Imagery of Early Christian Rituals in the Greek Physiologus

The paper focuses on the imagery of early Christian rituals (esp. of the eucharist and baptism) as they are found in allegorical interpretations of beasts in the Greek Physiologus and trace the way of selected motifs from the New Testament to this first Christian interpretation of nature in context of early Christian literature and theology. A special attention is given to the pelican, which is one of the most famous symbols of the eucharist, and to impressive baptismal imageries in the chapter on the eagle, on the snake and in some other chapters. The aim of the analysis is to explore the theological roots of the ritual imagery of Physiologus and to show that this work of early Egyptian Christianity is anything but 'unsakramental' as argued by E. Peterson (1959).

Trading Values in Early Modern Antwerp

In his Descrittione di tutti i Paesi Bassi of 1567, the Italian merchant and humanist Ludovico Guicciardini described Antwerp as the warehouse of the world where all kinds of commodities were traded and displayed. Early modern Antwerp’s pre-eminent position depended upon links between material trade and exchange and the circulation of information, knowledge and beliefs. In this multidisciplinary volume of the NKJ, articles by leading scholars in the fields of art and material culture, literature and history explore ways in which value was propagated in the city from its so-called golden age, before the Revolt of the Netherlands, far into the seventeenth century.

Refractions of Canada in European Literature and Culture

Ever since the first exploratory expeditions in the early modern period, North America has epitomized to Europeans a promise and the hope for the fulfilment of great expectations, be it of more freedom, greater wealth, social liberation or religious tolerance. While numerous features in this dialogic intercontinental relationship will hold true for North America in its entirety, the vast northern territories which we know as Canada today began to emerge early on as a specific iconic location in European mind-maps, and they definitely acquired a distinctive profile after the formation of the USA. As a rich source of cultural exchange and an important partner in political and economic cooperation Canada has come to occupy an important position in the cultural discourses of many European nations. It is these refractions and images of Canada which this volume thoroughly explores in European literature and culture. The contributions include literature, philosophy, language, life-writing and the concept of 'Heimat' (homeland) as well as the cultural impact of the World Wars. While there is an emphasis on literary texts, other fields of cultural representation are also included.

Leaving Home: Philo of Alexandria on the Exodus.

For Jewish-Hellenistic authors writing in Egypt, the Exodus story posed unique challenges. After all, to them Egypt was, as Philo of Alexandria states, their fatherland. How do these authors come to terms with the biblical story of liberation from Egyptian slavery and the longing for the promised land? In this chapter I am taking a close look at Philo’s detailed discussion of the Exodus and locate it within the larger context of Jewish-Hellenistic literature (Wisdom of Solomon, Ezekiel’s Exagoge). In Philo’s rewriting of the Exodus the destination of the journey is barely mentioned. Contrary to the biblical narrative, in the scene of the burning bush, as retold by Philo, God does not tell Moses where to go. Philo’s main concern is what happens in Egypt: both in biblical times and in his own days. The Exodus is nevertheless important to Philo: He reads the story allegorically as a journey from the land of the body to the realms of the mind. Such a symbolic reading permitted him to control the meaning of the Exodus and to stay, literally and figuratively, in Egypt.

Calibrating a CGE model with NTBs that Incorporates Standard Models of Modern Trade Theory

We propose a way to incorporate NTBs for the four workhorse models of the modern trade literature in computable general equilibrium models (CGEs). CGE models feature intermediate linkages and thus allow us to study global value chains (GVCs). We show that the Ethier-Krugman monopolistic competition model, the Melitz firm heterogeneity model and the Eaton and Kortum model can be defined as an Armington model with generalized marginal costs, generalized trade costs and a demand externality. As already known in the literature in both the Ethier-Krugman model and the Melitz model generalized marginal costs are a function of the amount of factor input bundles. In the Melitz model generalized marginal costs are also a function of the price of the factor input bundles. Lower factor prices raise the number of firms that can enter the market profitably (extensive margin), reducing generalized marginal costs of a representative firm. For the same reason the Melitz model features a demand externality: in a larger market more firms can enter. We implement the different models in a CGE setting with multiple sectors, intermediate linkages, non-homothetic preferences and detailed data on trade costs. We find the largest welfare effects from trade cost reductions in the Melitz model. We also employ the Melitz model to mimic changes in Non tariff Barriers (NTBs) with a fixed cost-character by analysing the effect of changes in fixed trade costs. While we work here with a model calibrated to the GTAP database, the methods developed can also be applied to CGE models based on the WIOD database.