Relic label at the monastery of Saint-Maurice d'Agaune (south-east Gaul) for relics of the Irish saints, *Brigit (abbess of Kildare, 6th c., S01885), *Dar Lugdach (abbess of Kildare, 6th c., S02806), and *Conleth (bishop of Kildare, 6th c., S02259). Written in Latin, perhaps at Kildare, or by travellers from there, c. 700, possibly earlier.
Evidence ID
E07438
Type of Evidence
Documentary texts - Relic label
Late antique original manuscripts - Parchment sheet
Archives de l'Abbaye de Saint-Maurice,
CHN 64/2/88; Smith 2015, 246, Et.57:
s(an)c(t)æ.brigtæ
s(an)c(t)æ derluigdag
s(an)c(t)i conlaith:-
'Of saint Brigit
Of saint Dar Lugdach
Of saint Conleth'
[*Brigit, abbess of Kildare, 6th c., S01885; *Dar Lugdach, abbess of Kildare, 6th c., S02806; *Conleth, bishop of Kildare, ob. c. 518/520, S02259]
Text: Smith 2015
Cult PlacesUnspecified relic
Cult building - monastic
RelicsUnspecified relic
Transfer/presence of relics from distant countries
Transfer, translation and deposition of relics
Source
Scrap of parchment, 27 x 40 mm, with three lines of inscription in an Insular hand of c. 700 or earlier (see image). From Saint-Maurice d'Agaune's reliquary-head of Saint Candidus. The small size of the document, and the use of the genitive for the names of the saints, is typical of labels attached to relics.Around 100 such relic labels survive at Agaune, though all now detached from the small relic bundles that they once identified. Of these, twenty-eight can be dated by their script as probably, or possibly earlier than 700 (the cut-off date for our database). Of the twenty-eight, four relate to Holy Land relics or relics associated with Christ, and so have not been entered by us (Smith 2015, Et.10, 15, 20 and 66), but the remaining twenty-four all relate to saints (for these, see also E08075, E08076, E08077, E08078 and E08079.
The saints recorded in these early labels are an interesting mix: only two are biblical (Mary and Matthew); a few are from distant lands (Alexandria and Chalcedon at one geographical extreme, Ireland at the other); several are Italian, particularly from Rome and Milan; some are long-established saints of Gaul; a few are saints of Agaune itself; and, somewhat unexpectedly, several are Merovingian bishops, only recently dead.
Only one label identifies the nature of the relic within the bundle to which it was attached (in this case, a fragment of the clothing of the Virgin Mary), which suggests little interest in the physical character of the holy object. What mattered was that the relic (whatever it was) had been closely associated with the saint or saints named on the label, and was therefore infused with their power.
For a full discussion of the Agaune relic labels, see the works by Julia Smith listed below.
Discussion
The label points to the deposition of relics at Agaune by Insular travellers from Kildare. Its squat rectangular shape is unusual (the vast majority of relic labels are long and thin), and suggests it may have been made to sit at the top of a small box, rather than to be tied to a cloth bundle.The date of this label is close to that of documented cult activity at Kildare itself - see, in particular, the probably seventh-century development of its shrine of Brigit and Conleth, as recorded in Cogitosus' Life of Brigit, itself composed c. 675 (E06130). All of this suggests 'a determined effort to shape the site into something recognisable by the norms of saints' cults elsewhere. ... Viewed from this angle, this label demonstrates unequivocally that Continental relic-making practices had been appropriated at Kildare by the end of the seventh century' (Smith, Relics and the Insular World, 13). It also suggests a concerted effort by Kildare to spread knowledge and veneration of its saints to continental Europe.
Bibliography
Text and discussion:J.M.H. Smith, "Les reliques et leurs étiquettes," in Pierre Alain Mariaux, ed., L'abbaye de Saint-Maurice d'Agaune 515-2015. Volume 2 - Le trésor (Gollion 2015), 221-57.
Further discussion:
J.M.H. Smith, Relics and the Insular World, c. 600-c. 800, Kathleen Hughes Memorial Lectures 15 (Cambridge, 2017) (no. 5).
J.M.H. Smith, "One site, many more meanings. The community of Saint-Maurice d'Agaune and its relic collection", in M.C. Miller and E. Wheatley (eds), Emotions, Communities and Difference in Medieval Europe. Essays in Honour of Barbara H. Rosenwein, (Routledge, London and New York 2017), 59-76.
J.M.H. Smith, "The Remains of the Saints: the Evidence of Early Medieval Relic Collections," Early Medieval Europe, 28 (2020), 388-424.
Images
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AASM, CHN 64/2/88. Copyright © Digiarchives 2019
Record Created By
Benjamin Savill
Date of Entry
22/03/2019
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S01885 | Brigit, abbess of Kildare, 6th c. | brigta | Certain | S02259 | Conleth, bishop of Kildare, ob. c. 518/520 | conlaith | Certain | S02806 | Dar Lugdach, abbess of Kildare, 6th c. | derluigdag | Certain |
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Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Benjamin Savill, Cult of Saints, E07438 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E07438