Following up on the previous blogposts on documental surprises awaiting the researcher when visiting archives, we could not fail to report on an unexpected document found in the Vatican Secret Archives, filed under the Nunziatura di Portogallo. The documents in question are part of the correspondence collection of Monsignor Roberto Fontana, who served as the apostolic collector in Portugal between 1577 and 1583. The letters were exchanged between Fontana and Rome during the papacy of Gregory XIII (1572-1585).
Shortly after arriving in Portugal, Monsignor Fontana reported on the illness of Queen Catherine of Austria (1507-1578). In his report, he commented on the Queen’s worsening health and expressed hope for her recovery, despite her advanced age, due to the appearance of a comet that year. Fontana’s mention of the comet is linked to the astrological predictions about the fate of Portuguese King Sebastian (1557-1578) in the upcoming Alcazar-Quibir battle in August 1578, as shown in the following treatise. While astrologers in Portugal and Europe debated whether the comet was a good or bad sign, Fontana believed it was a positive omen for Queen Catherine’s recovery. However, in February 1578, Fontana sadly reported that he had been mistaken as the Queen had passed away.
Now, Monsignor Fontana’s interest in the astrological predictions surrounding comets did not end with the Queen’s death. In 1579, while reporting on the Portuguese empire in Asia, Fontana collected an interesting piece of information about the impact of the 1578 comet in distant India. During the war between Sultan Ali Adil Shah I of Bijapur (1558-1579) and the Portuguese viceroy, D. Luís de Ataíde (1578-1581), the Sultan became concerned about the comet’s significance and asked his astrologers to predict whether it indicated a victory or defeat for him in the war. When the astrologers predicted that the comet foretold his defeat (as indeed happened with the failed conquest of Portuguese Goa in 1578), the Sultan asked for measures to reverse its bad effects. Some suggested that he sacrifice human flesh, while others recommended building a golden comet similar to the one seen that year to be worshiped as a symbol of a new era. In addition, the Sultan was advised to order all men in his kingdom to be circumcised to commemorate the new era. While this document does not describe the outcome of these events, it is known that the Sultan died shortly afterwards.
Thus, the bad omens of the 1577 and 1578 comets were confirmed both in Europe and Asia, showing decisively how astrological predictions were regularly practised and widely commented in those days. When it came to making forecasts on important events, astrological science was always called into action as had been happening ever since Antiquity. No Papal order could prevent such an interest, even if it came from a distinguished member of the Papacy, Monsignor Roberto Fontana, who voiced his personal opinions on contemporary events while stationed in Portugal. [Nuno Vila-Santa]
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