medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On Monday, November 29, 2004, at 8:41 pm, Phyllis wrote:
> ... Andrew is the
> patron saint of Russia (a false legend tells that he preached there)
> and of Scotland (where legend tells that A's relics were brought in
> the 4th century).
Well, so sayeth the legend. All in Campania know that in 1208 A.'s
remains were brought from Constantinople to Amalfi, where they are now
housed in the cathedral dedicated to him. Matthew of Amalfi's account
of this translation, as revised in the later thirteenth century and
published by the Comte de Riant in vol. 1 of succeeding versions of his
_Exuviae sacrae Constantinopolitanae_ (1876; 1877-78), repays reading in
several different respects. Of course, neither Matthew nor his reviser
had any idea that in the 1460s the Despot of the Morea, Thomas
Palaeologus, would bring with him into exile in Italy a head said to be
that of St. Andrew, that Pius II (whose 600th birthday we will celebrate
next year) would acquire it for the Roman church and use it as a
propaganda device for his projected crusade against the Turks, that in
this context none other than Cardinal Bessarion gave a welcoming speech
to A. in his (partial) presence in 1462, and that in 1964 Paul VI would
"return" this relic to the Greek church in Patras, the city in which A.
is said to have been martyred. Heady stuff this, and certainly worth
mentioning in even a brief commemorative note on the feast of this apostle.
Amalfi's cathedral, begun in the tenth century and much reworked over
time, retains medieval elements of some interest. Most striking perhaps
is its thirteenth-century atrium (rebuilt after the collapse of 1861) in
Normanno-Moorish style:
Facade views:
http://www.csulb.edu/~jbyrd/amalfi/amalfi03.jpg
http://www.terragalleria.com/europe/italy/amalfi-coast/picture.ital7489.html
http://greenlightwrite.com/napamal12.JPG
http://www.divingnet.info/viaggi/Amalfi/html/image018.html
Courtyard views:
http://greenlightwrite.com/Napamal15.JPG
http://www.divingnet.info/viaggi/Amalfi/html/image020.html
http://www.divingnet.info/viaggi/Amalfi/html/image021.html
Though the belltower, begun in the twelfth century and finished in 1276,
is certainly also noteworthy:
http://greenlightwrite.com/napamal14.JPG
http://www.alenapoli.org/perle/mam007_lista.htm
http://www.divingnet.info/viaggi/Amalfi/html/image022.html
There are also surviving segments of medieval fresco work:
http://www.divingnet.info/viaggi/Amalfi/html/image023.html
http://www.divingnet.info/viaggi/Amalfi/html/image024.html
The Campania Felix page (Italian-language, of course) on the cathedral
offers an account of various artistic highlights:
http://www.campaniafelix.it/amalfi/duomo.htm
As does this page, noted earlier in connection with the belltower:
http://www.alenapoli.org/perle/mam007_lista.htm
Andrew, as is well known, is a patron of fishermen. It is fitting,
therefore, to take leave of him setting sail on a fishing boat in the
harbor of Manfredonia (FG) during his patronal celebration there on 1.
September 2003:
http://www.comune.manfredonia.fg.it/festapatronale03/sandrea3.jpg
The entire page, with more shots of A. overseeing the festivities, is here:
http://www.comune.manfredonia.fg.it/festapatronale03/pag21.htm
Best,
John Dillon
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