"As its title suggests, Karen Rose Mathews’s book argues that the use of spolia in the maritime cities was the result of two main factors: conflict and commerce. After an introduction, the book presents case studies of Salerno, Venice, Pisa, and Genoa, followed by a very short conclusion and an ample bibliography.[...] The comparing and contrasting of the selected cities is a fruitful one: rather than a general exposition of reuse in medieval Italy, the choice of salient examples within a limited period is methodologically sound. Mathews bolsters her claims with both material and written sources. She demonstrates how the appropriated objects are employed to different effect and in different manner. [...] this informative and well-documented book makes accessible a complex subject matter (which, except for Venice, has been discussed mainly by Italian authors) and highlights the multivalence of spolia with useful insights into their rich cultural associations". Bente Kilerich, in Speculum 95/3, July 2020.

Karen Rose Mathews, Ph.D. (1995), University of Chicago, is an Assistant Professor of Art History at the University of Miami. She has published extensively on the use of spolia in the visual culture of the Mediterranean, concentrating on the artistic production of medieval Italy.