The power of the Blessed Sacrament: the iconography of the hosts in the 15th and 16th centuries = El poder del Santísimo Sacramento: la iconografía de la sagrada forma en los siglos XV y XVI

Abstract

The Synodal legislation, the Visitation Books and the Inventories of diocesan and parish church treasures from the mid 15th to mid 16th century frequently refer to the existence of tools for making hosts and their state of conservation, stating that they should be replaced when inadequate and acquired when absent. The hosts were made on site, normally in the sacristies, and carefully prepared in accordance with a choicely conducted ritual, taking care with the origin and quality of the materials and utensils used as well as the conditions of those responsible for the preparation of the oblate. Based on a comparison of the aforementioned literature with the "host moulds" that have survived to the modern day and contemporary paintings, the iconography used on the Hosts will be analysed and their liturgical and symbolic meanings reflected upon.