Relics and sacred images of St. Ignatius of Loyola at the Roman Casa Professa

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 c...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Ortega Mentxaka, Eneko
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:España
Institución:Universidad del País Vasco
Repositorio:Addi. Archivo Digital para la Docencia y la Investigación
OAI Identifier:oai:addi.ehu.eus:10810/77178
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10810/77178
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:San Ignacio de Loyola
reliquias
imágenes sagradas
Gesù
Casa Profesa
monumentos funerarios
programas visuales
iconografía
Edad Moderna
cultura visual
Descripción
Sumario: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.