Works of art without any real parallels, precursors or successors have always particularly confused researchers of the history of art. In the case of S. Salvatore in Spoleto the impossibility of anchoring the architecture within the known typologies and series of development resulted in an outright absurd spectrum of dating approaches from the early 4th up to the 12th century. An important role for the discussion is played by the building sculpture which, due to its high-ranking artistic quality according to popular opinion, paradoxically suggests a dating back to the early Caesar period. However, its partially clear Christian entirety of motives rules out its emergence before the tolerance edict of 313. How can this phenomenon be explained? Answers to this question can only be given on the basis of a solid analysis of buildings with its restoration history as is presented in this volume.The view of the sacral topography in Spoleto during the period under discussion is intended to shed light upon the context of the local history of buildings. Finally, S. Salvatore is confronted with Italian buildings from the 6th to the 8th century whereby the outer form of such buildings are by no means identical with those of the church but show a certain similarity with such forms, at least from a structural point of view with regard to the specific reception of older architectural and decoration forms as well as the existence of eastern forms.weiterlesen