Halls of Mirrors: Holy Women and Saints’ Cults in Medieval Italy

This is Lecture 3 of a series given by Professor George Ferzoco as Goggio Visiting Professor for 2021.

After discussing the determination of medieval sanctity, the paper will discuss two female saints with a significant presence in Italy and beyond — Catherine of Siena and Birgitta of Sweden — with an eye to their own observances of saintly models, and how these in turn were noted and viewed by their devotees.

Following a quarter century at British universities, George Ferzoco is Visiting Fellow in the Calgary Institute for the Humanities. He is based in the Department of Classics and Religion at the University of Calgary, where he is Adjunct Senior Instructor; he is also a member of the Department of History. A Toronto native, he completed his B.A. at St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto; with Pier Giorgio Di Cicco, George is the only Toronto B.A. to date hold this Goggio visiting professorship. George’s research focuses on late medieval religious culture, especially on official and popular propaganda. He has published on Dante, saints’ cults, and manuscripts. He has lectured on such topics (as well as on Federico Fellini) throughout Australia, Europe, and North America, as well as in South Africa.

To attend this lecture, please register at this link.  You will receive a confirmation email one day before the event containing information about joining the lecture.

All times stated in Eastern time.