Identità in (tras)formazione: Marina il monaco, ovvero storia di una Santa ‘mascherata’ e del suo culto a Venezia tra Medioevo ed Età Moderna

Abstract

The article aims to provide a brief historical background of the church of Santa Marina in Venice. The church was originally dedicated to San Liberale but underwent changes in both dedication and layout after the arrival of the sacred remains of the virgin monk in the lagoon. The text briefly outlines the hagiographic story of Santa Marina, the circumstances of the translatio of her body to Venice, and how her cult became part of the devotional, cultural, and civic identity of the city. The final section aims to integrate existing knowledge of the church’s layout transformation from the Middle Ages to the Modern Age with new data from unpublished sources. The objective is to reconstruct the interior of the sacred building that no longer exists, but whose external appearance can still be confirmed visually through Jacopo de’ Barbari’s view.

Keywords

• Liturgical furnishings. Medieval churches. Medieval oriental cults. Sacred space. Saint marina. Tombs. Venice