Conference Report: ‘Literary Devotions: Italy, c. 1200–1550’, Trinity College, Cambridge, 19–20 September 2025
‘Literary Devotions: Italy, c. 1200–1550’ brought together twenty-two speakers, of all career stages, and four official discussants from sixteen universities across the UK, Italy, Czechia, Hungary, Spain, and Switzerland, as well as participants joining via a live-stream. Gathering scholars from across Italian Studies, Theology, Musicology, and Art History, the conference addressed two fundamental questions: ‘How do literary texts shape and reflect the devotional practices of those who read, compose, listen to, and perform them?’ And ‘how might an investigation of these dynamics shift or challenge our understanding of Italian literary history in the pre-modern period, beyond established canons of authorship?’
1200–1550 was a period in which the Italian peninsula witnessed radical and far-reaching literary and religious transformations, from the rise of the mendicant orders in the thirteenth century to the doctrinal fractures of the first half of the sixteenth century. The conference investigated how literary texts from across this period recorded, informed, and served as vehicles for the devotional lives of individuals and communities.
The twenty-two papers were organized into six panels, each devoted to a specific aspect or mode of literary devotion: ‘Lives’, ‘Codifying Devotion’, ‘Imagined Devotions’, Contexts and Compilations’, ‘Use and Re-use’, and finally a panel on ‘Devotional and Contemplative Themes in the Lauda Repertory for Mary Magdalene’ with researchers from the ERC project ‘LAUDARE’ (led by Francesco Zimei) based at the University of Trento.
There was a particular focus throughout on non-canonical texts and authors. The event offered considerable space for dialogue, both formal and informal, and ended with a plenary discussion in which all twenty-six participants reflected on the two days’ activities and discussed future avenues of research. The feedback from participants was very positive, with many commenting especially on the quality of the papers and the openness of the discussion. An edited volume is now in preparation, provisionally titled Literary Devotion in Late Medieval and Early Modern Italy.
We would like to extend our warmest thanks to all the participants for their expertise and intellectual generosity. We are also deeply grateful to the Cambridge Intesa Sanpaolo Fund, the Master and Fellows of Trinity College, and the Society for Italian Studies for their generous support.
Lachlan Hughes and Helena Phillips-Robins
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Participants: Erminia Ardissino, Gabriele Bucchi, George Corbett, Virginia Cox, Nicola De Nisco, Dávid Falvay, Cristina Ghirardini, Lachlan Hughes, Caitlín Kane, Catherine Keen, Matteo Largaiolli, Giuseppe Ledda, Matteo Leonardi, Jessica Maratsos, Lucia Marchi, Carlotta Moro, Anna Pegoretti, Helena Phillips-Robins, Noemi Pigini, Giacomo Pirani, Rebecca Reilly, Federico Rossi, Valentina Rovere, Jonathan Schiesaro, Ditta Szemere, Natale Vacalebre.