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Gallant plans to visit the Vatican often during her stay, as she works on her current book project, Illustrating the Vitae partum: The Rise of the Eremitic Ideal in Fourteenth-Century Italy, which examines an illuminated manuscript, Vitae partum (New York, Pierpont Morgan Library, MS.M.626). That book, written and decorated in Naples during the 14th century, recounts the lives of a group known as the Desert Fathers and Mothers, men and women from the Middle East who withdrew from their families and society in the fourth century to live in the desert as a sacrifice to God and a test of their faith.
This group became the model for monasticism, Gallant said, and although it remained influential in Christianity, there was a significant rise in interest during the 14th century, when religious leaders frequently preached about the example of these hermit saints to the laity.
“My book is about the illuminated book,” she said. “I especially want to look at what impact the images had on those unable to withdraw to the desert as the Desert Fathers and Mothers had.”
In addition to working on her book, Gallant hopes to make contacts with senior scholars while in Rome and conduct additional research that could launch a new project.