medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Dear George,
This is really interesting - does anyone else know of stories of people who travel with
images of their patron saints?
How big were the images in the roadside chapels? Same size as in the 'birdhouse'
type shrines (which sound like they would take the kind of item I´m talking about)?
Meg
________________________________
From: medieval-religion - Scholarly discussions of medieval religious culture on behalf of George R. Hoelzeman
Sent: Sat 5.7.2008 13:17
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [M-R] MEDIEVAL-RELIGION Digest - 3 Jul 2008 to 4 Jul 2008 (#2008-187)
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
You already postulated the ex-voto idea, and the pilgrimage memento is a good point as well.
A third possibility is the "amulet" idea. I seem to recall that according to the legend of the foundation of Hildesheim the emperor (Otto?) was out hunting
when nightfall overtook the party. He concealed images of the family patron saints in a nearby rosebush, which - when morning came - was miraculously
blooming and the statuettes were gone.
At least, that's what I recall of the legend, which dates to the 10th cento. Again, if my recollections of the legend, etc. are correct.
Others, more erudite, will no doubt be able to offer greater detail and accuracy to this.
Am I correct that the Low Countries were a center of manufacture for a great quantity of religious and devotional items during the late Middle Ages until well
after the Reformation? Beyond the usual reproduction of "high" Art such as Duerer woodcuts and tapestries based on Raphael cartoons.
I've also seen (if we want to include contemporary examples) small images set up on roadside and woodland kapellen in Germany, esp. Bavaria and the
Black Forest. I've also seen them in small, bird-house sized shrines along forest paths in the Bayrishe Wald, specifically not far from Zwiesel. . . but that was
15 years ago.
George the Less
On Sat, 5 Jul 2008 15:48:08 +0100, Pat McIntosh-Spinnler wrote:
>medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
>>From: "Cormack, Margaret Jean" <[log in to unmask]>
>>Subject: Re: tiny statues of saints
>> I wonder if anyone knows of studies, exhibitions,
>etc. of
> >small (5 cm. or 2 inch tall) statuettes of saints,
>which were mass->produced in the low countries (and
>probably elsewhere) in the late >Middle Ages (and
>perhaps earlier?) It has occurred to me that I have
>>no idea of the context for such items. Extrapolating
>backwards from >the present day, I can imagine that
>people may have carried them >around as amulets, or
>perhaps kept them in their rooms for purposes >of
>devotion or protection; it seems unlikely that they
>would have >been found on altars in churches or
>chapels (except perhaps for >extremely poor ones, as
>the case I am considering may have been). I >did
>wonder, however, whether one might make an offering of
>such a >small image of the saint to the saint who had
>responded to a vow (in >which case one might find lots
>of them in a single location, as ex->votos.) Does
>anyone know of any studies of such objects?=20
>>Thanks in advance,
>I don't know about the medieval, but these things are
>still made. I have a St James which I brought back
>from Compostela, santon-sized and terminally cute with
>his pilgrim hat and staff. That is one possible
>function-- an image bought at the saint's own shrine
>must surely have extra properties, and anyway it makes
>a nice souvenir. I brought several back for friends...
>Pat
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