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medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture On Friday, January 28, 2011, at 7:47 am, Genevra Kornbluth wrote: > In celebration of Charlemagne, I can't resist a few image references... > Several of his seals, some possibly understood as portraits though > using earlier Roman engraved gems: > http://www.kornbluthphoto.com/Carolingian5.html Dear Genevra, Thanks very much for these. Charlemagne's personal adoption of a portrait gem of Serapis (Sarapis) might strike some as a real hoot: http://www.kornbluthphoto.com/images/Char775.jpg But of course Serapis had been interpreted in Christian antiquity as Joseph perverted into a pagan idol. The _locus classicus_ for this is Firmicus Maternus, _De errore profanarum religionum_, 13. 1-6 (with Joseph honored after his death for his having, with grain he had earlier caused to have saved, fed Egypt during a great famine and with the _Ser-_ or _Sar-_ part of the god's name betokening Joseph's descent from Sarah). Would some in Charlemagne's court have known that the bust on the gem was that of Serapis? And would they have been aware of the god's purported origin as Joseph? St. Paulinus of Nola, at _Carmina_, 19 (one of Paulinus' _natalicia_ for St. Felix of Nola, discussed on this list earlier this month), verses 100-110, is quite specific both about Serapis having a basket on his head and about that basket's representing Joseph's feeding his people with stored grain whose collection and preservation had been divinely inspired : ...ut Serapi sanctum formaret Ioseph, 100 Nomine ferali abscondens venerabile nomen, Cum tamen ipsa fidem simulacri forma doceret, Qua modius capiti superest, quia frugibus olim Ante famem Domino sic inspirante coactis Innumeras gentes Aegypti ex ubere pavit, 105 Et steriles annos annis saturavit opimis. Sed ne ultra sanctus coleretur honore profano, Mens arcana Dei devotae pectora plebis Immissis acuit stimulis, cultumque nefandi Daemonis everso, fractoque Serapide clausit. 110 <http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/paulinus.poemata.html> Best, John Dillon ********************************************************************** To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: [log in to unmask] For further information, visit our web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html