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medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture Am I missing something here in your question, John? This arrangement of stairs on each side of a raised passageway above/behind the altar to allow continuous circulation is fairly standard in European shrines. We've visited many of them and more often than not this is a standard arrangement. Stan Metheny ----- Original Message ----- From: "jbugslag" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Friday, June 06, 2008 6:28 PM Subject: Re: [M-R] precious blood > medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture > > John, > You are quite right about the two staircases, one at either end of the > platform. They are not > very high, but they allow continuous circulation. And the platform is > narrow enough to > accommodate only one person at a time before the relic. The platform is > set against an end > wall, in quite a spacious area just beside the chapel proper, which itself > is up quite an > imposing set of stairs from ground level. So, there is lots of security > on several different > counts. > Cheers, > Jim Bugslag > > On 6 Jun 2008 at 16:50, John Dillon wrote: > >> medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and >> culture >> >> Thanks, Jim, for the happy accident of your sending these photos to >> the list. >> >> To judge from the penultimate photo (DSCN6867.JPG), space could be at >> a premium just past the table where the Holy Blood is displayed. Is >> it possible to turn left there, cross over, and descend by another set >> of steps? Or does one have to return the way one came? >> >> I ask because for a relic of such significance, controlling the >> passage of the numerous faithful past the relic and out again ought to >> have been an important concern, at least until relatively recently. >> The eighteenth-century redesign of the interior of Santa Maria del >> Carmine at Naples included the erection of a raised passageway hidden >> behind the sanctuary that allows one to enter from one side of the >> presbytery, ascend a flight of steps and then pass along to the early >> sixteenth-century tabernacle housing this church's (and Naples') >> sacred Marian icon, the fourteenth(?)-century "La Bruna", continue >> along the passageway, descend, and come out on the other side. >> >> Is it roughly so also in Bruges? >> >> Best, >> John Dillon >> >> Here's a view of La Bruna: >> http://www.napoletanita.it/foto/napoli35.jpg >> The height at which she's placed allows a view of her, but not of >> those in the passageway (called a chapel and indeed outfitted with a >> small altar), through a window placed behind the main altar: >> http://tinyurl.com/4jgmcr A view of the sanctuary (though at an angle >> not allowing one to see the aforementioned window): >> http://tinyurl.com/3oakjo Note the dull coloration of the marbles and >> other facing stones: this is a Carmelite church. >> >> >> On Friday, June 6, 2008, at 1:36 pm, Jim Bugslag wrote: >> >> > I'm attaching a few photos of the Holy Blood relic at Bruges, taken >> > as I said, in summer 2007. Thanks for your offer to post them for >> > the list. Cheers, Jim Bugslag >> >> >> ********************************************************************** >> To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME >> to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it >> to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the >> message: leave medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order >> to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: >> [log in to unmask] For further information, >> visit our web site: >> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html >> > > ********************************************************************** > To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME > to: [log in to unmask] > To send a message to the list, address it to: > [log in to unmask] > To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion > to: [log in to unmask] > In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: > [log in to unmask] > For further information, visit our web site: > http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html > ********************************************************************** To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: [log in to unmask] For further information, visit our web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html