Object of the Semester – Winter Semester 2021/22
The Trent Ritual Murder Accusation (1475) and Its Consequences
Angelika Königseder/Carl-Eric Linsler

ALAVA – TU Berlin, inventory number 7684
This unsigned painting (oil on wood, 46 x 47 cm) depicting the alleged ritual murder of Trent shows a group of nine men and one woman taking part in the slaughter of a blond, naked boy. Four scowling, bearded men hold the kneeling, weeping child on a table while one of them plunges a knife into his neck and another appears to be squeezing his carotid artery. A kneeling figure at the lower edge of the painting holds a bowl to catch the blood pouring from the wound. On the left-hand side stands a woman holding a candle, its flame casting a dim light on the scene. Behind her, a bearded man with a fanatic expression appears to be reading aloud from a book. In the background, a figure stands watch by a door that appears to be slightly ajar; his presence emphasizes the conspiratorial character of the scene.
The ritual murder charge also can be found – in a slightly altered form – in modern antisemitism. The allegation that the blood of the murder victim was used for ritual purposes was supplemented by accusations of racial defilement, murder by ritual slaughter, and sexual perversion.[14] In addition, the accusation of ritual murder – like nearly all antisemitic stereotypes – has proven to be very adaptable to and compatible with different contexts: In Islamic societies, for example, one finds it invoked in connection with the Mideast conflict, in order to demonize the Israeli state and “the Jews” in general,[15] and by the same token the right-wing extremist QAnon movement conjures up an international secret cabal that purportedly kidnaps and tortures children and extracts adrenochrome from their blood to use as a “rejuvenating agent.”
[1] Cited by Rainer Erb, “Die Ritualmordlegende: Von den Anfängen bis ins 20. Jahrhundert,” in: Susanna Buttaroni/Stanisław Musiał (eds.), Ritualmord. Legenden in der europäischen Geschichte, Vienna 2003, pp. 11-20, here p. 19
[2] On the emergence and spread of the ritual murder legend before 1475, see: Wolfgang Treue, Der Trienter Judenprozeß. Voraussetzungen – Abläufe – Auswirkungen (1475–1588), Hanover 1996, pp. 33-40.
[3] See Erb, “Die Ritualmordlegende,” p. 13.
[4] See Treue, Der Trienter Judenprozeß, p. 30.
[5] See Erb, “Die Ritualmordlegende,” p. 12 f.; Rainer Erb, “Ritualmordbeschuldigung,” in: Handbuch des Antisemitismus. Judenfeindschaft in Geschichte und Gegenwart. Bd. 3: Begriffe, Theorien, Ideologien, published by Wolfgang Benz, Berlin 2010, pp. 293-294; Anna Esposito, “Das Stereotyp des Ritualmordes in den Trienter Prozessen und die Verehrung des ‘Seligen’ Simone,” in: Susanna Buttaroni/Stanisław Musiał (eds.), Ritualmord. Legenden in der europäischen Geschichte, Vienna 2003, pp. 131-172, here p. 133.
[6] See David L. Dahl, “Ritualmordvorwurf in Trient (1475),” in: Handbuch des Antisemitismus. Judenfeindschaft in Geschichte und Gegenwart. Bd. 4: Ereignisse, Dekrete, Kontroversen, published by Wolfgang Benz, Berlin 2011, pp. 356-358, here p. 356 f.
[7] See Diego Quaglioni, “Das Inquisitionsverfahren gegen die Juden von Trient (1475–1478),” in: Susanna Buttaroni/Stanisław Musiał (eds.), Ritualmord. Legenden in der europäischen Geschichte, Vienna 2003, pp. 85-130, here p. 91.
[8] Auktionshaus C. J. Wawra/Auktionshaus Glückselig/Kunsthändler Richard Leitner (eds.), Versteigerung der hinterlassenen Sammlung des Herrn Emil Weinberger Wien, Vienna 1929, p. 115, lot 460.
[9] Albert Werner/Alfred Wawra (eds.), Versteigerung einer hervorragenden Sammlung von Gemälden alter und neuer Meister sowie von Kunst und Kunstgewerbe des 14. bis 18. Jahrhunderts, Vienna 1921, p. 62, lot 652.
[10] See Hartmann Schedel, Register des Buchs der Croniken und Geschichten mit Figuren und Pildnussen von Anbeginn der Welt bis auf dise unnsere Zeit, Nuremberg 1493, p. CCLIV. Accessible online at: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.8305#0500.
[15] See ibid., pp. 12 and 18 f., note 1. On the accusation of ritual murder in Islamic countries, see, by way of example: Malte Gebert, “Fatir Ziun (Mustafa Tlas, 1983),” in: Handbuch des Antisemitismus. Judenfeindschaft in Geschichte und Gegenwart. Bd. 6: Publikationen, published by Wolfgang Benz, Berlin 2013, pp. 196-197.