This work focuses on a wholly new explanation for the dramatic appearance of Charlemagne's body by studying various historical traditions and cultural contexts. Chapters examine such topics as Charlemagne's legacy and it's role in Alfred Rethel's Karlsfresken, Sainte-Foy as an imperial effigy and as an apocryphal figure, and contexts for and the meaning of Charlemagne's Karlsgrab. --P. [4] of cover.