The Augustinian Way: Religious Otherness through the Images of Augustinian Devotion in 16th- and 17th-Century Sardinia

Abstract

Several studies have highlighted the role assigned to images by religious congregations, particularly since the Counter-Reformation. Among the less studied religious orders is also that of the Augustinians, who, from the very beginning of the 16th century initiated within their Order a profound criticism of the evils of the Church. The most famous outcome of this criticism, with epochal repercussions for Christianity, was Martin Luther’s “protest” in Germany. In other Western European territories, struck by similar social problems but with a different cultural substrate and political context, the Augustinians faced the problems of their time, starting with a careful reform of their organization with the aim of being able to operate at their best in each territorial context according to the peculiar social, political and cultural contingencies. This reform in 1512 also included the establishment of the Augustinian Province of Sardinia, including Valencia, the Balearic Islands and the island of Sardinia. The extension of the religious institution coincided with the political one as the Kingdom of Sardinia, the Kingdom of Mallorca and the Kingdom of Valencia were part of the Crown of Aragon and, given their geographical location in the Mediterranean Sea, they were the Crown’s last line of defense against the Turkish offensive. These territories were in fact under constant attack by Ottomans and many inhabitants were captured and enslaved. Furthermore, in these territories the number of Moriscos (the descendants of the forcibly baptized Iberian Muslims) was high, which is why the issue of the conflict between religions was strongly felt. This conflict between the two religions can also be found in the images of Augustinian devotion. This paper explains how and why a change occurred in the representation of religious Otherness in Augustinian iconography in Sardinia between the 16th and 17th century.