Indulgence seal matrix

Seals, which were relatively common as they were owned by many individuals and both religious and secular communities, reflect the political, economic, social, and spiritual life of the Middle Ages.

The seal of the Order of the Holy Trinity was made during the pontificate of Pius II between 1458 and 1464. Freeing captives, part of the Works of Mercy, is one of the many sources of obtaining indulgence. This phenomenon, which establishes direct or indirect transfer of money or tangible goods to the clergy in the realm of the living, with the aim of securing a reduction of punishment in the afterlife, was the catalyst for the Lutheran Reformation. This large matrix alone summarises this system by linking the Pope with the Order of Trinitarians, an "institution" specialising in freeing captives. While historians are familiar with the practice of indulgences, acquiring a material object that is at the centre of this system is a rare opportunity.