In Praise of the Medieval City

The conclusion synthesizes the findings from the preceding chapters in the book. It acknowledges the multiple potential interpretations of urban panegyric and some of the gaps in the evidence provided by these sources. It emphasizes the quality, quantity, and heterogeneity of works praising cities, and suggests that this is significant in and of itself. It also highlights how urban panegyric simultaneously engaged with a city’s past, present, and future and that, ultimately, the messages within this body of praise represented the key coordinates around which more nuanced urban identities formed, both at a community and at an individual level.