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The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity


from its origins to circa AD 700, across the entire Christian world


The second edition of the Liber Pontificalis, written in Latin in Rome between the 530s and 546, in its account of *Symmachus (bishop and confessor of Rome, ob. 514, S00793), lists his building works at, and donations to, the churches of various saints in Rome and its region during his episcopate (498-514).

Evidence ID

E01350

Type of Evidence

Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)

Major author/Major anonymous work

Liber Pontificalis

Liber Pontificalis 53

First edition (reconstituted by Duchesne)

The passage on Symmachus' foundations and offerings can be found only in the second edition.


Second edition

[ST AGATHA, AND ST PANCRATIUS]

Hic fecit basilicam sanctae martyris Agathae, via Aurelia, in fundum Lardarium: a fundamento cum fontem extruxit, ubi posuit arcos argenteos II. Eodem tempore fecit basilicam sancti Pancratii, ubi et fecit arcum argenteum, pens. lib. XV; fecit autem in eodem loco balneum.

'He built the basilica of saint Agatha the martyr on the via Aurelia at the Lardarius estate; he constructed it from the ground up, with a font, where he placed 2 silver arches. At the same time he built the basilica of saint Pancratius; he provided a silver arch weighing 15 lb and there he also built a bath.'


[ST PAUL]
Item aput beatum Paulum apostolum: in basilicam renovavit absidam, quae in ruina inminebat, et post confessionem picturam ornavit et cameram fecit et matroneum; et super confessionem imaginem argenteam cum Salvatorem et XII apostolos posuit, qui pens. lib. CXX; et ante fores basilicae grados fecit in atrium et cantarum; et post absidam aquam introduxit, ubi et balneum a fundamento fecit.

'Also, at the blessed Paul the apostle: in the basilica he renewed the apse which was threatening to collapse; he provided a picture as decoration behind the
confessio, and built an apse-vault and a matroneum. Over the confessio he placed a silver image of the Saviour and the 12 apostles, weighing 120 lb. He built steps in front of the basilica’s doors into the atrium, and a fountain. Behind the apse he had water laid on, and he also built a bath there from the ground up.'


[STS MARTIN AND SILVESTER, STS IOHANNES AND PAULUS, ST MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL, AND STS COSMAS AND DAMIANUS AT THE BASILICA OF ST MARY]

Intra civitatem Romanam basilicam sanctorum Silvestri et Martini a fundamento construxit iuxta Traianas, ubi et super altare tyburium argenteum fecit, qui pens. lib. CXX; arcos argenteos XII, qui pens. sing. lib. X; confessionem argenteam, qui pens. lib. XV. Ad beatum Iohannem et Paulum fecit grados post absidam. Item ad archangelum Michahel basilicam ampliavit et grados fecit et introduxit aquam. Item ad sancta Maria oratorium sanctorum Cosmae et Damiani a fundamento construxit.

'Inside Rome he constructed the basilica of saints Silvester and Martin from the ground up, close to the [baths of] Trajan, where he also built a silver canopy over the altar, weighing 120 lb; 12 silver arches each weighing 10 lb;
a silver
confessio weighing 15 lb. At saints Iohannes and Paulus he built steps behind the apse. At saint Michael the Archangel he enlarged the basilica, built steps, and laid on water. Also, at saint Mary’s he constructed the oratory of saints Cosmas and Damianus from the ground up.'
 

[ST PETER 'ON THE VIA TRIBUNA'; OFFERINGS AND REFURBISHMENTS AT THE CHURCHES OF PAUL, PETER, LAURENCE, FELICITAS, AND AGNES]

Item via Tribuna, miliario XXVII ab urbe Roma, rogatus ab Albino et Glaphyra pp inlustris de proprio facientes a fundamento, basilicam beato Petro in fundum Pacinianum dedicavit. Item ad beatum Petrum et ad beatum Paulum et ad sanctum Laurentium pauperibus habitacula construxit. Item ad beatum Petrum XX cantara argentea fecit, pens. sing. lib. XV; arcos argenteos XXII, pens. sing. lib. XX. Hic reparavit basilicam sanctae Felicitatis, qui in ruinam inminebat. Hic absidam beatae Agnae quae in ruinam inminebat et omnem basilicam renovavit.

'Also, on the via Tribuna at the 27th mile from Rome, at the request of the illustrious praetorian prefect Albinus and of Glaphyra who did the building from the ground up at their own expense, he dedicated a basilica to saint Peter, on the Pacinianus estate. Also, at St Peter’s, St Paul’s, and St Laurence’s he constructed accommodation for the poor.
Also at St Peter’s he provided: 20 silver chandeliers each weighing 15 lb; 22 silver arches each weighing 20 lb. He repaired the basilica of saint Felicitas, which was threatening to collapse. He renewed the apse of St Agnes’ which was threatening to collapse, and the whole basilica.'

 
[
NATALICIA OF MARTYRS, AND THE BODY OF ST ALEXANDER]

Hic constituit, ut omne die dominicum vel natalicia martyrum
Gloria in excelsis hymnus diceretur. Hic fecit cymiterium Iordanorum in melius propter corpus sancti Alexandri.

'He decreed that on every Lord’s day and on the feasts of martyrs (
natalicia martyrum) the hymn ‘Glory be to God on high’ should be sung. For the sake of the body of saint Alexander, he improved the cemetery of the Jordani.'


Text: Duchesne 1886, 262-263.
Translation: Davis 2010, 44-45, lightly modified.

Cult Places

Cult building - independent (church)
Cult building - dependent (chapel, baptistery, etc.)
Burial site of a saint - cemetery/catacomb

Use of Images

Commissioning/producing an image

Non Liturgical Activity

Bequests, donations, gifts and offerings
Construction of cult buildings
Renovation and embellishment of cult buildings

Relics

Bodily relic - entire body

Protagonists in Cult and Narratives

Ecclesiastics - bishops
The socially marginal (beggars, prostitutes, thieves)
Aristocrats

Cult Related Objects

Precious material objects
Water basins
Oil lamps/candles

Source

The Liber Pontificalis consists of a series of very short lives of popes. The preface attributes it to pope Damasus (366-384), but this attribution is obviously false. According to Louis Duchesne, the first modern editor of the Liber Pontificalis, the original series of lives was written in Rome by an anonymous author, probably a member of the lesser clergy, in the 530s, and contained the lives from *Peter the Apostle to Felix IV (ob. 530). Shortly after, before 546, the text was re-edited by another anonymous author and only this edition survives. The first edition, however, can be reconstituted on the basis of its two epitomes (and the second edition). The second edition started to be continued systematically from the time of pope Honorius (625–638). It should be noted that Theodor Mommsen dated both editions of the Liber Pontificalis to the 7th century, but his opinion is widely rejected and the commonly accepted dating is that of Duchesne.

For the pre-Constantinian period (before 312), the credibility of the
Liber Pontificalis is very low. The chronology is confused, and details concerning the personal lives, decisions and ordinations of the bishops of Rome at best reflect what people in the 6th century trusted to be true, at worst are a pure invention of the author. The situation changes with the later lives. Already the information of 4th-century papal foundations and offerings are generally trustworthy. The early 6th-century evidence, based on the author's first hand knowledge is even better, though still imperfect.

Discussion

The church of St Agatha on the via Aurelia does not exist anymore.

The basilica of St Pancratius on the Janiculum is still extant, San Pancrazio.

St Paul's is San Paolo fuori le mura.

The church of Sts Martin and Silvester, was most probably the rebuilt
Titulus Equitii, founded by pope Silvester (Liber Pontificalis, ch. 34), and known today as San Martino ai Monti.

The basilica of St Michael the Archangel cannot be identified with any certainty.

The church of St Mary is today's Santa Maria Maggiore.

The church of Sts Iohannes and Paulus is the basilica of Santi Giovanni e Paolo on the Caelian Hill.

The basilica of St Peter on the 'via Tribuna' cannot be identified; there was no Roman road of this name; the author possibly meant the via Tiberina. Albinus can be probably identified with the consul of AD 498.

St Felicitas' oratory was founded by Boniface I (see E01285).

St Agnes' church is the Constantinian church of Sant' Agnese fuori le mura, now in ruins.


Bibliography

Edition:
Duchesne, L., Le Liber pontificalis. 2 vols (Paris: E. Thorin, 1886-1892) (with substantial introduction and commentary).

Translation:
Davis, R., The Book of Pontiffs (Liber Pontificalis) (Translated Texts for Historians 6; 3rd ed.; Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2010).

Further reading:
Krautheimer, R., Corpus Basilicarum Christianarum Romae: The early Christian Basilicas of Rome (IV–IX Centuries), Vatican City 1937–1977

Brandenburg, H.,
Ancient churches of Rome from the fourth to the seventh century : the dawn of Christian architecture in the West, Turnhout 2005.


Record Created By

Robert Wiśniewski

Date of Entry

Related Saint Records
IDNameName in SourceIdentity
S00008Paul, the ApostlePaulusCertain
S00033Mary, Mother of ChristMariaCertain
S00037Laurence/Laurentius, deacon and martyr of RomeLaurentiusCertain
S00050Martin, ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397MartinusCertain
S00084Apostles, unnamed or name lostCertain
S00097Agnes, virgin and martyr of RomeAgnaCertain
S00127Alexander, Eventius and Theodolus, bishop, priest and deacon, martyrs of RomeAlexanderCertain
S00181Michael, the ArchangelMichahelCertain
S00307Pancratius, martyr of RomePancratiusCertain
S00384Iohannes and Paulus, brothers and eunuchs, martyrs of Rome under the emperor JulianIohannes, PaulusCertain
S00385Kosmas and Damianos, brothers, physician martyrs of SyriaCosmas, DamianusCertain
S00397Silvester, bishop of Rome, ob. 336SilvesterCertain
S00525Felicitas, martyr of Rome, with her sons, buried on the via SalariaFelicitasCertain
S00794Agatha, virgin and martyr of CataniaAgathaCertain


Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Robert Wiśniewski, Cult of Saints, E01350 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01350