Una Via Crucis nel 1431. La testimonianza del pellegrinaggio di Mariano da Siena

This article aims to present, through the witness of a pilgrim to Jerusalem in 1431 namely the priest Mariano da Siena, some elements regarding the early beginnings of the pious practice of the Via Crucis. This is the journey along the "same" route that Christ, bearing his patibulum, walked from Pilate's Praetorium to Calvary in order to be crucified. Naturally, as is the case of all the accounts of pilgrims, this text is of fundamental importance also because of the description of the places that were seen and visited, and the description of the condition in which "they were to be found" in that historical period. The itinerary depicted by Mariano da Siena was different from that of the current route of the Via Crucis, as well as the other "places" that were indicated in the various stops and their position. For this reason we shall attempt, in our presentation of the critical text, to enrich it with notes and comments on the writing of Mariano da Siena, concentrating our attention on that part of the route that was followed within the walls of the city of Jerusalem.