ANTIQUE 18TH CENTURY ST. IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA & ST. FRANCIS XAVIER ROSARY MEDAL

Description

Here from one of the Carmelite convents we work with is a rare 18th century bronze ROSARY medal minted in Rome. All our listed items are original Christian devotionals. Some may have been cleaned or polished before their arrival, by their last caretaker. Their use is for personal devotion. Measures approximately 3/4 inches and weighs 3 grams.
Saint Ignatius of Loyola (c. 23 October 1491 – 31 July 1556) was a Spanish Basque Catholic priest and theologian, who founded the religious order called the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and became its first Superior General at Paris in 1541. The Jesuit order served the Pope as missionaries, and they were bound by a vow of special obedience to the sovereign pontiff regarding the missions. They therefore emerged as an important force during the time of the Counter-Reformation. Ignatius is remembered as a talented spiritual director. He recorded his method in a celebrated treatise called the Spiritual Exercises, a simple set of meditations, prayers, and other mental exercises, first published in 1548. Ignatius was beatified in 1609, and then canonized, receiving the title of Saint on 12 March 1622.
Francis Xavier, S.J. (7 April 1506 – 3 December 1552), was a Roman Catholic missionary, who was a co-founder of the Society of Jesus. Born in Javier was a companion of Saint Ignatius of Loyola and one of the first seven Jesuits who took vows of poverty and chastity at Montmartre, Paris, in 1534. He led an extensive mission into Asia, mainly in the Portuguese Empire of the time and was influential in evangelization work, most notably in India. He also was the first Christian missionary to venture into Japan, Borneo, the Maluku Islands, and other areas. In those areas, struggling to learn the local languages and in the face of opposition, he had less success than he had enjoyed in India. Xavier was about to extend his missionary preaching to China when he died on Changchun Island. He was beatified by Pope Paul V on 25 October 1619 and canonized by Pope Gregory XV on 12 March 1622. In 1624 he was made co-patron of Navarre. Known as the "Apostle of the Indies" and "Apostle of Japan", he is considered one of the greatest missionaries since Saint Paul.
This medals dating can be confirmed on pages 2 & 3 of the book AN INTRODUCTION TO RELIGIOUS MEDALS, by Bob Forrest, and published by NUMISMATICA INTERNATIONAL in 2004.In addition, this book has chapters (outlined in the table of contents), describing each of the categories of medals, their possible place of pilgrimage (acquisition), and origin of the mint where they were made. We recommend that anyone serious about collecting medals from this period, acquire a copy of this book.
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