Picture No | 10007661 |
Date | circa 9th century |
Description | Pope Joan condemned to the jaws of hell |
Details |
Pope Joan, legendary female pope, is condemned to the jaws of hell for fornication, having blown her cover by giving birth to a child during a procession through the streets of Rome (until then, she had successfully passed herself off as a man). She is thought to have reigned for a time during the Middle Ages, but this is probably a fabrication, as there is no contemporary evidence.
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Source | Johann Wolf, Lectiones Memorabiles (1600), reproduced in Baring Gould, Curious Myths of the Middle Ages |
Credit | Mary Evans Picture Library |
Restrictions |
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