medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Meg,
This is St Alban - at St Albans.
Brenda.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Cormack, Margaret Jean" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, January 28, 2006 4:58 PM
Subject: Re: [M-R] pilgrimage practices
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
This is a vague memory, but I seem to recall an illustration
of the shrine of ? Thomas Becket by Matthew Paris which showed
the possibility of inserting hands (even perhaps heads) through the
stonework that surrounded the tomb.
Meg
-----Original Message-----
From: medieval-religion - Scholarly discussions of medieval religious
culture [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Thomas
Izbicki
Sent: Friday, January 27, 2006 9:01 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [M-R] pilgrimage practices
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
culture
I recall seeing references to tombs of saints into which hands could be
inserted. Would anyone happen to recall an example?
Tom Izbicki
Thomas Izbicki
Research Services Librarian
and Gifts-in-Kind Officer
Eisenhower Library
Johns Hopkins
Baltimore, MD 21218
(410)516-7173
fax (410)516-8399
>>> [log in to unmask] 01/27/06 1:45 PM >>>
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
culture
Also in Compostela, pilgrims line up to walk up behind the bust of
Santiago over the altar, and embrace it (him?) by placing their hands
over his shoulders onto two shell decorations. In Zaragoza, the
miraculous "Pilar" is also reverently touched on the occasions that the
pious have access to it. Like kissing the Blarney stone, something is
assumed to be gotten from this touch.
I agree that in a way it is not only a general pious practice, but a
general human need (there is a darling stone sculpture of a mother and
baby monkey in the Art Institute (from India, I believe) that visitors
patted until it was shiny -- and is now encased in a vitrine to protect
it from such demonstrations of love. It is indeed extremely caressable
-- I did it myself while working there!)
BUT -- I think what Jim is after is a more ritualized (officially or by
common consent) custom of touching, and not just a column or statue in
general but a particular spot on that statue or column. In that sense,
the St James bust that is touched does fit his query, while the Zaragoza
column would not.
Theresa
>>> [log in to unmask] 1/27/06 10:55:29 AM >>>
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
culture
Could this not be just a pious practice, like that of rubbing the foot
of
the seated statue of Saint Peter at Saint Peter's basilica, whose
beginnings
are lost in the mists of time? Saint Peter's foot, as I'm sure you know,
is
practically worn away from the activity.
MG
p.s. I have learned that the need to touch is by no means restricted to
children as is evidenced by the "do not touch" signs that proliferate in
museums.
>From: Jim Bugslag <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: medieval-religion - Scholarly discussions of medieval
religious
> culture <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: [M-R] pilgrimage practices
>Date: Fri, 27 Jan 2006 10:24:13 -0600
>
>medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
culture
>
>Dear listmembers,
>I wonder if anyone knows of studies, preferably not in Spanish which I
>don't read
>very well, on the custom of pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela of
placing
>their
>hand on the base of the trumeau of the west portal, the Portico de la
>Gloria, under
>the statue of St James, before they enter the church. There is
actually a
>handprint
>rubbed into the trumeau, supposedly by the identically placed hands of
>innumerable
>pilgrims. I've run across another instance of this on a column in the
>crypt of the
>church of Notre-Dame at Orcival, in the Auvergne, just in front of the
>relic (or
>image) shrine. Does anyone know of other such instances of this
practice?
>Cheers,
>Jim Bugslag
>
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