medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On Sunday, January 9, 2005, at 10:47 pm, Phyllis wrote:
> Today (10. January) is the feast day of:
> Agatho (d. 681) Agatho was a Sicilian (probably from Palermo). He
> was married for twenty years before he became a monk at Palermo, and
> became pope in 678. His pontificate is most notable for his defense
> of orthodoxy against monothelitism; his views were accepted by the
> Council of Constantinople, which debated the issue.
A.'s papacy also saw the submission of the previously autocephalous
church of Ravenna to the see of Rome and the first known papal
resolution of a dispute between English bishops (saints Theodore of
Canterbury and Wilfred of York).
The first Sicilian pope, A. is celebrated in Palermo as a local boy who
made good. Here he is, looking very authoritative in the vicinity of
Palermo's cathedral:
http://santiebeati.it/immagini/?mode=view&album=91427&pic=91427A.JPG&dispsize=Original&start=0
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/5hr5j
And again in the same general locale, giving a blessing:
http://santiebeati.it/immagini/?mode=view&album=91427&pic=91427.JPG&dispsize=Original&start=0
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/48txw
Well, that's the view of the Santi Beati site, which adduces both of
these as portraits of A. Does anyone know which of these actually
represents him?
Palermo's cathedral is guarded on the south side by statues of popes, e.g.:
http://www.worksandwords.com/photos/a23.htm
http://www.palermoweb.com/cittadelsole/sicilytour/english/palerm3.jpg
http://groups.msn.com/IoTiamoItaliaIloveItaly/bellaitalia.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=8
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/56xty
It's unlikely that they're all of Agatho, especially as Sicily is
usually credited with five popes, each of whom is probably represented
by one of these statues.
I suspect that one would look in vain here for a statue of the Syracusan
Methodius I, Sicily's only patriarch of Constantinople.
While we're here, a little further consideration of the cathedral may be
in order. Begun in 1184 or 1185, it is a congeries of different
architectural styles. The interior was radically redesigned in the late
eighteenth century and apart from the chapel with tombs of various
Sicilian royals, incl. Frederick II, has little that is medieval on view
(there are, however, a number of medieval tombs in the crypt). Here are
a few exterior views:
apses (late 12th-cent.):
http://www.regione.sicilia.it/TURISMO/Web_turismo/uk/localita/PA/palermo/fotografie/chiese/cattedrale5.html
TinyURL for this:
http://tinyurl.com/5mgcz
towers (belltower on left: top is 19th-cent.):
http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Travel/Sicily/01_Palermo_I/P8310037.JPG
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/4e7qm
belltower again:
http://www.regione.sicilia.it/turismo/web_turismo/images/PA/palermo/chiese/cattedrale2.jpg
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/4p4x8
portal (14th-cent.)
http://www.regione.sicilia.it/turismo/web_turismo/images/PA/palermo/chiese/cattedrale4.jpg
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/4vqyb
http://tinyurl.com/4vqyb
south side (famous late fifteenth-cent. Catalan Gothic porch):
http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Travel/Sicily/01_Palermo_I/P8310036.JPG
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/69pt4
http://www.macalester.edu/courses/geog61/tony/palermo1900/palermo/Cattedrale.html
TinyURL for this: http://tinyurl.com/3hphb
Best,
John Dillon
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