Genuine and Fraudulent Stigmatics in the Sixteenth Century

  • Tamar Herzig
Chapter

Abstract

From the thirteenth century onwards, an individual’s reception of the stigmata came to be regarded as an unassailable indication of her or his holiness.1 However, as the desire for physical signs that attested to a person’s saintliness increased, so did the fear that such proofs were not authentic.2 In the early modern era, aspiring mystics were increasingly suspected of having fabricated their stigmata, and the very signs that were supposed to authenticate holiness were often regarded as proofs of deliberate simulation.3

Keywords

Europe Assure Alla Defend Stake 
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Notes

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© Tamar Herzig 2015

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  • Tamar Herzig

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