Title: Aecubea Regina Cypri ex voto Assisium venit: The Myth of a Queen of Cyprus in Assisi
Abstract:Abstract Among the legends disseminated by the friars of San Francesco in Assisi was an enduring tale that surfaced at the dawn of the sixteenth century, according to which a thirteenth-century queen ...Abstract Among the legends disseminated by the friars of San Francesco in Assisi was an enduring tale that surfaced at the dawn of the sixteenth century, according to which a thirteenth-century queen of Cyprus was buried inside an exuberant Gothic canopied tomb in the convent’s Lower Church. This study examines the queen’s supposed funerary monument, explores the varying permutations of the legend, reveals the presumed gifts she donated to the friars, and unravels the conundrum surrounding her identity and the position of her tomb. In considering the convent-specific and wider contexts of Italy and Cyprus, the paper deconstructs the myth by uncovering new archival sources and offers fresh insights into the identity and activity of the Cypriot queen in Assisi. More importantly, it argues that the legend distorted historical facts as a means to enhance the connection between the Franciscan Order, the convent, and the Holy Land.Read More