This study traces the genealogy of SaintPerpetua’s story with a straightforward yet previously overlooked question atits center: How was Perpetua remembered and to what uses was that memory put? Oneof the most popular and venerated saints from 200 CE to the thirteenth century,the story of Saint Perpetua was retold in dramatically different forms acrossthe European Middle Ages. Her story begins in the arena at Carthage: a22-year-old nursing mother named Vibia Perpetua was executed for being aChristian, leaving behind a self-authored account of her time in prison leadingup to her martyrdom. By turns loving mother, militant gladiator, empathic youngwoman, or unattainable ideal, Saint Perpetua’s story ultimately helps to tracethe circulation of texts and the transformations of ideals of Christianwomanhood between the third and thirteenth centuries.
