La propagande hagiographique des villes espagnoles au xviie siècle

Abstract

This study examines the iconography of Saints Justa and Rufina as an exemplary case of Spanish patron saints venerated from time immemorial in the time of the later Habsburg monarchs. The figures of Saints Justa and Rufina are built on the model of virgins and martyrs, and therefore the virtues of virginity and martyrdom are harnessed in various types of representation, not only for the edification of devotees who might be tempted to imitate their example, but also to set the local saints on the same level as such universal virgins and martyrs as St. Agnes or St. Ursula. Thus, from the early 17th century on, the hagiography of patron saints became a major factor in the game of claiming local pre-eminence: thus Seville, with its virgin martyrs Justa and Rufina, could rival Christian Rome. The case of 17th-century Seville is particularly interesting in that such devotion to local saints clashed with the political interests of the Habsburgs, who promoted the claim of Saint-King Ferdinand III to the patronship of Seville.

Keywords

• Ferdinand III
• Juste et Rufine
• Propagande hagiographique
• Séville
• Zurbarán