Katherine M. Boivin’s monograph Riemenschneider in Rothenburg is a fine contribution to the study of late Gothic architecture and urbanism. The author’s case study approach adds depth to a field where recent attention has focused on the remarkable breadth and diversity of late Gothic architecture.1 Boivin focuses on the parish church of St. Jakob, the principal church of Rothenburg ob der Tauber; the large-scale altarpieces associated with Tilman Riemenschneider that were displayed in the city’s churches and chapels; and the formation of civic identity through a programmatic effort on the part of Rothenburg’s city council to shape urban space through patronage and promotion of a distinctive visual culture across the late medieval city.
The first chapter, “The City as Patron,” relates the construction of the Gothic choir (ca. 1303–50) and nave (1373–ca. 1422) of the parish church of St. Jakob to changing social-political circumstances in Rothenburg. Specifically, Boivin compares...
University of California Press