Relics and Sacred Images of St. Ignatius of Loyola at the Roman Casa Professa

Author:

Ortega Mentxaka, Eneko

Format:

Journal Article

Year:

2025

Journal Title:

Journal of Jesuit Studies

Volume:

12

Issue:

4

Language:

English

Abstract:

This article analyzes the visual rhetorical discourse surrounding the figure of Ignatius of Loyola, as portrayed in various parts of the Roman Casa Professa at the end of the seventeenth century. In the context of Counter-Reformation image culture, these interventions relied on visual splendor and created links between Ignatius’s relics, his tomb, and the room where he died, along with the sacred images decorating the corridor and his funerary chapel in the Gesù. Referring to the saint’s two natures—the mortal and the spiritual—these spaces were reinterpreted as sites of Jesuit cultural memory, aimed to elevate the founder’s figure, foster devotion among the faithful, and reinforce his normative image. This project exemplifies how the Society of Jesus viewed the visual arts as tools for intensifying faith and devotion.

Who (Jesuits):

Ignatius, of Loyola, Saint, c.1491–1556

What (Subjects):

Hagiography -- Relics

Arts -- Images -- Sacred Images

Where (Locations):

Europe -- Italy -- Rome

When (Centuries):

17th century

Publisher URL:

https://brill.com/view/journals/jjs/12/4/article-p650_6.xml

https://brill.com/view/journals/jjs/12/4/article-p650_6.xml?ebody=pdf-130820

https://brill.com/view/journals/jjs/12/4/article-p650_6.xml?ebody=Article%20details

Page Range:

650-676

ISSN:

22141332

22141324

DOI:

10.1163/22141332-12340013