Evidence ID
E02254
Type of Evidence
Literary - Poems
Inscriptions - Funerary inscriptions
Major author/Major anonymous work
Martin of Braga
(Ps.-?)Martin of Braga, Epitaph
EPITAPHIUM EIUSDEM
Pannoniis genitus, transcendens aequora vasta,
Galliciae in gremium divinis nutibus actus,
Confessor Martine, tua hac dicatus in aula,
Antistes cultum institui ritumque sacrorum,
Teque, patrone, sequens famulus Martinus eodem
Nomine, non merito, hic in Christi pace quiesco.
'HIS EPITAPH
Born in Pannonia, crossing vast plains, and brought to the lap of Galicia by the command of God, I was consecrated in this hall of yours, o confessor Martin; as a high-priest I organised the cult and the rite of the sacred. I, Martin, of the same name but not of the same merit, following you, my patron, as a servant, rest here in the peace of Christ.'
Text: Barlow 1950, 283.
Translation: M. Szada.
Cult PlacesSaint as patron - of an individual
Protagonists in Cult and Narratives
Cult building - independent (church)
Non Liturgical ActivitySaint as patron - of an individual
Burial ad sanctos
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Source
This epitaph was presumably inscribed on the tomb of Martin of Braga. It was supposedly written by Martin himself (see e.g. Barlow 1950, 276-277), but Farmhouse Alberto 1994 convincingly demonstrated that the poem differs significantly from the language and poetic expression known from the other works of Martin. The author was probably someone less experienced in literary expression and metrics.Gregory of Tours (Histories 5.37; E02171) dates the death of Martin of Braga to AD 580.
Discussion
Like his namesake, Martin of Tours, Martin of Braga originated from Pannonia, on the upper Danube, before travelling to the Holy Land and then making the long journey to Galicia in the far north-west of the Iberian peninsula. He founded the monastery in Dumio where he became a bishop around 550-560. After 561 and before 572 he became the bishop of Braga. In this epitaph, Martin of Braga's devotion to Martin of Tours is explicitly explained by their sharing a name in common and having a common region of origin.Bibliography
Editions:C. Barlow, Martini episcopi Bracarensis opera omnia (New Haven 1950).
J. Vives, Inscripciones cristianas de la España romana y visigoda (Barcelona 1942), no. 349.
Further reading:
P. Farmhouse Alberto, "Para uma revalorizaçao dos poemas de Martinho de Braga", Evphrosyne: Revista de filología clássica 22 (1994), 215-223.
Record Created By
Marta Szada
Date of Entry
16/01/2017
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00050 | Martin, ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397 | Martinus | Certain |
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Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Marta Szada, Cult of Saints, E02254 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E02254