The Boys of the Archangel Raphael: A Youth Confraternity in Florence, 1411-1785

Abstract

Reviews 29 other religious processions, can be traced to the imitation of the great wooden sculptures imported from Venice and Naples.Although they represent a unique regional cultural heritage, amidst the great artistic patrimony of Italy they are often relegated to second class status.Their importance to Pugliese confrater- nities, however, is indisputable and the photographs of these figures, in particular that of the dead Christ on p. 1 76, are a haunting reminder of the religious devotion out of which the confraternity movement was born.Margherita Latorre's closing essay "I restauri" (The restorations) provides a ray of hope consistent with the Pio Monte' s faith in the restorative power of Purgatory.The detailed account of the continuing efforts to repair the damages of water, insects, time, and neglect in an effort to restore the church to its Baroque glory suggests that the role of confraternities may be changing.Its new role as guardian of the past may breathe new life into an organization whose membership over the past decades has been waning considerably.The combined efforts of its members to preserve a part of their history echoes what Tiziana Luisi called "committenza confraternale" and may revive the confraternity's sense of social relevance.The purpose of this book is not, however, to speculate about the future of lay societies, but rather to document one particular case of lay religious association and trace its evolution in all of its dimensions.Accordingly, the appendices include the original enabling legislation, the statutes of the confraternity, the statutes of the "Consorelle della Vergine dei Sette Dolori" (The Sisters of the Virgin of the Seven Sorrows), the sister society of the Pio Monte, the Diocesan statutes of the confraternity, lists of the brothers and sisters of the Pio Monte, and an index of notable names, places, and subjects.This volume will be an invaluable research tool and source document for anyone interested not only in the Pugliese variant of confraternal association but also in studying the activities, organization, and evolution of a confraternity that spans three centuries.