This volume provides a rigorous examination of the formal culture, artistic patronage, and iconographic continuity of Norman and Hohenstaufen rule in Central and Southern Italy during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Through a collection of specialized essays, the authors investigate how the court of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II reinterpreted classical traditions, Byzantine modes, and Fatimid craftsmanship to construct a distinct imperial aesthetic. Grounded in meticulous material analyses—encompassing porphyry sculpture, numismatics, glyptics, and architectural restoration in Rome, Campania, and Sicily—the contributors demonstrate how Norman precedents directly enabled the classicizing revival of the Frederickian era. By re-evaluating long-standing historiographical frameworks, the text establishes the pivotal role of imperial art in shaping late medieval Western sculpture and official political iconography.