Breast Cancer in Two Ex-Votos, A Millennia Apart: Patients' Hope and Faith Expressed Through the Centuries in Votive Offerings

A votive offering or ex-voto includes a variety of usually non-professional artworks offered to divinities and placed in religious sites to fulfill a vow or in gratitude for recovery from an illness or injury. Unfortunately, the ancient period lacks a scientifically verifiable understanding of the t...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Gebbia, Vittorio (Author) ; Piazza, Dario (Author) ; Valerio, Maria Rosaria (Author) ; Di Paola, Jessica Joy (Author) ; Cusumano, Nicola (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Springer Science + Business Media B. V. 2023
In: Journal of religion and health
Year: 2023, Volume: 62, Issue: 3, Pages: 1976-1984
Further subjects:B Art and medicine
B Medical Humanities
B Social History
B Cancer Care
B Ancient Medicine
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:A votive offering or ex-voto includes a variety of usually non-professional artworks offered to divinities and placed in religious sites to fulfill a vow or in gratitude for recovery from an illness or injury. Unfortunately, the ancient period lacks a scientifically verifiable understanding of the true nature of cancer and its natural history and, consequently, a lack of effective treatment. This paper discusses two ex-votos potentially related to breast cancer distant more than 2000 years, one from the other. The ex-votos convey the complex relationship of humans with illness through an art expression stemming from the heart and minds of ordinary people.
ISSN:1573-6571
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of religion and health
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1007/s10943-023-01775-x