Christian Images and Their Jewish Desecrators

"In the past, scholars have discussed charges of ritual murder and host desecration levelled against European Jews - from the Middle Ages to the present day - but have not sufficiently studied the common anti-Jewish charge that Jews habitually and compulsively violated Christian images. Christian Images and Their Jewish Desecrators addresses this gap, laying bare the longevity of the charge that Jews committed violence against images of Christ, Mary, and the disciples. By examining how desecration allegations affected Jewish individuals and communities through an investigation spanning Byzantium, Medieval England, France, Germany, and early modern Spain and Italy, historian Katherine Aron-Beller ultimately demonstrates that this charge must be read alongside more well-known anti-Jewish allegations. The book investigates persisting tales, myths and fantasies about Jewish desecration of Christian images, presenting moralist tales, art and iconography, and records from legal proceedings to reveal how these stories reinforced the allegation. Aron-Beller uses these sources to understand why this charge held longstanding popularity in the Christian imagination and to consider Jewish attitudes toward Christian imagery and responses to allegations. Ultimately, this investigation reveals how anti-Jewish tropes of image desecration was understood alongside allegations of ritual murder and host desecration in European history"--