ABSTRACT
The main goals of this chapter are first, to show how an image became and then ceased to be regarded as miraculous, and second, to reveal the ‘miraculous’ ways in which the inhabitants—nobles, burghers and common folk—of Kowno (Kaunas), one of the more important cities of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, tried to deal with everyday challenges, such as disease and floods, in the years following the traumatic Muscovite occupation of 1655–61. The main source of this study is the ‘Relation about the miraculous image’, now in Vilnius University Library, which was created by the Observant Franciscans (known as Bernardines) of the Church of St George, the largest in the city. It describes twenty-six miracles experienced between 1655 and 1706. Bernardine friars spread the word about the miraculous image of the Mother of God as part of their rivalry with other orders in the city, especially the Jesuits and the Dominicans. Miraculous events, and votive offerings in silver, peaked in 1669–76, after which miracles ceased to be recorded—probably as a result of Jesuit criticism. Miraculous qualities were recalled in 1706 when the image was moved to the main altar. A comparison is made with the exorcist Giovani Battista Chiesa, described by Giovanni Levi, who tried to influence Piedmontese rural society with his magical healing.
