Thomas Bergqvist Rydén

I am an affiliated researcher at Lund University Historical Museum, employed by Lund Cathedral as main author and editor of the mediaeval parts of a new monograph on Lund Cathedral. Previously I was assistant professor in Book History at the department for Cultural Sciences, and before that I conducted research in various projects at the department of Art History and Visual Studies, where I defended my dissertation in 2001. I am specialised in mediaeval studies, with manuscript illumination and Scandinavian romanesque art and architecture as my main fields of expertise. With a solid experience of most categories of illuminated manuscripts, and in depth knowledge of Insular, Anglo Saxon and early mediaeval continental manuscripts, I like to detect patterns and tendencies as expressions of cultural interactions and reflexions of ideological and political change.

The multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary nature of the field is one of the reasons why I have chosen to work within mediaeval studies. To circumscribe a certain phaenomenon from different angles with a variety of methodological tools is stimulating for both students and teachers, and the complexity of the matters favours an inclusive pedagogical approach.

     A synthesising view that focuses on the causes and effects in relation to ideological, economical and historical factors in society, tend to inspire the students to take part in the process of research and understanding.

     The progression from empirical studies, relating to physical and historical context and further to ideological and iconographical levels in which the studied artifacts become bearers of meaning, offers a way to follow the traces of cultural interplay. I do not believe in presenting a simplified version of the complexity of a certain subject. It is the teacher's role to give an understandable and solid platform for the students from which to go further.