SEMINAR
08-04-2026

Territory, mobility and meanings: the role of the votive in the configuration of sacred spaces
Lucía Navarro Martín (Universidad de Alcalá)

This presentation investigates the dialectic between the votive phenomenon – with special emphasis on the narrative ex-voto – and the construction of sacred space. Based on the assumptions of humanist geography, we analyze the shrine as the “natural habitat” of the ex-voto, an environment where architecture is transformed into a sensory and emotional space. To this end, we delved into the concept, location and internal logic of the shrine in its role as an organizer of the territory, exploring its historical and contemporary relationship with devotees and even its ability to keep community ties alive in contexts of displacement and migration.

In this context, ex-votos are one of the key elements that allow us to understand the construction of this space and the relationship that the faithful had (and have) with it. Through the study of various shrines, miracle rooms and sacred museums in the north of Portugal, we will share reflections on the nature of these objects as active agents that endow the sacred space with habitability through the senses. Finally, we will observe how the current logic of conserving or destroying these objects not only alters their physical space, but also provides us with crucial information about the changes in their meaning and significance over time.

Territory, movement and meanings: the role of the votive in the configuration of sacred spaces
Lucía Navarro Martín (Universidad de Alcalá)

This presentation investigates the dialectic between the votive phenomenon -with special emphasis on the narrative votive- and the construction of sacred space. Starting from the assumptions of humanist geography, we analyze the shrine as the “natural habitat” of the exvoto, an environment where architecture is transformed into a sensory and emotional space. To do this, we looked at the concept, location and internal logic of the shrine in its role as an organizer of the territory, exploring its historical and contemporary relationship with the devotees and even its ability to keep community ties alive in scenarios of displacement and migration.
In this context, the exvotos are revealed as one of the key elements that allow us to understand the construction of this space and the relationship that the faithful had (and have) with it. Through the study of various shrines, miracle rooms and sacred museums in the north of Portugal, we will share reflections on the nature of these objects as active agents that give the sacred space habitability through the senses. Finally, we will observe how the current logic of conserving or destroying these objects not only alters their physical space, but also provides us with crucial information about the changes in their meaning and significance over time.

FLUP, Meeting Room 1 | 15h00

Organization: Sociabilities and Religious Practices (CITCEM Research Group)