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A. KatieHarris

The Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century

The Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century

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  • More about The Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century


Two Spanish friars broke into a church in 1655 to steal the bones of the founder of their religious institution, the Order of the Most Holy Trinity. This book investigates the incident and the legal case that followed, exploring the roles played by saints' relics, the anxieties invested in them, their cultural meanings, and the changing modes of thought with which early modern Catholics approached them. It raises important questions surrounding relic identity and authenticity in seventeenth-century Europe and will be of interest to students, scholars, and casual readers.

Format: Hardback
Length: 242 pages
Publication date: 05 September 2023
Publisher: Pennsylvania State University Press


On the night of March 18, 1655, two Spanish friars broke into a church to steal the bones of the founder of their religious institution, the Order of the Most Holy Trinity. This book investigates this little-known incident of relic theft and the lengthy legal case that followed, together with the larger questions that surround the remains of saints in seventeenth-century Catholic Europe. Drawing on a wealth of manuscript and print sources from the era, A. Katie Harris uses the case of St. John of Mathas stolen remains to explore the roles played by saints relics, the anxieties invested in them, their cultural meanings, and the changing modes of thought with which early modern Catholics approached them. While in theory, a relic's authenticity and identity might be proved by supernatural evidence, in practice, early modern Church authorities often reached for proofs grounded in the material, human world—preferences that were representative of the standardizing and streamlining of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century saint-making. Harris examines how Mathas advocates deployed material and documentary proofs, locating them within a framework of Scholastic concepts of individuation, identity, change, and persistence, and applying moral certainty to accommodate the inherent uncertainty of human evidence and relic knowledge. Engaging and accessible, The Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha raises an array of important questions surrounding relic identity and authenticity in seventeenth-century Europe. It will be of interest to students, scholars, and casual readers interested in European history, religious history, material culture, and Renaissance studies.

Weight: 522g
Dimension: 160 x 237 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780271095356

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