The history of the first Jubilee in Siena
Posted on 09. Dec, 2015 by admin in Archive, Culture
The extraordinary Jubilee of mercy it’s already started, announced by Pope Francis; this major event will end on 20th November 2016; we take this opportunity to remember the origins of this event and advise tourists an exclusive evidence of the first Jubilee in Siena.
The first Jubilee of the Catholic Church was celebrated in 1300 by Pope Boniface VIII in Rome and drew at least 200,000 people (although some sources indicate up to 2 million people, an enormous number for the time).
Siena is related to this event because the inscription on the Duomo‘s marble dating back to 1300, and there aren’t similar inscriptions on the main 4 Roman basilicas as they were all rebuilt after 1300.
For this reason we recommend to visit the Duomo in order to understand and fully appreciate the history of one of the most significant monuments built in Roman-Gothic architectural style.
The tie between Siena and the Jubilee
Credits: I, Sailko [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
The lower portion of the cathedral’s facade was designed between 1284 and 1297 by Giovanni Pisano. He created the Gothic statues representing the prophets, the patriarchs, the pagan philosophers and female prophets.
The originals, however, are now on display at the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo and those seen outside are copies.
The works of the cathedral are continued by other architects and in 1300 the following epigraph was engraved on the architrave: “Annus Centus Rome Semp(Er) E(St) Iubilenus / Crimina Laxantur Cui Penitet Ista Dona(N)T(Ur) / Hec Declaravit Bonifatius Et Roboravit”, the meaning of which is” The hundredth year at Rome is always a Jubilee / crimes are forgiven; these things are given to him that repents/ Boniface declare these things and strengthened them,”
This inscription is a rare documentation of the first Jubilee, which confirms once again the crucial role of the town of Siena, linked to many events of historical significance.
A little known oddity is the participation of Dante Alighieri to the Jubilee of 1300, which could be proven by the comparison used in a passage of the Divine Comedy, specifically in Canto XVIII of Inferno.
Dante, in fact, confronted the proceeding in the opposite direction of the two groups of sinners before the pit with the journey of the pilgrims on the bridge Sant’Angelo, because during the Jubilee crossed those directed to St. Peter with others, direct towards Monte Giordano.
The direction of movement of pedestrians was regulated for the first time on the occasion of the first jubilee to avoid crowds and accidents.
Credits: By gaspa (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Another remarkable historical fact refers to the Jubilee of 1390, because on that occasion the Holy Year was celebrated also thanks to the previous exhortations of St. Catherine of Siena, dead in 1380.
That Jubilee occurred at a particularly tense period in the history of the Catholic Church, as was being the Western Schism, with a pope in Rome and one in Avignon.
Today the Jubilee takes place in a very different atmosphere and starring two Popes, Benedict XVI as Pope Emeritus and Francis as current Pope.
Visit Siena during the Holy Year, it is a must for a historical and spiritual itinerary to follow especially on Christmas holidays.
Credits preview photo: I, Sailko [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
