Archconfraternity of Death and Prayer
A huge famine and the particularly intense cold that struck Rome in the winter of 1538 killed many Romans and impoverished pilgrims. Moved by human compassion, a group of believers founded the Compagnia della buona morte to bury people who had passed away in poverty, alone or far from their homes, and who would therefore not otherwise have had a decent burial. The organization was later renamed the Confraternita della morte ed orazione, owing to its custom of praying for the souls of the dead and for performing the Forty Hours’ ritual, which they did every third Sunday of the month. Pius IV elevated it to the status of confraternity in 1560. The charter on show, which was approved in 1590, was reformed in 1698. It was reprinted to mark the 1750 Jubilee. The Roman archconfraternity was associated with a number of Companies, which they welcomed and accommodated during Jubilees.
Statuti della vener. Archiconfraternità della morte et oratione, Roma 1590