St. Peter & his Blessed Toe Nubs

In St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City there is a statues of, you guessed it, St. Peter. This statue is atributed to the artist Arnolfo di Cambio who lived from about 1245 to 1302. The statue depicts St. Peter sitting on his throne. It is one of the few remaining bronze statues of the Middle Ages. His face is said to loook grave and solemn. The hair on his head and face are curled. He is dressed in a tunic with sandals, exposing his toes, but his toes are barely there.

Here people can be seen touching St. Peter's blessed toe nubs

Since the statue was built, almost everyone that visits it rubs, or sometimes even kisses, his toes and feet. People do this while praying to him, begging him to be merciful and open the gates of heaven for them. Because of this, St. Peter's toes are worn thin, they are just one smooth surface instead of individual toes. St. Peter is holding keys (to the kingdom of heaven) close to his chest while his other hand is raised in blessing. On the day of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, which is June 29th, they decorate St. Peter's statue. Part of medieval tradition, it is decorated with an amice, alb, tiara, stole, red cope, and a ring.  

St. Peter's Statue dressed up for the Feast of Saints Peter & Paul

Sources:

http://stpetersbasilica.info/Statues/StPeter/StPeter.htm

http://www.wga.hu/html_m/a/arnolfo/2/10peter.html

Enrico Dandolo and the Doge's Final Resting Place

            When looking back at the great leaders of the middle ages one can see how they would have great tombs and final resting places created to make sure that their remains would be preserved for future generations to see and remember. It is also common to see instances where these tombs are destroyed and lost to time, and one notable example is the tomb of Enrico Dandolo, Doge of Venice. Enrico was born to a wealthy and powerful Venetian family, and he was able to rise through the ranks of the Venetian administration, eventually becoming Doge of Venice at the age of 85 and suffering from blindness. Despite his advanced age and blindness, Enrico was able to make many reforms to the Venetian legal system and strengthened Venice’s power in the Mediterranean, making the city-state one of the most powerful trade cities on the Mediterranean and a major military power in the region.

A painting of Doge Enrico Dandolo.

            Then, in 1201 Enrico agreed to build ships to transport troops (around 33,000) for the 4^th crusade, and the shipbuilders of Venice built 50 warships and 450 transports for the crusaders. When the crusaders were unable to pay for the ships, Enrico became one of the leaders of the crusade and took them on a massive diversion that ended up leading to the sack of Constantinople, which hurt the Byzantine Empire (the chief rival to Venice at the time) and proceeded with the crusade into Europe. Due to health concerns he returned to Constantinople and died in 1205 at the age of 98, and was buried in the Hagia Sophia. Enrico Dondolo’s actions would set Venice as the premier power in Italy and in the Mediterranean for centuries to come.

Enrico's tombstone in the Hagia Sophia

            While Enrico's gravestone is located at the Hagia Sophia, the tomb was destroyed by the Ottomans after they took the city of Constantinople in 1453. The marker above was created in the 19th century by a restoration team, and is the probable location of where Enrico was buried in the 13th century. Due to the destruction of the tomb, many tourists to the Hagia Sophia make the mistake of assuming that the marker signifies the location of Enrico's tomb and  that it is a medieval marker. 

Image Sources:

http://www.allempires.com/article/files/images/D1050_Lg.jpg 

https://deadliestblogpage.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/enrico-dandolo.jpg 

Information sources: 

http://www.dndjunkie.com/civilopedia/LEADER_ENRICO_DANDOLO.aspx 

http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=enrico_dandolo 

Mosaics to the Past

In 1907, work began for the creation of the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis in St. Louis, Missouri. This cathedral was built to replace the previous St. Louis Cathedral built along the Mississippi River, but it had something special added to it. The Basilica of Saint Louis has the largest installation of mosaics in the Western Hemisphere. The installation of the mosaics began in 1912, two years before the Basilica was open for use. The collection contains 41.5 million glass pieces in more than 7,000 colors and in total it covers 83,000 square feet. Pictures depicted in the mosaics included images of St. Louis, significant archdiocesan events, and biblical scenes from the Old and New Testament in the Bible.

The mosaics in the basilica are more than just pieces of art they are historical references too. The mosaics are composed in two styles, Byzantine and Italian. The two styles differ in the intensity

Alter of Blessed Sacrament Chapel

of the colors used to complete the mosaics, with the Byzantine mosaics being intensely colored and the Italian being composed of muted shades. One of the most famous Byzantine mosaics that we examined in class was Emperor Justinian’s and Attendants mosaics of San Vitale, in Ravenna, Italy. The most fascinating and interesting thing about the mosaics is not just how large and impressive they are, but rather how they incorporate history from 1,367 years ago. The Basilica of Saint Louis is not just a historical homage to the patron saint of the city, but is an architectural treasure incorporating the old with the new.

Works Cited

"Cathedral Basilica Celebrates Its 100th." Explore St. Louis. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2015.http://explorestlouis.com/2014/08/06/cathedral-basilica-celebrates/

"Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2015.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathedral_Basilica_of_Saint_Louis

That's a Hairy Situation...

Hair shirts were a form of rough cloth, usually made from goat or camel hair, and worn as a form of penance or humiliation for whoever was wearing it. It received it's Latin name cilicium from Cicilia, were the cloth was most commonly from. However, it is believed that hair shirts were used long before it was given that name. The earliest finding of the Latin word was found in the Vulgate Bible.

"Ego autem, cum mihi molesti essent, induebar cilicio."

During the early middle ages hair shirts were becoming more and more common, not only with those chasing the ascetic life, but among the average lay people as well. There are many saints who give testimony to the use of the shirts at the time. St. Jerome even mentioned that the hair shirts were commonly worn under the extravagant clothing of men with higher positions. 

Hair shirts were even used during spiritual ceremonies such as baptisms, where the candidate would stand on the hair cloth with their bare-feet during a portion of the ceremony. The hair cloth is also used during Ash Wednesday and sometimes covered the altar during penitential seasons during the year. 

Sources:

 Alston, George Cyprian. "Hairshirt." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 24 Nov. 2015 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07113b.htm>.

"Medieval Manuscripts Blog." Medieval Manuscripts Blog. N.p., Web. 24 Nov. 2015