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The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity


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


Sidonius Apollinaris in his Letter 7.1 to Mamertus, of c. 474, recounts how Mamertus, bishop of Vienne (south-east Gaul), found and translated the body of *Ferreolus (soldier and martyr of Vienne, S01893) and the head of *Julian (martyr of Brioude, S00035). Written in Latin at Clermont (central Gaul).

Evidence ID

E06742

Type of Evidence

Literary - Letters

Sidonius Apollinaris, Letters 7.1.7

In this letter, Sidonius recounts the incursions of the Visigoths and the deeds of Mamertus, especially his introduction of the Rogations (which were afterwards adopted by Sidonius at Clermont). He also mentions this discovery and translation of martyrs' relics:

Et quia tibi soli concessa est, post avorum memoriam vel confessorem Ambrosium, duorum martyrum repertorem, in partibus orbis occidui martyris Ferreoli solida translatio adiecto nostri capite Iuliani, quod istine turbulento quondam persecutori manus rettulit cruenta carnificis.

‘Moreover, you have been granted a privilege unique in the western world within the memory of our grandfathers, or in other words, since the time of the Confessor Ambrose, discoverer of two martyrs: for you have translated the complete body of Ferreolus together with the head of our Julianus, which in bygone days the bloody hand of the executioner brought away to the brutal persecutor.’


Text and translation: Anderson 1965, 290-293.

Cult Places

Burial site of a saint - unspecified

Relics

Bodily relic - entire body
Bodily relic - head
Discovering, finding, invention and gathering of relics
Transfer, translation and deposition of relics

Protagonists in Cult and Narratives

Ecclesiastics - bishops

Source

Sidonius Apollinaris was born at Lyon about 430, into a senatorial family. He witnessed the disintegration of the Roman Empire in the West and met or corresponded with many important people of his times. He passed through the regular courses in grammar, literature, rhetoric, philosophy and law in his native city, and his works – Poems and Letters – reflect his academic training. He wrote poetry from his early years. Until his election as bishop of Clermont in 469 or 470, Sidonius had a career in secular politics. He resided in Clermont till his death, perhaps in 489.

Sidonius'
Letters consist of nine books, containing 149 letters addressed to about a hundred correspondents, including officials and bishops. He started preparing his Letters for publication probably about 469, though this date is hypothetical. Books 1-7 were published in about 477, Book 8 in about 480, and Book 9 in about 482. The collection starts with an introductory letter, in which Sidonius dedicated the work to his friend Constantius (PCBE 4, 'Constantius 3'), a priest of Lyon who was also a writer, notably of the Life of *Germanus of Auxerre (E05841). Originally, Book 7 was the intended end, as its last letter, also dedicated to Constantius, states. However more of Sidonius’ friends wished to be represented in the collection. Book 8 was compiled at the instance of Petronius, a jurisconsult of Arles and lover of letters (PCBE 4, 'Petronius 3'), and Book 9 was requested by Firminus, a learned man of Arles (PCBE 4, 'Firminus 1).

Sidonius revised his letters before publication and added several specially composed on this occasion. His chief model was Pliny, who also wrote nine books of letters. They are not arranged in chronological order, though in broad terms those in the earlier books are earlier than those in the later ones, with the letters in Books 1 and 2 dating from before Sidonius’ election as bishop in 469/470. The
Letters are a major source of information about many aspects of the civil and ecclesiastical life of Sidonius’ time.

For more on Sidonius' biography, his works, and their dating see PCBE 4, 'Sidonius 1', as well as works below, such as Harries 1994, and Mathisen 2013.


Discussion

This letter can be dated to about 473/4, since it was written when the Romans and Goths were still fighting for control of the Auvergne. The addressee Mamertus (who became bishop of Vienne at some point between 451 and 463) is also known to have died around this time (PCBE 4, 'Mamertus'). A greatly elaborated description of the event that Sidonius mentions is provided by Gregory of Tours in his Miracles of Julian (E05137).

Sidonius praises this discovery by paralleling it with the famous discovery by Ambrose, bishop of Milan, of the bodies of the martyrs *Gervasius and Protasius (S00313), probably in 386 (see E00904).


Bibliography

Editions and translations:
Anderson, W.B.,
Sidonius, Poems. Letters. 2 vols (Loeb Classical Library 296, 420; Cambridge MA/London, 1936, 1965).

Loyen, A.,
Sidoine Apollinaire, Poèmes (Paris, 1960); Lettres. 2 vols. (Paris, 1970).

Further reading:
Dalton. O.M., The Letters of Sidonius. 2 vols. (Oxford, 1915).

Harries, J., Sidonius Apollinaris and the Fall of Rome (Oxford, 1994).

Mathisen, R.W., "Dating the Letters of Sidonius," in: J. van Waarden and G. Kelly (eds.),
New Approaches to Sidonius Apollinaris (Leuven, 2013), 221-248.

Pietri, L., and Heijmans, M. (eds.),
Prosopographie chrétienne du Bas-Empire, 4: Prosopographie de la Gaule chrétienne (314-614). 2 vols. (Paris, 2013). (= PCBE)


Record Created By

Katarzyna Wojtalik

Date of Entry

07/10/2018

Related Saint Records
IDNameName in SourceIdentity
S00035Julian, martyr of Brioude (southern Gaul)IulianusCertain
S00313Gervasius and Protasius, brothers and martyrs of MilanCertain
S00490Ambrose, bishop of Milan, ob. 397AmbrosiusCertain
S01893Ferreolus, soldier and martyr of VienneFerreolusCertain


Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Katarzyna Wojtalik, Cult of Saints, E06742 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E06742