Julia Seeberger presents a working paper on 'Traces of the Olfactory:Two different ways of interpretation of the olfactory lines in the visions of Agnes Blannbekin'

My dissertation project is based on the visions of a woman, called Agnes Blannbekin, who lived in Vienna in the late 13th century. Her confessor, an unknown brother, who belonged to the Order of the Friars Minor in Vienna, recorded her life and visions. In short articles in encyclopaedias for Christian female mysticism Agnes Blannbekin is mostly described as a representative of the typical Later Middle Ages piety, who focused on Jesus Christ and the longing for Jesus. Agnes Blannbekin is also known as the only Beguine in the Austrian area.
My research interest is twofold. I firstly deal with the manuscripts and the context of the relationship between the female protagonist and the community of the Order of the Friars Minor. The common classifications i.e. as a beguine or the name Agnes Blannbekin, could not be proved in the manuscripts. Secondly, I analyse the outstanding position of odoratus (smell or the sense of smell) in the visions or within the context of the piety.
The paper today is a short version of my theoretical frame. It presents two different ways of interpretation of the olfactory line in the text. Further, it sheds light on the specifics of sensory history and a sensory approach.