medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
culture
Today (5. November) is also the feast day of:
Trofimena (d. before 838). Condemned to death for refusing to
sacrifice at pagan altars, Trofimena fled her Sicilian parents but died
at sea; her body, laid to rest in a _sepulcrum_ of some sort, was
guided by an angel to Minori (Campania; on the Amalfi Coast), where it
was discovered on the shore by a woman doing her wash. Miracles
indicated that this was something special. Ecclesiastical authorities
were called, examination of the _sepulcrum_ led to the discovery of an
inscription on it giving in brief the story of this virgin martyr, a
decision was made to bring her to the town, but her heavy yet rapidly
moving _sepulcrum_, drawn by or perhaps drawing two white heifers that
had been yoked to it for this task, came to a complete stop at the spot
where her church was subsequently built over it.
Thus far the details of our source document for the legend, the
_Historia inventionis ac translationis sanctae Trophimenae_ (BHL 8316-
8318;_Acta Sanctorum_, ed. novissima, Iulii tomus secundus, pp. 231-
40), which goes on to recount various early translations through T.'s
return to Minori in 839. Usually thought to be of the early tenth
century but sometimes dated to the late eleventh or early twelfth, this
account has been praised by Massimo Oldoni for its narrative structure
and stylistic elegance. Although Oldoni is less taken with the verse
inscription said to have been carved on the _sepulcrum_, that too has
its moments, esp. its final lines:
Membra dedit Reginniculis, animamque Tonanti.
Hinc Christi inter odoriferas depascitur aulas.
("Her body she gave to the people of Minori and her soul to God.
Henceforth she is nourished in Christ's odoriferous halls.")
T. has been Minori's patron ever since. The city's ex-cathedral (from
987 to 1818 Minori had a diocese of its own) is dedicated to her and
houses some of her remains. Half of her corpse (divided
longitudinally, apparently) was retained at Benevento when she was
returned from there in 839. In the early modern period she was equated
with the Febronia venerated at Patti (Sicily) and some of her remains
at Minori were transported there to satisfy Patti's desire for relics
of its own similarly legendary saint.
T.'s eleventh- and twelfth-century "romanesque" basilica at Minori was
rebuilt in baroque style during the later eighteenth century; in the
print from 1703 fuzzily shown at top center here:
http://www.proloco.minori.sa.it/foto_minori_antica.htm
the older structure (laid out along the space of the current building's
transepts) is marked as no. 1.
Two aerial photographs showing the present transepts are here (use the
belltower to find the church):
http://www.hotelolimpico.it/downminori.htm
The saint's relics (said to have been rediscovered in 1793) are in a
marble tomb in the crypt; see the photographs halfway down this page:
http://www.asmez.it/minori/001C.htm
A striking medieval survival, though, is the twelfth-century belltower
of the now-demolished church of the Annunziata, seen here (second
photograph) rising up among the lemon groves:
http://www.proloco-unpli.it/proloco_italiane/minori.htm
Its detailed inlay work can be better seen here:
http://www.proloco.minori.sa.it/Campanile%20Annunziata.htm
At Minori T.'s main liturgical feast is today but she has others here
as well: her patronal feast on 13 July (formerly celebrated on 10
December in commemoration of Minori's fortunate escape from a Muslim
raid) and, on or about 27 November, the celebration of the discovery of
her relics (now combined with a civic Holiday festival in which T.
announces the coming of Christmas). Because of her identification with
Febronia and/or with other saints named Trofima or the like, she will
be found in differing places and under differing headings in
calendrically ordered books of the saints and in other works of
reference.
For more on T., her legend, and her churches, see:
Giuseppe Arlotta, "Da Trofimena di Minori a Febronia di Patti: un culto
dell'eta' moderna," in Reginald Gregoire, ed., _Febronia e Trofimena:
Agiografia latina nel Mediterraneo altomedievale. Atti della Giornata
di Studio, Patti, 18 luglio 1998_ (Cava de' Tirreni: Avagliano, 2000),
pp. 71-138.
Riccardo Avallone, "La 'Historia S. Trophimenae' e il 'Chronicon
Salernitanum'", _Critica letteraria_ 18 (1990), 757-74.
Massimo Oldoni, "Agiografia longobarda tra secolo IX e X: la leggenda
di Trofimena," _Studi medievali_, 3a serie, 12 (1971), 583-636.
Best,
John Dillon
(updating a posting from a year ago)
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