Avitus of Vienne in his fragmentary Letter 8, written on behalf of a monarch who had recently converted to Catholic Christianity [probably Sigismund of the Burgundians] to a recipient whose name is lost [probably Pope Symmachus], celebrates the king's conversion and requests the sending of unspecified relics. Written in Latin, probably in Vienne (south-east Gaul), possibly in 501/502.
Evidence ID
E08478
Type of Evidence
Literary - Letters
Avitus of Vienne, Letter 68
Summary:
The beginning of the letter, with the name of the recipient, is lost. Avitus then speaks of a king recently converted to Catholic Christianity, who has built an 'orthodox basilica in the city which is the capital of his kingdom' (basilicam legis nostrae in urbe, quae regni sui caput est) and who now requests the sending of relics. He promises that 'whatever sacred soil or dust you send' (quicquid de sacro terrae vel pulvere miseritis) will be considered heavenly.
Text: Peiper 1883, 40-43.
Translation: Shanzer and Wood 2002, 220-24.
Summary: B. Ward-Perkins
RelicsBodily relic - corporeal ashes/dust
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - Popes
Bodily relic - corporeal ashes/dust
Contact relic - unspecified
Contact relic - dust/sand/earth
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - Popes
Monarchs and their family
Source
Alcimus Ecdicius Avitus was born into a prominent Gallo-Roman senatorial family, succeeding his father, Hesychius, as bishop of the important see of Vienne at some point before 494/496. He died in 517/518, probably in February 518.Avitus was the author of a long poem De spiritualis historiae gestis in five books (telling the story of the Old Testament from the Creation to Exodus, accompanied by interpretative passages), and a poem for his sister De consolatoria castitatis laude. He is, however, now best known for his letters: an epistolary corpus of ninety-six letters, which are in no chronological order, nor ordered by recipient. The collection ranges from the personal to the official (several were written on behalf of the Burgundian King Sigismund). Avitus corresponded with many important people of his age and his letters are of considerable importance for the ecclesiastical and political history of the years between around 495 and 518 in the Burgundian kingdom. In the letters, information relating to the churches or relics of saints is occasionally mentioned, and has been collected by us in the database.
Avitus was also the author of homilies, several relating to saints' churches. His homilies are all lost in their complete form, except for two, one of which (Homily 25; E07115) is of particular importance for the cult of saints, being delivered in 515 at the dedication of Sigismund's monastery at Agaune for the martyrs of the Theban Legion. Other homilies, some relating to the dedication of churches, have survived in fragments: preserved either in a damaged sixth-century papyrus manuscript in the Bibliothèque nationale de France, or in excerpts copied by later medieval authors.
For more on Avitus' biography, his works, and on their dating see: Shanzer and Wood 2002, 3-85 and 377; and the full biography in PCBE, 242-263, 'Avitus 2', 242-263.
Letter 8 is preserved only in a damaged sixth-century papyrus manuscript in the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and in a transcription of the same, made in the seventeenth century (when more of it survived).
Discussion
There has been much debate over the identity of the king mentioned in this letter, with some arguing for Clovis of the Franks, and others for Sigismund of the Burgundians. Shanzer and Wood discuss the issue in detail, favouring Sigismund and a date for the letter in 501/502.The recipient of the letter is also lost, but the pope in Rome is much the most likely source of the relics requested, even though relics from Rome were not normally described as 'earth or dust' (terra vel pulvis). Avitus' Letter 29, written on behalf of Sigismund to Pope Symmachus, refers to relics received from Rome (E07086), perhaps the relics requested here.
The letter is not explicit that these relics related to saints, though this is likely.
Bibliography
Edition:Peiper, R., Alcimi Ecdicii Aviti Viennensis episcopi operae quae supersunt (Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi VI.2; Berolini: Apud Weidmannos, 1883).
Translation:
Avitus of Vienne, Letters and Selected Prose, trans. D. Shanzer and I. Wood (Translated Texts for Historians, Volume 38; Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2002), also with full notes and discussion.
Further reading:
Pietri L., M. Hejmans, Prosopographie chrétienne du Bas-Empire, vol. 4: La Gaule chrétien, Paris 2013 (PCBE).
Record Created By
Bryan Ward-Perkins
Date of Entry
27/07/2023
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00518 | Saints, unnamed | Certain |
|---|
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