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Saint Sebastian from Roman Martyr to Queer Icon

Saint Sebastian from Roman Martyr to Queer Icon cover

Saint Sebastian from Roman Martyr to Queer Icon

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Pre-order. Available 12 Nov 2026
$136.80 RRP $171.00 Website price saving $34.20 (20%)

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Description

This book traces the afterlives of Saint Sebastian from martyr and plague saint to queer icon and socio-political protest figure as represented within art and literature.

Initially venerated as a local Roman saint in the 4th century, St. Sebastian later became a popular plague saint in the 14th century and queer identification figure and universal protest icon in the 19th and 20th centuries. Stephanie Höllinger and Stephan Goertz shine a light on this rich and varied history, placing particular emphasis on revealing St. Sebastian's influence on contemporary art and literature. By examining the saint's representation in art, this book uncovers a thought-provoking, cross-historical dialogue between theological, social, and political ideologies embodied by the saint.

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Table of Contents

List of Figures
Foreword to the English Translation
Introduction
1: A saint is born: Sebastian the Roman martyr
2: The making of a plague saint: Upheavals in the Renaissance
3: The outsider's icon: Modern encounters with Sebastian
4: The saint and the virus: Sebastian in the time of AIDS
5: An icon of freedom: Muhammad Ali as Sebastian
6: Why Sebastian? Concluding theological remarks
Bibliography

Product details

Bloomsbury Academic Test
Published 12 Nov 2026
Format Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
Edition 1st
Pages 224
ISBN 9798216278856
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Illustrations 20 bw illus
Series Queer and Trans Approaches to Religion and Theology
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Stephanie Höllinger

Stephanie Höllinger is interim Professor of Moral…

Author

Stephan Goertz

Stephan Goertz is Professor of Moral Theology at J…

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