Asinou across Time

“Although the church is famous to many for its original fresco program (1105/6) by the so-called Asinou Master, Asinou across Time focuses on the history and decorative campaigns of the later phases of painting (twelfth to sixteenth centuries). In addition to an up-to-date analysis that confirms and solidifies many of David Winfield’s published conclusions, the book introduces a new level of technical analysis into the world of Byzantine painting (chapter 7) and represents a number of other firsts: the first attempt at a comprehensive history for the church and monastery (chapter 1), the first illustrated inventory of its paleographic forms (appendix), and the first monograph on one of the island’s major diachronic churches. As such, Asinou across Time is both a foundational work for this particular church, and sets a high bar for future monographs on Cypriot monuments… As a whole, Asinou across Time provides a perfect parallel for the monument it examines. Both are multi-layered, beautifully decorated with high-quality images, and collaborative, well-funded works whose complex wholes comprise equally interesting individual parts.”—James G. Schryver, Bryn Mawr Classical Review