Heilige Ignatius c. 1717 - 1770

This print of Saint Ignatius was made by Johann Christoph Winkler in eighteenth-century Germany, a time when the Catholic Church still had enormous cultural power. Here, the founder of the Jesuit order looks heavenward, bathed in divine light, with a devotional inscription below. This image circulated widely at a time when the Society of Jesus played a key role in education and missionary work. Prints like this were not simply representations; they actively fostered religious belief and practice. The Jesuits used images to promote their teachings, reinforce their authority, and create a sense of collective identity among their followers. Understanding such a print requires that we consider the role of religious institutions in shaping visual culture, and to recognize that images can be powerful tools for shaping individual and collective identity. Resources such as Jesuit archives and period publications can help us reconstruct the world in which this print circulated.