Architectural image in European medieval painting: Symbolism and role in the depiction

The aim of the study is to determine the significance of the architectural image in the works of Western European medieval art. The article examines the features of this phenomenon, as well as various interpretations of basic symbolic objects. Illustrations from manuscripts and codices of the 12th-15th centuries, which depict architectural objects and spaces, served as the material for the study. The analysis of the architectural image was carried out both in denotative and connotative readings. The scientific novelty lies in the interdisciplinary approach, since art history studies are conducted from the standpoint of the theory and history of architecture. As a result, conclusions were made about the unconditional symbolic nature of the architectural image in the period under consideration, examples of the active participation of the architectural image in building the composition and plot in the depiction are shown, and assumptions are made about the role of context in the interpretation of the architectural image. The final conclusions can be included in the study devoted to the evolution of the architectural image from the moment of the first descriptions to the end of the classical period.