Magnum Legendarium Austriacum
The Magnum Legendarium Austriacum , or Great Austrian Legends Cycle , is the most important hagiographic compilation of the 12th century and represents one of the most outstanding works of medieval illuminated manuscripts .
Emergence
The Legendarium was probably started sometime between 1160 and 1170, although other research has shifted its origin to the 13th century.
The title is a bit misleading here, as it is not to be understood as the title of the manuscript, nor specifically its place of origin, but is simply derived from the fact that this work has only been preserved in Austrian libraries. The place of its origin is discussed and there are several - more or less well argued - related theses:
- Adolf Hofmeister suspects Salzburg to be the place of origin and gives evidence for this.
- Anton Kern argues for the convent near Regensburg.
- Pádraig Ó Riain argues for Regensburg.
- Albert Poncelet (for the above reason) considers Lower Austria to be the most likely place of origin and relies on the large number of Irish saints, who are thematized in order to assume that the source is one of the Scottish Benedictine monasteries .
- Karl Uhlirz basically agrees with “Salzburg”, but also offers Admont as a possible alternative (since this abbey is an offshoot of Salzburg).
- After comparing it with various other Legendarii, Joseph van der Straeten comes to the conclusion that the edition by Heiligenkreuz was the basis for all other parts.
- Charlotte Ziegler suspects a forerunner of the MLA in the legend of Cîteaux .
The importance of this work lies not only in the artistic design, but it is one of the earliest Irish manuscript traditions of this kind - the next older Irish legends date from the 14th and 15th centuries.
Details
Essentially, it is a collection of saint legends, vites, miraculous stories and passions of mainly Irish saints assigned to the individual days in the church calendar. Individual parts were found in various Austrian libraries.
The text is written in early Gothic minuscule .
Due to the differences in style and execution, the cycle can be divided into 3 parts, which in turn - are subdivided into different codes according to where they were found.
literature
- Claudia Gundacker: The lives of Irish saints in the Magnum Legendarium Austriacum . Diploma thesis, Vienna, August 2008 ( pdf , othes.univie.ac.at).
- Claudia Gundacker: Magnum Legendarium Austriacum. In: The Kuenringer. The development of the state of Lower Austria. Catalog of the Lower Austrian State Exhibition in Zwettl Abbey from May 16 to October 26, 1981. Edited by Herwig Wolfram, Karl Brunner and Gottfried Stangler. Catalog of the Lower Austrian State Museum. NF 110, Office of the Lower Austrian Provincial Government, Culture Department, Vienna 1981. XXXI, 748. 8 °. Object no .: 254, p. 246. (online 1st part ), object no .: 335, p. 312. ( 2nd part ), object no .: 194, p. 190. ( 3rd part , all uni-klu.ac.at)
Individual evidence
- ^ Albert Poncelet: De Magno Legendario Austriaco . 1898
- ↑ Literally quoted from Anton Kern: Magnum Legendarium Austriacum , 1948, pp. 429–434.
- ^ Adolf Hofmeister. In: Monuments of Pomeranian History. 1924.
- ↑ Pádraig Ó Riain: Feastdays of the Sains. A History of Irish Martyrologies. 2006.
- ↑ Karl Uhlriz: Monumenta palaeographica. 1914.
- ^ Joseph van der Straeten: Le Grand Légendrier Autrichien dans les Manuscrits de Zwettl. 1995.
- ↑ Charlotte Ziegler: Zisterzienserstift Zwettl, catalog of the manuscripts of the Middle Ages. 1992.
- ↑ Stephen Norman Tranter, Hildegard LC Tristram: Early Irish literature . 1989, p. 261