Your Cart ()
cload

GUARANTEED SAFE & SECURE CHECKOUT

Spend $x to Unlock Free Shipping to  

Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century - Paperback

$122.17
Checkout Secure
Only 3 left! .. people are viewing this, and 3 recently purchased it
Order in the next to get it by

Great reasons to buy from us:

  • Image of Changed your mind? Ordered the wrong thing? Simply return your item for a prompt exchange or refund.

    30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

    Changed your mind? Ordered the wrong thing? Simply return your item for a prompt exchange or refund.
  • Image of Enjoy free shipping when you spend over $70

    Free Shipping Over $70

    Enjoy free shipping when you spend over $70
  • Image of SSL Protected Checkout & Strongly Secure for Payments

    Secure Checkout

    SSL Protected Checkout & Strongly Secure for Payments
  • Image of Every order is a priority to us. We handle your order quickly to ensure you get your product fast.

    Fast Handling

    Every order is a priority to us. We handle your order quickly to ensure you get your product fast.

by A. Katie Harris (Author)

On the night of March 18, 1655, two Spanish friars broke into a church to steal the bones of the founder of their religious institution, the Order of the Most Holy Trinity. This bookinvestigates this little-known incident of relic theft and the lengthy legal case that followed, together with the larger questions that surround the remains of saints in seventeenth-century Catholic Europe.

Drawing on a wealth of manuscript and print sources from the era, A. Katie Harris uses the case of St. John of Matha's stolen remains to explore the roles played by saints' relics, the anxieties invested in them, their cultural meanings, and the changing modes of thought with which early modern Catholics approached them. While in theory a relic's authenticity and identity might be proved by supernatural evidence, in practice early modern Church authorities often reached for proofs grounded in the material, human world--preferences that were representative of the standardizing and streamlining of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century saint-making. Harris examines how Matha's advocates deployed material and documentary proofs, locating them within a framework of Scholastic concepts of individuation, identity, change, and persistence, and applying moral certainty to accommodate the inherent uncertainty of human evidence and relic knowledge.

Engaging and accessible, The Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha raises an array of important questions surrounding relic identity and authenticity in seventeenth-century Europe. It will be of interest to students, scholars, and casual readers interested in European history, religious history, material culture, and Renaissance studies.

Author Biography

A. Katie Harris was Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Davis.

Number of Pages: 242
Dimensions: 0.55 x 9 x 6 IN
Publication Date: November 11, 2025
Shipping This item ships to
Delivery Estimated between and . Will usually ship within 1 business day.

Description

by A. Katie Harris (Author)

On the night of March 18, 1655, two Spanish friars broke into a church to steal the bones of the founder of their religious institution, the Order of the Most Holy Trinity. This bookinvestigates this little-known incident of relic theft and the lengthy legal case that followed, together with the larger questions that surround the remains of saints in seventeenth-century Catholic Europe.

Drawing on a wealth of manuscript and print sources from the era, A. Katie Harris uses the case of St. John of Matha's stolen remains to explore the roles played by saints' relics, the anxieties invested in them, their cultural meanings, and the changing modes of thought with which early modern Catholics approached them. While in theory a relic's authenticity and identity might be proved by supernatural evidence, in practice early modern Church authorities often reached for proofs grounded in the material, human world--preferences that were representative of the standardizing and streamlining of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century saint-making. Harris examines how Matha's advocates deployed material and documentary proofs, locating them within a framework of Scholastic concepts of individuation, identity, change, and persistence, and applying moral certainty to accommodate the inherent uncertainty of human evidence and relic knowledge.

Engaging and accessible, The Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha raises an array of important questions surrounding relic identity and authenticity in seventeenth-century Europe. It will be of interest to students, scholars, and casual readers interested in European history, religious history, material culture, and Renaissance studies.

Author Biography

A. Katie Harris was Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Davis.

Number of Pages: 242
Dimensions: 0.55 x 9 x 6 IN
Publication Date: November 11, 2025

Shipping

Shipping This item ships to
Delivery Estimated between and . Will usually ship within 1 business day.

Reviews

Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century - Paperback

Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century - Paperback

$122.17
Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century - Paperback

Stolen Bones of St. John of Matha: Forgery, Theft, and Sainthood in the Seventeenth Century - Paperback

$122.17
3 visitors right now
3 visitors have this item in their cart right now
3 people have bought this item
3 % of people buy 2 or more

Recently viewed products