Loretos „pestilenzische“ Düft e. Die Italienreise des Handwerkers Augustin Güntzer als Abgrenzungserfahrung?

Abstract

Augustin Güntzer (1596 – 1657?) was a craftsman from beautiful Alsace region who wrote a description of his life. Although he grew up in quite modest conditions, he turned out to be a cheerful traveller. History did not treat him kindly – he was a victim of the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648) and had to emigrate several times in his life. In Strasbourg he lost his wife and his only son. Güntzer defined himself as a victim of Catholicism, which was his greatest enemy. The description of his travels around Italy reveals the confessionalism of those years. According to Güntzer, the Pope was the Antichrist. Nevertheless, he also noticed the beautiful aspects of Italy – not only the alleged homosexuality and sinfulness. He was interested in both Baroque architecture and olive trees. His description of his trip to Italy constitutes a source of information about the stereotypes concerning the general perception of the world in the first half of the 17th century.

Keywords

• Alsacja
• Włochy
• kalwinizm
• katolicyzm
• egodokument
• nowożytność