided to replace it with the term locus sanctus.
10) The final version was reviewed by an English-speaking translator.
All this is marked in green.
Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsNo comment.
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe author has taken my comments into account and addressed them in a convincing way. The article has greatly improved.
