Francescinus of Pontremoli: A Pilgrimtextquotesingles Path to Pardon

FRANCESCINUS OF PONTREMOLI: A PILGRIM'S PATH TO PARDON* The itineraries of pilgrims have for many years been regarded as an important source for the study of the history of the Holy Land.1 It seems, however, that the alleged reality as described in the medieval itineraries is often a "holy geography"—a geography of the spiritual realm of the sacred traditions—while the description of the realia was of marginal importance only.2 It has recently been suggested that, beginning in the 13th century, the pilgrims' accounts underwent a change, as a result of the broadening of horizons and of scientific knowledge. The pilgrimage literature, it has been suggested , was no longer "a guide to pilgrims, nor an account based on the experiences of the author in the Holy Land. For them, the Holy Land was also a real country, expressed in its physical description , the description of its flora and fauna, and particularly the description of its human society.