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In countless medieval images, the devil appears in the middle of hell as the master of torments and the ruler of the infernal realm. His figure is larger than that of other demons. He sits on a throne or on a monstrous beast that serves as his throne. He wears a crown and holds a scepter in his hand. Around him are lined up demons - courtiers and advisers. These details, which were clearly borrowed from the iconography of earthly monarchs, emphasized the power of the devil and his special position at the top of the underground hierarchy. At the same time, in many images, Satan's greatness is combined with humiliation. His legs are fettered and a collar is placed around his neck. These details, in accordance with the ancient doctrine of the Church, emphasized the devil's impotence, reminding us that he is a rebellious angel who has fallen from the divine order and is doomed to eternal punishment. Thus, in medieval iconography, Satan appears both as the ruler of the underworld and as one of its prisoners. We suggest looking at how the other world began to be represented according to the monarchy model, how the devil received the insignia of earthly rulers, and how medieval clerics simultaneously frightened their flock with Satan and reminded them of how weak and ridiculous he was. Lecturer: Mikhail Maizuls, medieval historian, research fellow at the Russian State University for the Humanities, author of the book “Between Christ and the Antichrist. Hieronymus Bosch’s “Adoration of the Magi” and co-author of the book “The Suffering Middle Ages. Paradoxes of Christian Iconography.” Our website: http://nekrasovka.ru/ VK: http://vk.com/nekrasovkalibrary Telegram: https://t.me/nekrasovkalibrary Subscribe to the channel: / @nekrasovkalibrary