Fourteen relic labels discovered within the Sancta Sanctorum of the Lateran church of San Lorenzo in Palatio (Rome), datable by their script to the 7th or 8th c., for relics of various saints. One label claims that its relics have come from the monastery of Lérins (southern Gaul). Written in Latin, perhaps at Rome, or at an earlier stage in their transmission.
E08361
Documentary texts - Relic label
Late antique original manuscripts - Parchment sheet
Late antique original manuscripts - Papyrus sheet
Relic labels of the Sancta sanctorum (ed. Galland)
20.
De s(an)c(t)a Lucia
'[Relics] of Saint Lucia'
[*Lucia, virgin and martyr of Syracuse, S00846]
22.
S(an)c(t)i Cibriani
'[Relics] of Saint Cyprian'
[*Cyprian, bishop and martyr of Carthage, S00411]
28.
R(eliquias) s(an)c(t)i Aldigundae . uirginis
'Relics of the virgin Saint Aldegund'
[*Aldegund, abbess of Maubeuge, ob. c. 680, S03031]
29.
R(eliquias) de s(an)c(t)o Isa<ac>
'Relics of Saint Isaac'
[*Isaac, Old Testament patriarch, S00276]
30.
R(eliquias) s(an)c(t)o(rum) Cosme . Damiani
'Relics of Saints Cosmas and Damian'
[*Cosmas/Kosmas and Damianos, brothers and physician martyrs of Syria, S00385]
31.
R(eliquias) s(an)c(t)o Michahel
'Relics of Saint Michael'
[*Michael, the Archangel, S00181]
41.
Rel(iquias) s(an)c(t)i Amus
'Relics of Saint Amos'
[*Amos, Old Testament prophet, S01419]
44.
Rel(iquias) s(an)c(t)o Caritto
'Relics of Saint Charito'
[presumably *Charito, martyr of Rome, S00930]
66.
De sepulchro s(an)c(t)i Maria
'From the tomb of Saint Mary'
[*Mary, mother of Christ, S00033]
90.
Reliquias de s(an)c(t)o Constantino
'Relics of Saint Constantine'
[Presumably *Constantine, emperor, ob. 337, S00186]
96.
† Saluatoris s(an)c(t)ę Marta et s(an)c(t)i Michahel
'† [Relics] of the Saviour, of Saint Martha and of Saint Michael'
[presumably *Martha of Bethany, follower of Jesus, S01326; *Michael the Archangel, S00181]
97.
R(e)l(iquias) diuersas de Lirino mon(asterio) id est palhiu(m) s(an)c(t)ae Mariae nigro colore
'Various relics from the monastery of Lérins; that is, the black-coloured pall of Saint Mary'
[*Mary, mother of Christ, S00033]
98.
]te(,) s(an)c(t)i Sergi et Bachi
'..te[?], of Saints Sergius and Bacchus'
[*Sergios, soldier and martyr of Rusafa, S00023; *Bacchus/Bakchos, soldier and martyr of Barbalissos, S00079].
124.
† terra de spilunca Elisabet cun Io<han>ne
'† Earth from the cave of Elisabeth and John'
[*Elisabeth, mother of John the Baptist, S01328; *John the Baptist, S00020]
Text: Galland 2004.
Translation: B. Savill.
Cult building - monastic
Holy cave
RelicsUnspecified relic
Collections of multiple relics
Contact relic - other object closely associated with saint
Transfer/presence of relics from distant countries
Transfer, translation and deposition of relics
Source
130 relic labels (authentiques) were recovered in 1905 from the Sancta sanctorum, or altar treasury, of the Roman church of San Lorenzio in Palatio (part of the papal Lateran palace complex since the sixth century). According to a twelfth-century account, the first collection of relics may have been deposited there by Pope Leo III (795-816). The surviving labels are of varying provenance and have been assigned dates between the seventh and thirteenth centuries.We have included in this entry the thirteen labels for relics of saints which, according to their most recent edition (Galland, 2004) may be datable to before c. 700; we have also added a further label (no. 98), dated in a different edition to c. 700 (Petrucci and Tjäder, 1983). For four further labels of uncertain identification, see E08362.
For further collections of relic labels, see those extant from Saint-Maurice d'Agaune (E07438, E08075, E08076, E08077, E08078, E08079), Sens (E08315), Solignac (E08316) and Cantù (E08363). The other major surviving collection, that of the nunnery of Chelles, does not include any items datable to before 700.
For full discussion of this category of evidence, see Smith 2020.
Discussion
Among the 16 different saints recorded on these labels, there is only one near-contemporary or transalpine figure: Aldegund, from north-east Merovingian Gaul (ob. c. 680: her earliest known Life probably dates from the 8th century and is not included in our database). Notably, Aldegund is also by some distance the 'youngest' saint recorded in the entire 130-label collection. Her relics were presumably brought to Rome by a pilgrim from the north.The cave of Elisabeth and John was a site near Jerusalem where the infant John the Baptist and his mother, Elisabeth, were miraculously sheltered from the Massacre of the Innocents (see the Discussion under E02829).
Eight of these labels have been identified as belonging to identifiable subgroups of depositions within the larger Sancta sanctorum collection (Galland 2004, 49-51):
Labels 20 (Lucia) and 22 (Cyprian) are written in the same 7th/8th c. uncial script, and appear to derive from the same strip of parchment.
Labels 28 (Aldegund), 30 (Cosmas and Damian), 29 (Isaac) and 31 (Michael) are written in the same late 7th/8th c. semi-cursive script.
Labels 41 (Amos) and 44 (Charito) are written in the same 7th/8th c. 'pre-Caroline' script, and appear to derive from the same strip of parchment.
All labels in this entry are on parchment, except nos. 96-7, which are written directly onto textiles, and 98, on papyrus. All are catalogued today as Vatican City, Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana, Vat. Lat. 15294, except no. 124 (written on off-cuts of a 5th/6th c. Livy manuscript), catalogued as part of Vat. Lat. 10696. For sample photographs, see the 'Images' tab.
Bibliography
Editions:Galland, B., Les authentiques de reliques du sancta sanctorum (Vatican City, 2004).
Petrucci, A., and Tjäder, J.-O., Chartae Latinae Antiquiores XXII. Italy III (Dietikon-Zurich, 1983).
Further reading:
Smith, J.M.H., "Care of Relics in Early Medieval Rome," in: V.L. Garver and O.M. Phelan (eds.), Rome and Religion in the Medieval World: Studies in Honor of Thomas F.X. Noble (Farnham, 2014), 179-206.
Smith, J.M.H., "The Remains of the Saints: The Evidence of Early Medieval Relic Collections," Early Medieval Europe 28 (2020), 388-424.
Images
)
no. 20 (Lucia): from Galland 2004
)
no. 28 (Aldegund): from Galland 2004
)
no. 90 (Constantine): from Galland 2004
)
no. 97 (relics from Lérins, Mary's pall): from Galland 2004
)
no. 98 (Sergius and Bacchus): from Galland 2004
)
no. 124 (Elisabeth and John the Baptist, on a Livy manuscript): from Galland 2004
Benjamin Savill
18/11/2022
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00020 | John the Baptist | Iohanes | Certain | S00023 | Sergios, soldier and martyr of Rusafa | Sergius | Certain | S00033 | Mary, Mother of Christ | Maria | Certain | S00079 | Bakchos, soldier and martyr of Barbalissos | Bachus | Certain | S00181 | Michael, the Archangel | Michahel | Certain | S00186 | Constantine, emperor, ob. 337 | Constantinus | Uncertain | S00276 | Isaac, Old Testament patriarch | Isaac | Certain | S00385 | Kosmas and Damianos, brothers, physician martyrs of Syria | Cosma . Damianus | Certain | S00411 | Cyprian, bishop and martyr of Carthage | Cibrianus | Certain | S00846 | Lucia, virgin and martyr of Syracuse | Lucia | Certain | S00930 | Ioustinos, Chariton, Charito, Euelpistos, Hierax, Paion, Liberianos and their companions, martyrs of Rome | Caritto | Certain | S01326 | Mary and Martha of Bethany, followers of Jesus and sisters of Lazarus | Marta | Certain | S01328 | Elisabeth, mother of John the Baptist | Elisabet | Certain | S01419 | Amos, Old Testament Prophet. | Amus | Certain | S03031 | Aldegund, virgin and abbess of Maubeuge, ob. c. 680 | Aldigunda | 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, E08361 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E08361