medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Today (10. October) is the feast day of:
Gereon and companions, martyred at Köln; Cassius and Florentius,
martyred at Bonn; Victor and Mallosus, martyred at Köln (all d. ca. 304,
supposedly). These are saints of Germania Inferior with cults that were
already well attested in the sixth century and with churches originating
in the central Middle Ages that (at least Köln and at Xanten) replaced
late antique martyria located in or next to early Christian cemeteries.
The tale grew up that they were all members of the Theban Legion,
leading to their customary representation as soldier-saints. Though the
three towns did indeed house Roman garrisons, civilians of course lived
there as well. Whether these saints' later memory as soldiers is
factually correct is unknown.
Gereon has a wonderful church at Köln not far from the cathedral. An
aerial view is here:
http://www.stgereon.de/Basilika/allgemein/13kl.jpg
and a virtual tour is here:
http://www.stgereon.de/Basilika/allgemein/Ueberblick_Rundgang.html
(NB: the individual sections are more than one page deep; clicking at
lower right will bring you more).
An illustrated, German-language description of the Münster at Bonn
(dedicated to Cassius and Florentius) is here:
http://www.rhein-sieg.city-map.de/city/db/042702011700.html
and a virtual tour is here:
http://www.bonner-muenster.de/basilika/rundgang.html
(Click on "Virtuellen Rundgang starten").
Xanten's present cathedral of St. Victor was begun in 1190. Most of it
is of the later thirteenth to early sixteenth centuries. A couple of
illustrated sites on it are here:
http://tinyurl.com/9b92v
and here:
http://www.premontre.org/subpages/loci/imagines/imxanten/galxanten.htm
A single exterior view:
http://www.xanten.de/img/bigimg/domstviktorkirmes.jpg
A different exterior view and five interior ones (all expandable):
http://oase.uci.kun.nl/~hvreenen/bio/20040102_dom_xanten/analoog/
Two views of V.'s shrine:
http://www.bistumsjubilaeum2005.de/index.php?cat_id=9947
http://cms.kirchensite.de/image/Bistum/UnserBistum/schrein.jpg
Best,
John Dillon
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