Notes
The figure of Maria SS. Addolorata, one of the many yearly processions in Italy, is a type of devotion to the Virgin Mary, often depicted holding a handkerchief, with droplets of tears running down her face, or with seven swords, representing seven sorrows, piercing her heart.
In the history of the understanding of time, the idea of linearity brought by Christianity—a progression from suffering toward transcendence, as embodied by this figure—introduced and established a narrative model for secular belief in linear progress, replacing previous cyclical concepts of time.
This narrative of progression, now embedded in political and cultural imaginaries, suggests an advancement through form while idealogically returning to the point of departure.