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The seminar examines the intersection of art and science in the region of southern Italy. Different from the situation in central and northern Italy, where the accumulation and distribution of knowledge was controlled by scholasticism and the papal court in Rome, the multicultural identity in southern Italy, created centers of learning more independent from the church. The geographical exposure and trade connections across the Eastern Mediterranean and northern Africa facilitated the import of scientific knowledge available in the Islamic World. We will focus on illuminated manuscripts connected with the medical school of Salerno, the first treatise on falconry authored by Emperor Frederik II, Peter of Eboli’s treatise on the thermal baths of Pozzuoli and his chronicle for Emperor Henry VI, and Hrabanus Maurus’ encyclopedia de natura. Moreover, we will investigate the importance of the first secular university, founded by the highly learned Frederik II, called the ‘predecessor of the anti-Christ’ for the education in the sciences and its ties to production of art works.