La Mostra    Santissime stimmate di San Francesco

The processions of the Archconfraternity of Francis' Holy Stigmata to visit the Forty hours during the Carnival

Rome’s Carnival, with its carts, races, processions and masks, has a long history and deep roots in the city’s social fabric. On multiple occasions, popes came out in favour of expanding and developing it, extending its duration to last over several days rather than being limited to the last Thursday before Lent and the following Sunday, as had been the case in mediaeval times. Carnival celebrations continued in Rome during holy years, despite attempts by popes from the mid-1600s onwards to minimize and even prohibit them. A number of liturgical celebrations and devotional practices were instituted specifically to counteract the carnival revelry. One such practice was the Quarant’Ore, or the visit of the seven churches, which Pope Gregory XIII instituted in 1575 after it was proposed by Carlo Borromeo, who was close to San Filippo Neri and the Congregazione dell’Oratorio.

Rituale della venerabile Archiconfraternita delle Sagre Stimmate del padre S. Francesco di Roma, Roma 1711

Archconfraternity of the Holy Stigmata of St Francis

Founded in 1594 by a Roman doctor at the church of the Franciscan convent at San Pietro in Montorio, this confraternity – whose members included some of the city’s most illustrious men – benefitted from all of the indulgences available to Franciscan clergy. Pope Clement VIII elevated it to Archconfraternity status and allocated it the Church of the Forty Martyrs in the Pigna District. The Church subsequently changed its name to Santissime Stimmate di San Francesco.

Privileggi [sic] e statuti della venerabile e serafica Archiconfraternita delle Sagre Stimmate di Francesco di Roma, Roma 1700

Data on the number of pilgrims and companies catered to by the Archconfraternity of the Holy Stigmata of St Francis during the 1675 Jubilee

In Holy year 1675 the Archconfraternity of the Holy Stigmata received a little more than 300 people belonging to five aggregated companies. It got as a donation several gifts of worth.

Ruggero Caetano, Le memorie de l'anno santo M. DC. LXXV celebrato da papa Clemente X e consacrate alla santità di n.s. papa Innocenzo XII, descritte in forma di giornale..., Roma 1691