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THE BOOK OF THE POPES

{LIBER PONTIFICALIS)

<• > >

TO THE PONTIFICATE OF GREGORY I

TRANSLATED WITH AN INTRODUCTION

LOUISE ROPES LOOMIS, Ph.D.

Neto gorfe
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS

1916

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Set up and electrotyped. Published September, 1916.

J. 8. Cashing Co. — Berwick «fc Smith Co.
Norwood, Mass., U.S.A.

PREFACE

The preparation of an English text of the Liber Pontificalis,
of which the following pages furnish the first installment, is some-
thing more than the translation of a crabbed text, crowded with
obscure references. Even of the great libraries in this country
only about ten possess the original in the best working edition, if
one may judge by library returns, and it is doubtful if many more
copies of the complete text exist this side of the Atlantic. A docu-
ment which long was viewed as of fundamental importance for the
history of the Papacy has thus sunk so completely out of sight as
to have become a rather rare curiosity to all but research students
of medieval history. This is in part due to the character of the
work, with its forbidding lists of items of local and temporary inter-
est, in which only the trained archaeologist can find his way, but
it is also surely due to the fact that both texts and commentary
have hitherto been in foreign languages and are to be found only
in costly and rare volumes. The EngUsh version aims to over-
come these difficulties. While the narrative portions of the text
have been kept in full, lists of mere names and figures, especially
in the case of ordinations, have been in part eliminated unless they
were of distinct historical interest. The narrative, when no longer
clogged with an undue amount of this material, will be found to
run along with something of the swiftness of a medieval chronicle.
The archaeologist, who alone will miss the discarded portions, will
turn to the original in any case. In the second place, suflficient
apparatus has been given in the form of explanatory notes to
make the narrative clear, while bibUographical references furnish
a guide to the treatment of the more intricate problems. It is
hoped, therefore, that in its new form — for the Liber Pontificalis
has never before been translated into any other tongue — this
quaint monument of curial historiography will be found to have
retained enough of that charm of naive simpUcity, which the
scholar appreciates in the original, to lure the general reader of
history into a study of the important facts with which it deals.

vi PREFACE

It should be borne in mind, however, that this volume is not
an attempt to present a history of the Papacy during the first six
centuries. It is simply the presentation of an ancient text with
enough commentary to make it intelligible. The text is that of
the earliest history of the Papacy, but even were it provided with
most exhaustive notes, it could never furnish by itself an adequate
basis for a modern narrative. The historian of to-day has at his
disposal other documents and archaeological remains, which are
often of greater importance for an understanding of these early
pontificates than the meagre biography in the Liber Pontificalis.
It was originally planned that a collection of such documents should
form a part of the volume in which the Liber Pontificalis appears ;
but it now seems best to publish these documents in a separate and
parallel volume, and so leave the way open to complete the Liber
Pontificalis, or at least to carry it down to the heart of the Middle
Ages.

A word should be said as to the point at which the text of the
Liber Pontificalis is broken in this edition. When the translation
was first undertaken it seemed unlikely that it would ever be con-
tinued further than in the present enterprise. Dr. Loomis, there-
fore, carried the text through the pontificate of Gregory I, as a
point of general historical interest. Since there is now a possi-
bility that the next section of the book may also be translated, the
division has been put as near to the one originally planned as pos-
sible, including the pontificates immediately preceding Gregory.

Those who read this book will surely appreciate the arduous
task which Dr. Loomis has here accomplished, and their appre-
ciation will probably grow upon a closer acquaintance with the

problems involved.

J. T. S.

CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF POPES

The dates of the first eighteen pontificates are so conjectural that they are not
given here. ^^^^

I. Peter 4

II. Linus ^

III. Cletus 7

IV. Clement I 7

V. Anencletus 9

VI. Evaristus 9

VII. Alexander ^°

VIII. Xystus I "

IX. Telesphorus ^^

X. Hyginus ^3

XI. Pius I ^4

XII. Anicetus ^5

XJII. Soter ^^

XIV Eleutherius ^°

XV. Victor ^7

XVI. Zephyrinus ^9

XVII. Callistus I 2°

XVIII. Urbanus I 2^

XIX. Pontianus (230-235) 22

XX. Anteros (235-236) 23

XXI. Fabianus (236-250) 24

XXII. Cornelius (251-253) ^5

XXIII. Lucius (253-254) -^

XXIV. Stephen I (254-257) ^9

XXV. Xystus II (257-258) 3°

XXVI. Dionysius (259-268) 31

XXVII. Felix I (269-274) 33

XXVIII- Eutychianus (275-283) 33

XXIX. Gaius (283-296) 34

vii

VUl

XXX.
XXXI.
XXXII.
XXXIII.
XXXIV.
XXXV.
XXXVI.
XXXVII.
XXXVIII.
XXXIX.
XL.
XLI.
XLII.
XLIII.
XLIV.
XLV.
XLVI.
XLVII.
XLVIII.
XLIX.
L.
LI.
LII.
LIII.
LIV.
LV.
LVI.
LVII.
LVIII.
LIX.
LX.
LXI.
LXII.
LXIII.
LXIV.
LXV.

CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF POPES

PAGE

Marcellinus (296-304) 36

Marcellus (308-309) 37

EusEBius (309 or ^\o) 39

MiLTIADES (3II-314) 40

Sylvester (314-335) 4i

Marcus (336) 72

J0LIUS I (337-352) 73

LiBERius (352-366) . 75

Felix II (355-35^) • -78

Dam ASUS (366-384) 79

SiRicius (384-399) 83

Anastasius t (399-401) 85

Innocent I (401-417) 86

ZosiMus (417-418) 88

Boniface I (418-422) 89

Celestine I (422-432) 92

Xystus III (432-440) 93

Leo I (440-461) 97

Hilary (461-468) 102

SiMPLicius (468-483) 105

Felix III (483-492) 107

Gelasius (492-496) 11°

Anastasius II (496-498) ii4

Symmachus (498-514) ^15

Hormisdas (514-523) ^^4

John I (523-526) ^3^

Felix IV (526-530) U^

Boniface II (530-532) ^4°

John II (533-535) ^^2

Agapitus (535-536) . . H3

Silverius (536-537) ^46

ViGiLius (537-555) ^53

Pelagius I (556-561) ^60

John III (561-574) ^^3

Benedict I (575-579) ^^^

Pelagius II (579-59°) • • •- ^^7

INTRODUCTION

The bishopric of Rome, favored by circumstance in many ways
over the bishoprics of other cities, is fortunate also in this, that it
possesses records dating almost from the age of its venerable
foundation. The equally ancient sees of Jerusalem, Antioch and
Alexandria have no memorials earlier than the catalogues of bishops
which were set down by the historian Eusebius in the fourth cen-
tury. Constantinople can trace its episcopal line no further back
than the seventh century. On the other hand, Rome, for a variety
of reasons which are still matters of controversy, was regarded
as a peculiarly faithful custodian of apostolic tradition ; the
sequence of its bishops from Peter, the apostle, was cited even as
early as the second century as guarantee of its claim to transmit
the pure doctrine unalloyed. The episcopal lists of the second
century were repeated and continued in succeeding centuries, the
later records being expanded and enlarged, until in the sixth or
seventh century the Liber Pontificalis, the first historical narra-
tive or series of papal biographies, was compiled by a member of
the papal court. Later yet every pope had his official annalist,
who carried on the Liber Pontificalis, adding a new biography at
the death of the pontiff. The chronicle was often bare and per-
functory, was now and then omitted altogether for long periods at
a time, but was not finally abandoned until the age of Martin V
in the fifteenth century.

Throughout the Middle Ages and until comparatively modern
times the Liber Pontificalis was accepted as not only the oldest but
as also the most authentic existing history of the papacy. Ex-
tracts from it were incorporated into church liturgies. It was
quoted as an authority by countless historians and ecclesiastical

X INTRODUCTION

writers from the eighth century to the eighteenth. It served as
model for other chronicles, both secular and religious, in particular
for the Gesta Episcoporum and the Gesta Abbatum, the records
which were kept in cathedral chapters and monasteries of Western
Europe during the later Middle Ages. Because of its unmistakable
antiquity and because of the profound importance of its subject
matter it was reckoned as a source of unimpeachable veracity and
as one of the indisputable proofs of the primitive power and activity
of the popes.

Modern scholarship, however, in the persons of Lipsius, Light-
foot, Waitz, Duchesne, Mommsen, and others, has laid its unscru-
pulous hands on this Liber Pontificalis, analyzed it and separated
it into two parts, each differing from the other in origin and his-
torical value. The latter portion, from the seventh century down-
ward, is, as we have already indicated, simply the annals of the
papal court, written up from time to time by the papal biographer.
The narrative may be biassed or inaccurate, but it recounts events
of which the narrator had for the most part some personal knowl-
edge, from which he was in no case very far distant, and as such
deserves considerable credence. It is, in fact, one of the few sur-
viving sources for the turbulent centuries that followed the death
of Gregory I. It presents no unusual problems beyond those
offered by any history treating of an age so alien to our own.

The earlier portion, covering the era from St. Peter to the
seventh century, and compiled first toward the end of that era, is
of different quality. Although still admitted to be the oldest of all
local church histories, based upon records earlier yet and of un-
doubted genuineness, it is itself a mesh of veritable fact, romantic
legend, deliberate fabrication and heedless error. It deals with
persons and things which seemed often almost as remote to the
author as they do to us and of which he had only the scantiest and
most fragmentary accounts ; it describes achievements which he
had little means of estimating justly and which he had sometimes
the strongest motive to exaggerate or misrepresent. One can,
therefore, observe in this single document a blending of most
of the processes by which a history may be constructed, the use of
sober, reliable, sometimes first-hand reports of events and again of
marvelous legends, the creations of generations of enthusiasm and

INTRODUCTION xi

piety, the intentional manufacture of data for a definite purpose,
the distortion of other data through prejudice or ignorance. This
portion of the Liber Pontificalis is often fraudulent, often partisan,
often naively devout and credulous. Yet the very frauds and un-
corroborated assertions and mistakes and venerations have a value
to us of a sort. It is interesting to know what could be believed
about some of these matters in the sixth or seventh century. At
bottom there is the residue of substantiated fact and credible tra-
dition which continue to make even this part of the Liber Pontifi-
cahs indispensable, if not for the study of the policies of the imme-
diate successors of Peter, yet for the history and archaeology of
Rome and the church in the earliest Middle Ages.

The translation which follows gives the text of this first portion ^
from the beginning to the Kfe of Gregory the Great, with the
omission toward the last of some formulae and lists of church
appurtenances which seem to possess only an archaeological worth
or interest. In order to make clearer the peculiar, heterogeneous
character of our text, we may here consider more in detail the
elements of which it was composed : first, the ancient, papal
chronologies which preceded it and upon which it was based ; sec-
ond, the supplementary material with which the unknown author
filled out the bare skeleton of names and dates furnished him by
the chronologies and which distinguished his work from them.

The oldest papal lists of which we hear anything were written
down, as we have already said, in the second century. About
150 A.D. Hegesippus, a Christian from Syria, perplexed by the
fine-spun Gnostic theories of the nature and mission of Christ which
were winning acceptance in the East, visited Rome and drew up
a list of the Roman bishops to his own day in order to satisfy him-
self and his countrymen of the validity of the Roman form of
doctrine. His list contained, perhaps, not only the names of the
bishops but also the duration in years of each pontificate. Oral
tradition would still be reasonably exact for the years since 100 a.d. ;
for the bishops who came before it would be able to supply the
names and a rough calculation as to the length of their terms.
Unhappily Hegesippus' list has not been preserved in its original

' On the termination of the first recension see pp. xxi and xxii, and notes to
Vigilius below.

xii INTRODUCTION

form: Eusebius, in his Church History, quotes from Hegesippus'
writings his account of the visit to Rome and the securing of the
list, but not the Hst itself, and the writings have perished. The list
was used, however, by later chroniclers, Eusebius among them.

Twenty-five or thirty years afterwards, during the persecution
of Marcus Aurelius, Irenaeus came from Lyons to Rome and while
there compiled another list of the Roman succession as far as Eleu-
therius, who was then in office. Iren£eus was anxious to reconcile
the warring sects which menaced the life of the church from within
more seriously than the persecutions without. He wrote a great
treatise, Against the Heresies, in which he exposed the fallacies
of the heterodox and set forth systematically the whole Catholic
scheme of the relations between God and man. To support his
system he cited the unbroken line of the episcopate and the grace
transmitted by the laying on of hands as well as the testimony
of the Scriptures. Irenaeus inserted in his episcopal list a few
facts which he had learned at Rome about the early bishops. He
says, for instance, that Linus, the second in ofhce, was the man
to whom St. Paul referred in his Epistle to Timothy, that Clement,
the fourth bishop, had seen and heard both the apostles and that
many others surviving at Rome in Clement's day had been taught
by them. He also mentions the martyrdom of Telesphorus and,
in another connection, the relations of Anicetus with Polycarp,
who had known the apostle John, and the rise of heresies at Rome
under Hyginus and Pius. The work of Irenaeus is preserved only
in fragments in the original Greek, but one of the fragments includes
the passage with which we are concerned. In its time it exerted
an immense influence on the formulation of dogmatic theology in
both East and West.

In the third century the lists of the second century were tran-
scribed and carried forward by at least two other hands. Hip-
polytus, bishop of Porto, who was banished for his faith to Sar-
dinia in company with the Roman bishop, Pontianus, and whose
marble statue now stands in the Lateran Museum, drew up about
235 A.D. a catalogue of the Roman succession as far as his own day.
Hippolytus was a voluminous writer, interested not only in theology
but also in ecclesiastical law and in chronography. He compiled
a chronicle of the world from the creation to the year 234 a.d..

INTRODUCTION xiii

with tables of the Roman emperors, kings of Macedon and Jewish
high priests, the type of many a similar work in the centuries to
follow. It is natural that he had his hst of Roman bishops also.
Unfortunately, although a large part of the chronicle has survived,
the episcopal list itself, as Hippolytus prepared it, has been lost.
It was incorporated in later lists, however, and in that way the
substance of it has come down to us.

Another third century list of which we hear but which has like-
wise now disappeared in its original shape is said to have been the
work of one Julius Africanus, a native of Palestine. This last list
seems to have been more elaborate than any which preceded it and
to have included the names of the emperors and consuls in office
when the terms of the various bishoprics began and ended. The
author probably gave these synchronisms accurately enough for
the period with which he was acquainted and reckoned backward
to secure the dates for the earlier age, using as a means the consular
Fasti and the figures in the older papal fists.

From the fourth century onward the chronologies of the popes
come gradually into more general circulation. The papacy by
this time was an old, estabfished institution of increasing impor-
tance, with a history in which it might take pride. The emperors
were leaving Rome and from their distance no longer overshadowed
the head of the church. In fact it became customary to couple
fists of the popes with fists of consuls and kings and other secular
magnates. Eusebius, the historian and friend of Constantine,
inserted lists of the Roman bishops in both his Chronicle and his
Church History, bringing them down to the year 325. His two
fists disagree with one another in the figures for the length of some
of the earfier pontificates, but give precisely the same names in the
same order. They may have been taken from two different sources.
They show that even at that date tradition and records were uncer-
tain as to the years but were in accord as to the men. Toward the
close of his chronologies Eusebius added the months to the years
of some of the pontifical terms.

About the year 350 a cofiection of chronological and geographi-
cal fists and tables was compiled for the convenience of Chris-
tian residents in Rome, which must have been but one of many
similar collections of that and later times. This particular collec-

xiv INTRODUCTION

tion has chanced to come down to us almost entire, and gives us a
curious glimpse into the range of interests of the persons for whom
it was written, such as a World's Almanac for 1915 would give to a
student of our age living in the year 3500. Comprised in the col-
lection were civil and court calendars, paschal tables, lists of the
anniversaries of the burials of popes and martyrs, a topography of
the city of Rome divided into districts, tables of Roman emperors
and consuls and a Ust of the popes to the time of Liberius, fuller
and more comprehensive than any which had gone before.

This last list has since become known as the Liberian Catalogue,
so-called from the date of its composition, not from any connec-
tion with Liberius himself. It gave the length of each term from
the beginning in years, months and days, the imperial and consular
synchronisms, in the case of some popes the date of burial or depo-
sition, and here and there it marked an event. Under Pius, for
example, it mentioned the writing of The Shepherd of Hermas,
probably because of the discussion in Liberius' day over the canon-
icity of the book. Under Pontianus, Lucius and Marcellinus it
noted the troubles due to persecution, under Fabianus and Cornelius
the outbreak of the Novatian schism and under Julius the five
basilicas which he built. It committed the grave blunder of mak-
ing two popes out of Cletus and Anencletus, different forms in dif-
ferent earher chronologies of the same man's name. The major
part was compounded from several of the previous lists. There is
reason to think that Hippolytus' was one of those consulted. At
any rate some one of these pattern Usts gave apparently the dura-
tion of a few pontificates in days as well as in years and months
and alluded now and then to events associated with particular
names. The author of the Liberian Catalogue copied out these
figures and references to events and added arbitrarily months and
days to the years of all the terms from Peter downward in order
to make his work appear more symmetrical. Two or three cen-
turies later this Liberian Catalogue was transported outright into
the Liber Pontificalis to form the groundwork for the period that
it covered. The author of the Liber Pontificalis was content to
take it as it stood, without troubling to go behind to any of the more
primitive lists. Indeed he seems to have known them only through
the medium of the Catalogue.

INTRODUCTION xv

Henceforth lists of the popes are found with increasing frequency
in the literature of the day, quoted by theologians in opposition to
the novelties of the heretics, brought down to date by chroniclers
and historians. Optatus and Augustine cited the unbroken papal
line, the bishops of "the unique see," as witness against the Dona-
tists. The unknown author of a poem against Marcion invoked
them in support of his metrical arguments on behalf of orthodoxy.
Jerome, who translated and continued the Chronicle of Eusebius,
carried the catalogue on to 378. Prosper of Aquitaine, who lived
at Rome under Leo I and continued Jerome's Chronicle to 453,
Socrates, Sozomen and Theodoret, Greeks of the early fifth century,
who undertook to supplement the Church History of Eusebius,
all added their quota to the chronology of the popes. It is hardly
necessary to enumerate the writers who later still reviewed the
names of the bishops of Rome. They, of course, depended upon
one or another of the preceding lists, and, though their dates and
figures showed often a wide diversity, due to the carelessness or
ignorance of copyists, they all followed some one of the forms
already worked out.

The nameless priest or clerk who first compiled the Liber Pontifi-
calis took, as we have said, his papal list for the first three and one
half centuries, with few modifications, directly from the Liberian
Catalogue. A few supplementary data and the outline for the fol-
lowing centuries he found in Jerome's Chronicle and the later com-
pendiums. Into this framework of names and dates he proceeded
to fit a large quantity of fresh material, in order to make his book
more interesting and more instructive and to give it the character
of a history rather than of a catalogue. This body of new material,
which forms the distinguishing feature of the Liber Pontificalis
as compared with the chronologies, must next be the subject of
our attention. It has been dissected and examined of recent years
by archaeologists like De Rossi, as well as by the historians, Du-
chesne and Mommsen. We may summarize briefly in the succeed-
ing two or three pages the results of their investigation.

I, The two prefatory letters, ostensibly composed by St. Jer-
ome and Pope Damasus, by means of which the authorship of the
whole first part of the Liber Pontificalis is ascribed to Jerome, are
manifest forgeries of the sixth or seventh century. Our unknown

xvi INTRODUCTION

author invented them in the clumsy Latin of his time, hoping
tlirough them to give prestige to his own work. The practice was
not uncommon in his day. Tlie particular form which the letters
took was suggested to him, no doubt, by an epistle of Jerome to
Damasus, prefixed to the former's version of the Gospels, and by
the correspondence which served as introduction to Jerome's
Martyrology. Our author's acquaintance with the correspondence
is proved by the fact that he took from one of those letters his fig-
ures for the number of martyrs that perished in the persecution of
Diocletian in the time of Pope Marcellinus.

2. The names of the fathers of the popes and of their nations
and birthplaces our author may have copied, at least for all that
concerns the later popes, from some ecclesiastical record lost to us
to-day. We know of no such source, but our author may have
discovered it in some Roman archive, long since destroyed in the
ruin of the ancient city. For the earlier popes he undoubtedly
invented these details, in order that he might seem to possess as
much information about them as about their successors.

3. The comparatively circumstantial biographies of St. Peter
and St. Clement, and the account of the debate over the date of
Easter under Victor he took from two fourth century productions,
the De Viris Illustribus of Jerome and Rufinus' translation of the
apocryphal Recognitions attributed to Clement. He may also
have drawn from the letter of Gregory I to Eulogius of Alexandria.
Unluckily these works were all too late to have much value as
authorities on events of the first or second century.

4. The decrees for the organization and government of the
church ascribed to the various bishops are practically all spurious
until they reach the latter half of the fifth century. Our author
evidently felt it necessary to record some achievement for every
bishop in the whole long line, and therefore assigned to each in
turn the institution of some ecclesiastical custom which obtained
at the time he himself was writing. These statements have some
worth as indicating the nature of procedure in the sixth or seventh
century but little or none as bearing upon the earlier periods.
Exceptions to this general rule are the decrees of Siricius and of
Innocent I, which our author probably found in the official letters
of those popes included in the Collection of Acts of Popes and

INTRODUCTION xvii

Councils compiled by Dionysius Exiguus at the opening of the
sixth century. From this same collection he derived his knowl-
edge of the so-called Apostolic Canons, to which he refers in the
first of his prefatory letters, and of the acts of several apocryphal
councils, such as the Council of Sinuessa before which Marcellinus
professed his penitence and the two Roman synods of Sylvester,
which passed measures to enhance to an incredible degree the powers
of the bishop. Here also he obtained his untrustworthy accounts
of the vicissitudes of Liberius and the trial of Xystus III. He
apparently knew the genuine Acts of the Council of Chalcedon,
for his report of that assemblage, though badly confused, is not
marred by actual untruth. He makes no allusion to the general
Council of Constantinople, held in 551, though we should expect
some mention of it if he were acquainted with its proceedings. As
for the Council of Sinuessa, it is now certain that no such gathering
ever took place, but it is not clear whether or not Marcellinus was
a renegade. The tale has perhaps some ground in fact, but it may,
on the other hand, be the fabrication of a later party that wished
to cast discredit on the pontificate.

5. The descriptions of persecutions and martyrdoms and of
religious marvels, such as the discovery of the Holy Cross and the
healing of Constantine, were culled from popular martyrologies
and passions of the saints, almost all of which have since disap-
peared. They were merely pious stories, simple and uncritical,
in which the heroic and legendary elements predominated over the
historical. Our author seems to have felt a special ardor for the
memory of the martyrs. He has three early popes, Clement,
Anteros and Fabianus, each make provision for the collection of
facts regarding them and out of the thirty-one first popes he has
twenty-three win for themselves the martyr's crown. Few of these
statements can be accepted unless corroborated by outside testi-
mony.

6. The notices of churches built or repaired and of gifts offered
by prelates or princes are a conspicuous feature of the biography
of Sylvester, and thereafter are copious and frequent. They must
have been copied, in part at least, from records or memoranda in
the archives of the Roman see. The curious and imposing list of
Constantine's donations bears marks of genuineness as a document.

xviii INTRODUCTION

although, in its present shape it is plainly corrupt in passages, iLc
proper names being at times quite unintelligible. The donations
enumerated in such lists are of genuine but obscure historical in-
terest, either for the history of the Patrimony of St. Peter, if grants
of estates, or for the history of art, if basilicas and appurtenances
of worship. In the latter case they furnish valuable — if sometimes
uncertain — evidence for the relation of Byzantine art to Roman in
the early Christian period. The catalogue of Constantine's bene-
factions is reproduced entire in the translation, also the most not-
able items of the later lists. The student who wishes more will
consult the original text.

7. The lists of episcopal ordinations, set like formulae near the
end of each biography, were also in all probability taken from
records kept toward the close of our period in the Roman church.
Indeed Gregory I alludes in one of his letters to such a record.
Our author then introduced fictitious lists of ordinations into the
early biographies in order to maintain the much desired appearance
of uniformity and of completeness of information. All the lists,
however, in spite of their official semblance, are so bare and brief
and the figures in many cases are obviously so corrupt that they
retain no value at the present day. Like the accounts of the pro-
visions for the conduct of the church, they emphasize the part
played by the bishop to the disparagement of that played by the
other clergy or the laity. They show the autocratic or monarchical
character of the Roman structure as it appeared to the eyes of its
first historian.

8. The notices of the dates and places of burial or deposition of
popes and martyrs were based partly on the Liberian Catalogue
and partly on lists of saints' anniversaries and traditions con-
nected with certain basilicas and cemeteries. When a bishop's
name, however, did not appear in the well-known lists of saints,
and no tradition associated him with any particular tomb, our
author arbitrarily supplied him with date and place of sepulture.
The natural spot for interring the first pontiffs was the Vatican;
afterward the catacomb of Callistus. In fact, the bishops Anicetus
and Soter are assigned in one text to the cemetery of Calhstus some
years before Callistus constructed it.

Having herewith baldly sketched the antecedents and sources

INTRODUCTION xix

of the Liber Pontificalis, we must add a few words on the vexed
problem of the period of composition, the date when our anony-
mous cleric set about piecing it together out of its miscellaneous
elements. It is a problem upon which the most erudite authori-
ties still disagree and which we can do hardly more than state in
abbreviated form, the arguments on either side being too lengthy
and technical to reproduce here. They are rendered especially
comphcated by the fact of the variety and number of texts of the
Liber Pontificalis and by the difficulty of determining which text
represents the archetype or original draft of the work. As it hap-
pens, it has come down to us not only in three different versions
of the full text but also in two abridgments or epitomes. It is
now generally conceded that all forms of the complete text, in the
shape that we have them, are products of the seventh century.
The earhest recension or edition dates back perhaps to the first
quarter of the century, not long after the death of Gregory I.
Forty or fifty years later it was rewritten in a slightly more expan-
sive style and brought down to include the popes who had held
oflfice since the first recension was finished. Shortly afterward a
third or composite version was constructed by a combination of
the two previous recensions, wherein some passages were borrowed
from the first and some from the second. Thenceforward no further
alterations were made in the biographies of the seven first centuries.
One or other of the three recensions was copied by later writers
with the additions necessary to carry on the narrative to date.

The question still in dispute is the age of the two epitomes.
The first or FeUcian Epitome, as it is called, breaks off with the
pontificate of Felix IV, 530 a.d. Certain scholars of great learn-
ing and distinction, such as Lipsius, Lightfoot and Duchesne, hold
that this epitome is a summary of an early text of the Liber Pon-
tificahs which concluded at that point and was in fact composed
soon after Felix' death ; or, in other words, that the original text
was about a century older than any full text which we possess at
the present day and that our author lived and wrote toward the
end of Theodoric's reign instead of under Heraclius. The second
or Cononian Epitome, which closely resembles the Felician but
continues on to the time of Pope Conon, 687 a.d., is also in the
opinion of these same scholars a resume of the first text, supple-

XX INTRODUCTION

merited by an abridgment of the latter part of one of the seventh
century recensions. To illustrate this theory we may mention
one or two of the simpler arguments. Duchesne contends that
these epitomes show variations from the language of the seventh
century versions that indicate their derivation from a different
and older prototype, that the biographies of the popes of the period
of Theodoric are written in a vivid and personal style as if by a
contemporary and that Gregory of Tours, who died in 594, alludes
in his history to a version of the Liber Pontificalis current in his
time.

On the other hand, Waitz and Mommsen, scholars no less
learned and distinguished, maintain that the two epitomes, in spite
of their occasional divergences from the seventh century phrase-
ology, are nevertheless founded upon the seventh century text and
that, in consequence, the Liber Pontificalis itself is no older than
the earliest of the recensions, that is, than the period of the disturb-
ances after the death of Gregory I. They insist that the differ-
ences in language between the two epitomes and the full seventh
century versions are not important enough to require a different
source for the epitomes, that the increase in vivacity and in mi-
nuteness of description noticeable in the biographies of the age of
Theodoric may be explained by the use on the part of the seventh
century author of a sixth century chronicle since lost, and that
passages in these same biographies contain mistakes and misunder-
standings impossible to a contemporary. They pronounce the
quotation from Gregory of Tours too vague and indecisive to be
accepted as proof of his acquaintance with the Liber Pontificalis.
Other writers of the age, men like Isidore of Seville and Pope Greg-
ory himself, more deeply versed in Roman affairs than the Gallic
Gregory could be, would inevitably have referred to the Liber
Pontificalis if it had been in existence in their day. But, as we have
said before, the arguments on either side of this controversy are
far too elaborate to rehearse adequately here. Something more of
them will be found in the notes appended to the text.

The following translation is based upon the text edited by
Mommsen in the Monumenta GermanicB Historica. He gives the
full seventh century version with the variations between the three
recensions or between them and either or both of the epitomes

INTRODUCTION xxi

printed in parallel columns. Mere differences in individual manu-
scripts, caused by the errors or interpolations of copyists, he enu-
merates in his footnotes. I have preserved his method of setting
the various readings of different classes of texts in parallel columns
so that the extent of the variations might be easily seen, but have
for the most part made no attempt to indicate, as he does, by a
system of letters and numbers the text to which each reading be-
longs nor to convey an idea of the idiosyncrasies of single manu-
scripts. For a close study of the separate texts the reader must
consult Mommsen himself.

The magnitude of Mommsen's undertaking may be better
appreciated by noting in passing the age, number and location of
the manuscripts which he thought essential to collate in preparing
his edition. His text of the Felician Epitome he derived from three
manuscripts, the oldest of which dates from the eighth century and
is now in Paris, the other two being at Berne and Rome. The
Cononian Epitome he found in two manuscripts, both of the ninth
century, one in Paris and one in Verona. The first recension of
the full seventh century text he obtained from nineteen manu-
scripts, the oldest of which belongs to the eighth century and is
now in the Library at Lucca, the others are scattered in Paris,
Rome, Florence, Milan and elsewhere. The second recension he
took from twenty manuscripts, the oldest now in Naples, dating
from the close of the seventh century, the remainder in Leyden,
Cologne, Paris, Brussels, Treves and other places. The third or
composite text he based upon eleven manuscripts. The earliest,
now at Modena, goes back to the end of the seventh or the open-
ing of the eighth century, but it consists only of excerpts. The
oldest copy of the entire text is in the Vatican and dates from the
tenth century.

For fuller discussions of the numerous, interesting topics con-
nected with the Liber Pontificalis, its origin, character, and value,
the student who wishes to pursue his investigations further is
referred first of all to the voluminous and exhaustive introduc-
tions and notes attached to Duchesne's edition of the text, pub-
lished a few years earlier than Mommsen's; also to Mommsen's
briefer Prolegomena to his own edition, Lightfoot's volume on
St. Clement of Rome in the series entitled The Apostolic Fathers,

xxii INTRODUCTION

and Waitz' articles on the subject in the Neues Archiv, especially
volumes IV, IX, X, and XL A convenient summary of some
of the researches of the greater scholars is afforded by Rosenfeld's
monograph, Uber die Composition des Liber Pontijicalis biz zu
Constantin. From these authorities and the others quoted from time
to time in the text I have gathered my statements in this intro-
duction and much of the material in my notes. In fact, without
the guidance of Duchesne, I should often have been at a loss
how to elucidate the text, my own notes being in many cases
scarcely more than abridgments or paraphrases of his. The refer-
ences in the notes are, for the most part, to these same works,
the indispensable apparatus for any serious study of the Liber
Pontificalis, to the Latin and Greek sources in English trans-
lation, whenever such translations exist, otherwise in the original,
and finally to English books, accessible to most readers and likely
to prove helpful for a general understanding of the subjects treated

in the text.

L. R. L.

THE BOOK OF THE POPES

{LIBER PONTIFICALIS)

TO THE PONTIFICATE OF GREGORY I

THE BOOK OF THE POPES

{LIBER PONTIFICALIS)

Preface

Jerome to the most blessed pope Damasus : ^

We humbly beseech thy glorious holiness that as the apostolic
see, which we understand is ruled by thy holiness,^ ... we bend
in supplication and entreat that thou deign to impart to us in order
the record of the deeds done in thy see from the principate of blessed
Peter, the apostle, even to thine own day ; that thus we may humbly
ascertain which of the bishops of the aforesaid see attained the
crown of martyrdom and which are judged to have transgressed
the canons of the apostles.^ Pray for us, most blessed pope.
Given April 27. Received at Rome.

Damasus, bishop of the city of Rome, to Jerome.

The church rejoices already, drinking with satisfaction at thy
fountain, and the thirst grows ever keener among its priests to hear
of the past, in order that what is right may be recognized and what
is wrong rejected. So all the record which the zeal of our see has
been able to discover we send with gladness to thee, beloved.
Pray for us unto the holy resurrection, brother and fellowpriest.
Farewell in Christ, our God and Lord. Given May 23. Re-
ceived September 26. Sent from Rome to Jerusalem.

' These letters are obvious forgeries, designed to give the authority of two great
names to the ensuing narrative. The author is even naive enough to attribute to
Damasus and Jerome a history which covers a century or two beyond their time. See
Introduction, pp. vii and viii.

2 Some words are lost here. Traube suggests a reading: "that thou wouldest
assist us by the authority vested in the apostolic see, which we understand, " etc.
Mommsen, Liber Pontificalis, p. i.

^ The collection of canons translated into Latin by Dionysius Exiguus at the be-
ginning of the sixth century. Cf. Hefele, Histoire des Conciles, I, pp. 1203-1221
(H. Leclercq).

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

I. Peter

Blessed Peter/ the Antiochene,
son of John, of the province
of GaHlee and the town of
Bethsaida, brother of Andrew
and chief of the apostles,

Blessed Peter, the apostle, and
chief of the apostles, the Antio-
chene, son of John, of the
province of Galilee and the
town of Bethsaida, brother of
Andrew,

first occupied the seat of the bishop in Anthiocia ^ for 7 years.
This Peter entered the city of Rome when Nero was Caesar and
there occupied the seat of the bishop for 25 years,
I month and 8 days. | 2 months and 3 days.

He was bishop in the time of Tiberius Caesar and of Gaius and
of Tiberius Claudius and of Nero.^

He wrote two epistles which are called catholic, and the gospel
of Mark, for Mark was his disciple and son by baptism ; afterwards
the whole source of the four gospels, which were confirmed by
inquiring of him, that is Peter, and obtaining his testimony;
although one gospel is couched in Greek, another in Hebrew, an-
other in Latin, yet by his testimony were they all confirmed.^

» As explained above in the Introduciion (p. xii), when different versions of the
narrative are found in the different epitomes or recensions of the Liber Pontificalis,
the readings are set down, as here, in parallel columns, the older text being given first.
Llost of the following story of the life of the apostle is taken by the author of the
lib. Pont, from Jerome's De Viris Illustribus, c. i (ed. Richardson, pp. 6 and 7 ; Texte
rnd Untersuchimgenzur Gesch. der allchristlkhen LUeratur, vol. XIV). An excellent
liLtle hand book to consult for information on Jerome and the other church fathers
who will be cited in the course of our text and notes is Bardenhewer's Patrology, trans-
lated by Strahan.

^Antioch, the ancient Antiochia. Corrupt or peculiar forms of proper names
in the Latin text will be reproduced in the translation.

3 Our author gives two incompatible traditions, the first that Peter did not come
to Rome before the reign of Nero {cf. the late second century Acta Petri et Pauli in
Tischendorf , Acta A postolorum Apocrypha, p. i , etc.) , the second that after a pontificate
of twenty-five years at Rome he was put to death under Nero. The latter is Jerome's
version. The reader may find a discussion of the Petrine problem, with many further
references, in the volume of this series devoted to the history of the Papacy.

« Duchesne suggests that the idea that the four gospels all issued from a single
source was derived from the apsidal mosaics of fifth and sixth century churches
which represented the four rivers of paradise all flowing out from one head. Lib.
Pont., vol. I, p. 119) n- 7-

PETER 5

He ordained two bishops, Linus and Cletus, who in person ful-
filled all the service of the priest in the city of Rome for the inhabit-
ants and for strangers ; then the blessed Peter gave himself to prayer
and preaching, instructing the people.^

He disputed many times with Simon Magus both before Nero,
the emperor, and before the people, since by magic arts and trickery
Simon was drawing away those whom the blessed Peter was gather-
ing into the faith of Christ. And while they debated once at great
length Simon was struck dead by the will of God.

He consecrated blessed Clement as bishop and committed to
him the government of the see and all the church, saying: ^ "As
unto me was delivered by my Lord Jesus Christ the power to gov-
ern and to bind and loose, so also I commit it unto thee, that thou
mayest ordain stewards over divers matters who will carry onward
the work of the church and mayest thyself not become engrossed
with the cares of the world but mayest strive to give thyself solely
to prayer and preaching to the people."

After he had thus disposed affairs he received the crown of martyr-
dom with Paul in the year 38 after the Lord's passion.^

He was buried also on the Via AureUa, in the shrine of Apollo,
near the place where he was crucified, near the palace of Nero, in
the Vatican,^ near the triumphal district,^ on June 29.

1 Rufinus, Preface to the apocryphal Clementine Recognitions; cf. infra, p. 7, n. 4.

2 This passage is taken from the apocryphal Epistle of Clement to James, c. 2 and 5 ;
prefixed to the Recognitions. Cf. infra, p. 8, n. 2.

3 Our author follows here the Paschal tables of the fifth century, according to which
Christ was crucified in the year 29. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 119, n. 12. Eusebius'
Chronicle says that Peter and Paul died in the thirteenth year of Nero's reign, the
2iith Olympiad, the year 2083 of the Jewish calendar, which would correspond to
our year 67 a.d. The persecution of Nero, however, took place in 64 a.d. The
earliest passage that may be construed as a reference to the martyrdom of the two
apostles at Rome occurs in the First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians, written prob-
ably about 90-100 A.D. It is translated in the Locb Classical Library, Apostolic Fathers,
vol. I. p. 17. Cf. also Lightfoot, Apostolic Fathers, Part I, for text and discussion.

^ Vaticanus was the ancient name of the hill forming the prolongation of the Ja-
niculum toward the north, and the Campus orAger Vaticanus was the space between
the foot of the hill and the Janiculum and the Tiber. Here the word is used to denote
this low region stretching back from the river.

5 Jerome says, "near the Via TriumphaHs." The tomb of Peter, now covered by
the crypt of the modem basilica, was situated between the Via Aurelia and the Via Tri-
umphaHs, on the outskirts of the circus of Nero, near a temple of Cybele, which through

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He held three ordinations, 7
deacons, 10 priests, 3 bishops,^
in the month of December.

He held ordinations in the
month of December, 3 bishops,
10 priests, 7 deacons.^

II. Linus

Linus, by nationality an Italian, from the province of Tuscany,
son of Herculanus, occupied the see 11 years, 3 months and 12 days.
He was bishop in the time of Nero from the consulship of Saturni-
nus and Scipio (a.d. 56) until the year when Capito and Rufus were
consuls (a.d. 67).

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He, by direction of the blessed Peter, decreed that a woman
must veil her head to come into the church.^

He held two ordinations, 15 bishops, 18 priests.

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican ^ about September 24.

a popular error was later called a temple of Apollo. Cf . Grisar, Rome and the Popes in
the Middle Ages, T, pp. 277 ff. ; C. Erbes, Die Todeslage der Apostel Paidus und Petrus
und ihre Romischcn Denktndlcr, in Textc und Unlersuchiingen, Neue Folge, IV.

1 The three bishops were evidently Linus, Cletus and Clement. The number
seven was attached to the deacons in order to ascribe to Peter the institution of the
seven Roman deacons. Sozomen, the Greek historian, writing in the middle of the
fifth century, mentions the curious fact that the Roman church never had more than
seven deacons, a number which they considered sanctioned by the apostles. Ecclesias-
tical History, VII, c. 19; Eng. tr. in Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers, ser. 2, vol. II.

2 One manuscript adds the following. "He -first ordained the celebration of the
mass to commemorate the Lord's passion, with bread and wine mixed with water and
the Lord's prayer repeated alone and the sanctifying of the holy cross, a rite which the
other holy apostles imitated for this celebration." The earliest detailed account of a
Christian service is in Justin Martyr's First Apology, written for presentation to
Antoninus Pius. It is translated in Cresswell, Liturgy of the Apostolic Constitutions,
Early Church Classics Series.

' Linus is represented as associated with and acting under the direction of Peter.
The ordinance may have been suggested by / Corinthians, xi. 5.

* A corruption, of course, for Vatican. In the seventeenth century some workmen
digging near the tomb of Peter in the crypt of the present cathedral unearthed several
ancient sarcophagi, one bearing an inscription in which the name Linus was thought
to be decipherable. There were, however, no scholars at hand competent to verify
the reading, the sarcophagus was not preserved where it could be studied, and De Rossi,
the Italian authority on Christian epigraphy, is inclined to doubt the correctness of the
report. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 121, n. 3. Grisar, I, p. 279.

LINUS, CLETUS, CLEMENT I 7

III. Cletus

Cletus, by nationality a Roman, from the precinct Vicus Patri-
cius,^ son of Emilianus, occupied the see

7 years, i month and 20 days. | 12 years, i month and 11 days.

He was bishop in the time of Vespasian and Titus from

of Domitian |

the 7th consulship of Vespasian and the 5th of Domitian (a.d. 77)
until the year when Domitian was consul for the 9th time and
Rufus was consul with him (a.d. 83).

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He, by direction of the blessed Peter, ordained 25 priests ^ in
the city of Rome

in the month of December. |

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican, April 26.

And the bishopric was empty 20 days.

IV. Clement I

Clement, by nationality a Roman, from the district of the Celian
Hill,^ son of Faustinus, occupied the see 9 years, 2 months and 10
days. He was bishop in the time of Galba and Vespasian from the
consulship of Tragalus and Italicus (a.d. 68) until the year when
Vespasian was consul for the 9th time and Titus was consul with
him (a.d. 79). He wrote many books in his zeal for the faith of
the Christian religion ^ and was crowned with martyrdom.

^ Near the modern Via Urbana, a region extending from the Viminal to the Esquiline.

2 The number twenty-five was apparently chosen here in order to give apostolic
sanction to the twenty-five titular or parish churches which existed in Rome at the
close of the fifth century. Cf. infra, p. 38 and n. 3. On the actual slow development
of the ecclesiastical organization see Cambridge Medieval History, vol. I, ch. vi.

^ The author probably deduced the location of Clement's house from the situation
of the church of San Clemente which stands between the Caelian and the Esquiline.

* The author may have in mind the ten books of the apocryphal Recognitions
attributed to Clement and translated from Greek into Latin by Rufinus. The original
Greek text has since been lost. Text by P. de Lagarde supersedes that of Migne,
Pat. Gr., vol. I. Translation, Ante Nicene Fathers, VITI.

8 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He created 7 districts and assigned them to faithful notaries of
the church that they might make diligent, careful and searching
inquiry, each in his own district, regarding the acts of the martyrs.^
He composed two epistles which are called catholic.

He, by direction of the blessed Peter, undertook the pontifical
office of governing the church, even as Peter received the seat of
authority from the Lord Jesus Christ; moreover in the epistle
which he wrote to James ^ thou mayest learn in what manner the
church was entrusted to him by the blessed Peter. Therefore
Linus and Cletus are recorded before him for the reason that they
were ordained bishops also by the chief of the apostles to perform
the priestly ministry.

He held two ordinations in the month of December, 10 priests,
2 deacons and 15 bishops in divers places.^

He died a martyr

in the third year of Trajan.'' | in the third Trajan.

He also was buried in Greece,^ November 24.
And the bishopric was empty 21 days.

1 It seems far more likely that the seven ecclesiastical districts of Rome were
the creation of Pope Fabianus in the third century. Our author is obviously anxious
to give an early origin and a dignified function to the church notaries, a body to which
he possibly belonged. Cf. infra, pp. 10, n. 3 and 24.

2 This epistle was translated by Rufinus and early became prefixed to the pseudo-
Clementine Recognitions just mentioned. In the Greek it is prefixed to the pseudo-
Clementine Hmnilics. There is no reference here to the one authentic letter of Clement
still preserved, written to the church of Corinth. Lightfoot, St. Clement of Rome; Locb
Classical Library, The Apostolic Fathers, vol. I.

3 I.e. the priests and deacons were to serve in the city churches, the bishops in
the dioceses about the city.

^Jerome also gives this as the date of Clement's death. De Viris lUustribiis,
c. XV ; ed. Richardson, p. 17. A fragment of an inscription of the end of the fourth
century has been discovered in the church of San Clemente, which was built over the
site of Clement's own house. In this inscription the word MARTYR apparently
foUows the name of Clement.

5 An allusion to the legend of the St. Clement, who was said to have been drowned
in the Black Sea, and who became in time identified with Pope Clement of Rome.
Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. xci.

ANENCLETUS, EVARISTUS 9

V. Anencletus

Aneclitus,^ by nationality a Greek from Athens, son of Anthio-
cus, occupied the see

12 years, 10 months and 7 days. | 9 years, 2 months and 10 days.

He was bishop in the time of Domitian from the loth consulship
of Domitian when Savinus was his colleague (a.d. 84) until the
year when Domitian was consul for the 17th time and Clement was
consul with him (a.d. 95).

He built and adorned the sepulchral monument ^ of the blessed
Peter, forasmuch as he had been made priest by the blessed Peter,
and other places of sepulchre for the burial of bishops. There he him-
self likewise was buried near the body of the blessed Peter, July 13.

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 5 priests, 3
deacons, 6 bishops in divers places.

And the bishopric was empty 13 days.

VI. EVARISTUS

Euvaristus, by nationality a Greek

of Antioch, |

son of a Jew named Judah, from the city of Bethlehem, occupied
the see

13 years, 7 months and 2 days. | 9 years, 10 months and 2 days.

^ The fifth bishop of Rome was not Anencletus but Evaristus, who here comes
sixth. Anencletus and Cletus were two forms of the same name, and in the earliest
lists the bishop ordained by Peter was called by either one form or the other. The
compiler of the Liherian Catalogue, however, took the two forms for the names of two
different men and inserted them both into his list. The author of the Lib. Pont.
followed the Liherian Catalogue. For full explanation see Lightfoot, Clement of Rome
{The Apostolic Fathers), vol. I, p. 201 et seq.

^ Le. the tomb. The second century Acta Petri et Pauli (Tischendorf, Acta Apos-
tolorum Apocrypha, p. 38) says that the bodies of the apostles were laid in a place out-
side the city for one year and seven months until their sepulchres were prepared for
them. These eariiest tombs were small and inconspicuous and stood close among
pagan tombs in the same localities. In fact, remains of pagan tombs or columbaria
have been found so near to the resting places of both apostles as to be disturbed when
foundations were being laid for the heavy bronze baldachinos which cover the h?gh
altars in both of the modern basilicas. The shrine of Peter was only large enough to

lo LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He was bishop in the time of Domitian and Nerva and Trajan,
from the consulship of Valens and Vetus (a.d. 96) until the year
when Gallus and Bradua were consuls (a.d. 108).

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He divided the parish churches in the city of Rome among the
priests/ and ordained 7 deacons to keep watch over the bishop
when he spoke, for the sake of the word of truth.^

He held 3 ordinations in the month of December, 17 priests,
2 deacons, 15 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican, October 27.

And the bishopric was empty 19 days.

Vn. Alexander

Alexander, by nationality a Roman, son of Alexander, from the
region of Caput Tauri,^ occupied the see 10 years, 7 months and
2 days.

He was bishop in the time of Trajan until the year when Helianus
and Vetus were consuls (a.d. 116).

He introduced the passion of the Lord into the words of the
priest at the celebration of mass.^

contain niches or places for his immediate successors. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I,
p. 125, n. 2, and p. civ.

1 Cletus is said to have ordained twenty-five priests to serve in the city, Evaristus
to have assigned them their churches. CJ. supra, p. 7, and infra, p. 38, n. 2.

''Among the canons of the apocryphal council of Sylvester {cf. infra, p. 45, n. i)
is the following, which sheds some light on the passage here: "There shall be seven
deacons to watch over the officiating bishop for the sake of the word of truth and
catholic dogma and the wisdom of age, lest in speaking we say Father in place of Son or
Holy Spirit in place of Father." Mommsen, Lib. Pont., p. 9. On the institution of
the seven Roman deacons see supra, p. 6, n. i.

^ Cf. Lanciani, Ruins and Excavations of Ancient Rome, p. 404. The district is
mentioned again in the Lib. Pont, as the home of Anastasius II, and is said to be in the
Fifth Region, which, if the reference be to the regions of Augustus, comprised a large
part of the Esquiline Hill along the city wall. Cf. infra, p. 114. The boundaries of the
seven ecclesiastical divisions, said to have been created by Fabianus {Infra, p. 24), are
for the most part unknown. For an account of both civil and ecclesiastical divisions
see Duchesne, Melanges d'Archeologic et d'Histoire, vol. I, p. 126, Gregorovius, History
of Rome in the Middle Ages, trans. Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 80-82. The latter gives
the conjectural outlines of Fabianus' regions.

* Le. Alexander introduced the passage beginning, "Qui pridie," into the liturgy

ALEXANDER, XYSTUS I ii

He was crowned with martyrdom and Eventius, the priest, and
Theodulus, the deacon, were crowned together with him.

He appointed the blessing of the water of sprinkUng and of salt
in the dwellings of the people.^

He held 3 ordinations in the month of December, 6 priests, 2
deacons, 5 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried on the Via Nomentana, where he was
beheaded,- not more than 7 miles from the city of Rome,
May 3.

And the bishopric was empty 35 days.

VIII. Xystus I

Xystus, by nationahty a Roman, son of Pastor, from the district
of the Via Lata, occupied the see 10 years,

3 months and 21 days. | 2 months and i day.

He was bishop in the time of x\drian, until the year when Veru5>
and Anniculus were consuls (a.d. 126).^

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He ordained that consecrated vessels should not be touched
except by the ministering clergy.'*

He ordained that no bishop who had been summoned to the

Roman |

apostoHc see should be received upon his return to his parish,

This, like all accounts of early papal decrees, is of course fabrication, an attempt to
assign a definite, primitive origin to the order prevaiHng in the sixth century.

1 An allusion to the custom of blessing private houses with a sprinkling of water
and of blessing the salt which the owner offers.

2 The "tomb of Alexander" is mentioned in an itinerary attributed to WiUiam of
Malmesbury. The site of it, near the Via Nomentana, was rediscovered in 1855.
But it is probable that there were two Alexanders and that the martyr has been er-
roneously identified with the pope. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. xci et seq.

3 The Liberian Catalogue {cf. Introduction, p. vi) gives the consular reckoning more
exactly; viz. "from the consulship of Niger and Apronianus (a.d. 117) to the 3rd con-
sulship of Verus when Ambibulus was consul with him (a.d. 126)." The text of the
Catalogue is printed in Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. 2-9; also in Lightfoot's
Clement of Rome, pp. 253-258.

* One of several decrees ascribed to these first popes emphasizing the sacredness
of altar vessels and hangings. Cf. infra, pp. 16 and 91.

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

unless he brought with him the unless he brought with him
"formata" of general greeting the letter of general greeting
from the apostolic see.^ from the apostolic see, which

is the ''formata."
He ordained that at the be-
ginning of mass the priest should
chant to the people the hymn,
"Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus,
dominus deus Sabaoth," etc,^

He held 3 ordinations in the month of December, 11 priests, 4
deacons, 4 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican, April 3.

And the bishopric was empty 2 months.

IX. Telesphorus

Telesphorus, by nationality a Greek, previously an anchorite,
occupied the see 11 years, 3 months and 21 days. He was bishop
in the time of Antoninus and Marcus.^

He ordained that the fast of seven weeks should be kept before
Easter.^

He was crowned with mar-
tyrdom.

He appointed that at the sea-
son of the nativity of our Lord
Jesus Christ

and that at the season of the
Lord's nativity

1 This seems to be a garbled form of an edict recorded in the acts of the spurious
Council of Sylvester {supra, p. ix, infra, p. 45, n. i), which required each bishop to take
home with him a written report of the decisions of the council, so that they might
be accurately known to the people. The ordinance as it stands in our text is unintel-
ligible. Duchesne, op. cil., p. 128, n. 4.

"The "Sanctus," like the "Sursum corda" and the opening words of the preface,
"Vere dignum, " etc., are included in every hturgy that has come down to us. They
were perhaps in use even as early as Xystus. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 128, n. 5.

^ The Liberian Catalogue gives the consulships omitted here; viz. "from the
consulship of Titianus and Gallicanus (a.d. 127) until the year when Caesar and Bal-
binus were consuls (a.d. 137)."

* The fast before Easter was observed before the pontificate of Telesphorus. It is

TELESPHORUS, HYGINUS 13

masses should be celebrated during the night ; ^ for in general no
one presumed to celebrate mass before tierce, the hour when our
Lord ascended the cross ;

and that at the opening of the
sacrifice

and that before the sacrifice

the angelic hymn should be repeated, namely, ''Gloria in excelsis
deo"

etc., but only upon the night
of the Lord's nativity .^

He was crowned with martyr-
dom.

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican, January 2.

He held 4 ordinations in the month of December, 12 priests, 8
deacons and 13 bishops in divers places.

And the bishopric was empty 7 days.

X. Hyginus

Yginus, by nationality a Greek, previously a philosopher of
Athens, whose ancestry I have not been able to ascertain, occupied
the see

10 years, 3 months and 7 days. | 4 years, 3 months and 4 days.

described by Irenaeus a few years later as a custom of the ancestors, dating back
nearly to apostolic times. The length, however, was at first variable. See the interest-
ing discussion in 'Eusehius' Church History, Ub. V, c. 24, trans. McGiffert, Nicene and Post
Nicene Fathers, ser. II, vol. I, p. 243. Mommsen cites the passage here as an indica-
tion that the Lib. Pont, was not compiled until the seventh century. He points out
that under Leo I, Gelasius and Gregory I the Lenten fast lasted only six weeks and that
therefore our author must have written after the death of Gregory. Lib. Pont., p. xvii.
Cf. Introduction, p. xii.

1 The night mass at Christmas is still a feature of the Roman ritual. The author
of the Lib. Pont, is the earliest writer to allude to it. It can hardly have been instituted
before the date of the Nativity was fixed during the fourth century.

^ Pope Symmachus introduced the angelic hymn into all masses celebrated on
Sundays or feast days. Cf. infra, p. 123. The institution applied, however, only to
papal masses. The priests in Rome were forbidden to chant the "Gloria," except at
Easter, as late as the eleventh century. In the early Galilean ritual the "Benedictus"
was sung at the opening of mass instead of the "Gloria." Duchesne, Lib. Pont,,
vol. I, p. 130, n. 5. Atchley, Ordo Romanus Primus, pp. 71-72.

14 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He was bishop in the time of Verus and Marcus, from the consul-
ship of Magnus and Camerinus (a.d. 138) until the year when
Orfitus and

Camerinus were consuls. | Priscus were consuls (a.d. 149).

He set in order the clergy and distributed ranks.^

He held 3 ordinations in the month of December, 15 priests,
5 deacons, 6 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican, January 11.

And the bishopric was empty 3 days.

XI. Pius I

Pius, by nationality an Itahan, son of Rufinus, brother of the
shepherd,^ from the city of Aquilegia,^ occupied the see 19 years,
4 months

and 21 days. | and 3 days.

He was bishop in the time of Antoninus Pius, from the consulship
of Clarus and Severus (a.d. 146).^
While he was bishop,

his brother I

Hermas wrote a book in which he set forth the commandment
which the angel of the Lord delivered to him, coming to him in the
garb of a shepherd and commanding him that

1 A vague phrase. The author may merelj' intend to convey that Hyginus carried
further the organization of the clergy into definite ranks and the assignment of special
tasks and functions.

2 Hermas, surnamed Pastor or Shepherd, from the title Pastor or Uol/jlt^v of his
book. See in the text below. He was a second century writer whose treatise, which
contained an account of a revelation from an angel, was once in such repute as to be
read in the churches. It was composed originally in Greek but was early translated
into Latin. Jerome says of it that in his day it was still read in the churches of Greece,
although it had almost been forgotten among the Latins. Dc Viris Illustribus, c. x, ed.
Richardson, p. 14. An English translation of The Shepherd of Hermas may be found
in volume II of The Apostolic Fathers in the Loeb Classical Library.

^ I.e. Aquileia.

* The second pair of consuls is here omitted ; " until the year when the two Augusti
were consuls (a.d. 161)." Liberian Catalogue.

PIUS I, ANICETUS 15

the holy feast of Easter | Easter

be observed upon the Lord's day.^

He ordained that a heretic coming out from the heresy of the
Jews should be received and baptised ; ^ and he made a regulation
for the church.

He held 5 ordinations in the month of December, 19 priests,
21 deacons, bishops 12 in number in divers places.

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican, July 11.

And the bishopric was empty 14 days.^

XII. Anicetus

Anicetus, by nationahty a Syrian, son of John, from the town of
Humisa,^ occupied the see
9 years, 3 months and 3 days. | 11 years, 4 months and 3 days.

He was bishop in the time of Severus ^ and Marcus, from the
consulship of Gallicanus and Vetus (a.d. 150) until the year when
Prsesens and Rulinus were consuls (a.d. 153).

He forbade the clergy to grow long hair, following thus the
precept of the apostle.®

He held 5 ordinations in the month of December, 19 priests, 4
deacons, 9 bishops in divers places.

1 There is no mention of Easter in the book of Hernias.

2 Duchesne cites the fact that Prudentius in his Apotheosis classes the Jews with the
heretics. Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 132, n. 5.

3 In manuscripts of the eleventh century the following sentences have been added
to the life of Pius, drawn undoubtedly from the story of SS. Pudentiana andPraxedis
{Cf. Acta Sanctorum, May, vol. IV, p. 299.) "He by request of the blessed Praxedis
dedicated a church in the baths of Novatus in the Vicus Patricius to the honor of her
sister, the holy Pudentiana, where also he offered many gifts and frequently he minis-
tered, offering sacrifice to the Lord. Moreover he erected a font of baptism and with
his own hand he blessed and dedicated it and many who gathered to the faith he
baptised in the name of the Trinity." The church of Santa Pudenziana is mentioned
in an epitaph of a.d. 384. For the Vicus Patricius, cf. supra, p. 7, n. i.

^ I.e. Emesa, an important, city of northern Syria.

5 An error for Verus.. The chronology is mistaken. The pontificate was prob-
ably from 154-5 to 166-7. Cf. Hefele, Hist. d. Conciles, I, p. 136.

« Jerome alludes to a prohibition of this sort. In Ezech., XLiv, 20. Quoted by
Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 134, n. 3. Cf. I Corinthians, xi. 14-

i6 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He also died a martyr and was buried

near the body of the blessed in the cemetery of Calistus/
Peter in the Vatican,

April 20.

And the bishopric was empty 1 7 days.

XIII. SOTER

Soter, by nationality a Campanian, son of Concordius, from the
city of Fundi, ^ occupied the see 9 years, 6 months and 21 days.
He was bishop in the time of Severus,^ from the consulship of Rus-
ticus and Aquilinus (a.d. 162) until the year when Cetegus and
Clarus were consuls (a.d. 170).

He ordained that no monk should touch the consecrated altar
cloth or should offer incense in the holy church.^

He held 3 ordinations in the month of December, 18 priests, 9
deacons, 1 1 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried

near the body of the blessed
Peter,

April 22.

And the bishopric was empty 2 1 days

in the cemetery of Calistus on
the Via Appia,^

XIV. Eleutherius

Eleuther, by nationality a Greek, son of Habundius, from the
town of Nicopolis,® occupied the see 15 years, 3 months and 2 days.

1 This cemetery, if in existence at the time, was certainly not known by the name
of Callistus, who was the fifth pope after Anicetus. C/. infra, p, 21. The reading in
the first column is probably the correct one.

"^ The modern Fondi.

' This should be Verus.

^ Several manuscripts read "no nun" instead of "no monk." They are perhaps
influenced by the passage m the life of Pope Boniface I. "Boniface decreed that no
woman or nun should touch the consecrated altar cloth." Infra, p. 91. The author
of the Lib. Pont, undoubtedly belonged to the secular clergy.

* Cf. supra, n. i.

* The city of Nicopolis in Epirus at the entrance to the Gulf of Arta.

SOTER, ELEUTHERIUS, VICTOR 17

He was bishop in the time of Antoninus and Commodus until the
year when Paternus and Bradua were consuls (a.d. 185).

He received a letter from Lucius, king of Britain, asking him to
appoint a way by which Lucius might become a Christian.^

He also decreed

He also confirmed again the
decree

that no kind of food

in common use (

should be rejected especially by the Christian faithful, inasmuch
as God created it ; provided, however, it were rational food and fit
for human kind.^

He held 3 ordinations in the month of December, 12 priests, 8
deacons, 15 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried near the body of the blessed Peter in the
Batican, May 24,

And the bishopric was empty 15 days.

XV. Victor

Victor, by nationality an African, son of Felix, occupied the see

15 years, 3 months and 10 days. | 10 years, 2 months and 10 days.

He was bishop in the time of Caesar Augustus,^ from the 2nd
consulship of Commodus when Gravio * was his colleague (a.d.
186) until the year when Lateranus and Rufinus were consuls
(a.d. 197).

1 The source of or ground for this extraordinary statement is quite unknown. It
appears first here in the Lib. Pont. Bede and other medieval EngHsh chroniclers built
up considerable legend upon it. Bede, Ecclesiastical History, I, c. 4, tr. Giles (Bohn's
Library), p. 10.

2 The apostle Paul had already prohibited the classification of certain foods as un-
clean. Romans, xiv; Colossians, ii. 16, 17; / Timothy, iv. 3, etc. Our author may
have had in mind the Manichean practice of condemning wine and meat, of which
much was heard in Rome in the fifth century.

' Severus.

^ A corruption for Glabrio.

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He appointed that the holy feast of Easter should be observed
upon the Lord's day,

as Eleuther had done.

as Pius had done.^

He added acolytes to the clergy.^

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He also ordained that, at a time of necessity, any gentile who
came to be baptised, wherever it might be, whether in a river or in
the sea or in a spring

or in a marsh,

if only he pronounced the Chris-
tian confession of faith,

if only he said clearly the
Christian confession of faith,

should be thereafter a Christian in full standing.^

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 4 priests, 7
deacons, 12 bishops in divers places.

He also summoned a council
and an inquiry was made of
Theophilus, bishop of Alexan-

He instituted an inquiry
among the clergy concerning the
cycle of Easter and the Lord's

1 The feast of Easter was celebrated on Sunday long before the time of Victor.
See supra, p. 15. There was, however, a fresh discussion about this time as to the mode
of determination of the date, of which Jerome preserves a reminiscence when he says
that Victor wrote treatises " on the question of Easter and other matters." De Viris
Illustribus, c. 34, ed. Richardson, p. 25. Eusebius has an interesting account of the
disagreement between those who followed the Jewish custom and celebrated Easter
on the Passover day, whenever in the week it fell, and those who insisted upon celebrat-
ing it on Sunday as the day of resurrection. Church History, V, cc. 23-25, trans. Mc-
Giffert, pp. 241-244. Jaile {Regesta, vol. I, p. 11) gives a decree of the synod held at
Rome between 190 and 194, which provided that the Lord's resurrection should be
celebrated always upon Sunday. It seems likely that Victor actually excommunicated
the Eastern churches which persisted in adhering to the Jewish calendar. On the
importance of Victor's pontificate see Langen, Gcschichie der Romischen Kirche and
the volume on the early papacy in this series.

2 There is some doubt as to the translation of this sentence. "Hie fecit sequentes
cleros." It may also mean: "he instituted clergy in attendance," i.e. the notaries
and subdeacons of the papal court as distinguished from the local or parish clergy con-
nected with the different local churches. CJ. Duchesne, Lib. Poiil., vol. I, p. 137, n. 4,
and Ducange, Glossarium MedicB et Infinicc Laliiiilalis , under Sequens. Harnack,
Sources of the Apostolic Canons, tr. Wheatley, p. 88, n. 3.

3 Pope Gelasius in a letter written in 494 to the bishops of Lucania makes a similar
provision for baptism in time of emergency. Mansi, Conciliorum Amplissima Collectio,
vol. VIII, p. 37. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 85, 636.

VICTOR, ZEPHYRINUS 19

dria, concerning Easter and the
first day of the week and the
moon.

day for Easter and he gathered
together the priests and the bish-
ops. Then Theophilus, bishop
of Alexandria, was questioned
and in the assembly it was
decided that the Lord's day
between the 14th day of the
moon in the first month and the
2ist day of the moon should be
kept as the holy feast of Easter.^

He was buried near the body of the blessed apostle Peter in the
Batican, July 28.

And the bishopric was empty 12 days.

XVI. Zephyrinus

Zepherinus, by nationahty a Roman, son of Habundius, occupied
the see

18 years, 3 months and 10 days. | 8 years, 7 months and 10 days.

He was bishop in the time of Antoninus and Severus, from the
consulship of Saturninus and Gallicanus (a.d. 198) to the year
when Presens and Stricatus were consuls (a.d. 217).

He decreed that in the presence of all the clergy and the faith-
ful laity every cleric, deacon or priest, should be ordained.^

He also made a regulation for the church,^ that there should
be vessels of glass before the priests in the church and servitors to
hold them while the bishop was celebrating mass and priests stand-
ing about him. Thus mass should be celebrated and the clergy

1 I.e. between full moon and the third quarter of the moon. The first month was
March. The narrative here again is a confused memory of the great controversy over
Easter. Cf. supra, p. i8, n. i. The Theophilus who took part in the synod was bishop
of Ceesarea. He has been mistaken for the later and more famous Theophilus of Alex-
andria. The present lunar method of reckoning the date was not worked out until
the fifth century. Duchesne, op. cil., p. 138, n. 6.

2 So far as we have record, the ordination ceremonies of the clergy have always
been public.

3 The following passage is corrupt and obscure. It must be read freely in order
to get any meaning from it. It deals apparently with the part played by the assisting
clergy in the episcopal mass.

20 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

should assist in all the ceremony, except in that which belongs only
to the bishop ; from the consecration of the bishop's hand the priest
should receive the consecrated wafer to distribute to the people.

He held 4 ordinations in the month of December, 14 priests,
7 deacons, 13 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried in his own cemetery near the cemetery of
CaHstus on the Via Appia, August 25.^

And the bishopric was empty 6 days.

XVII. Callistus I

Calistus, by nationality a Roman, son of Domitius, from the
district Urbs Ravennantium,^ occupied the see

5 years, | 6 years,

2 months and 10 days. He was bishop in the time of Macrinus
and Theodoliobullus,^ from the consulship of Antoninus (a.d, 218)
and of Alexander (a.d. 222).

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He instituted a fast from corn, wine and oil upon the Sabbath
day thrice in the year, according to the word of the prophet, of a
fourth, of a seventh, and of a tenth.*

He built a basilica beyond the Tiber.^

He held 5 ordinations in the month of December, 16 priests,
4 deacons, 8 bishops in divers places.

1 Later tradition fixed Zephyrinus' tomb in a small basilica over the catacomb of
Callistus. Beginning with him the popes of the third century were buried in the
cemeteries about the Via Appia, no longer in the resting place of the apostle Peter,
which may have been full.

2 A district beyond the Tiber peopled by settlers from Ravenna, the modern
Trastevere.

' A corrupt form for Heliogabalus.

* Zechariah, VIII, 19. Some manuscripts give the reading, "in the fourth, the
seventh and the tenth months." If one adds the fast of Lent, which took place during
the first month, March, one has the fasts of the four seasons which are mentioned in
early Roman liturgies and in the homilies of St. Leo. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 141,
n. 4.

* On or near the site of Santa Maria in Trastevere, which was called sometimes the
church of Callistus as late as the eighth century.

CALLISTUS I, URBANUS I

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calipodius on the Via
Aurelia at the third milestone/ October 14.

He constructed another cemetery on the Via Appia, where many
priests and martyrs rest, which is called even to this day the ceme-
tery of Calistus.

And the bishopric was empty 16 days.

XVIII. Urbanus I

Urbanus, by nationahty a Roman, son of Pontianus, occupied
the see

9 years, i month and 2 days.^

He instituted sacred vessels
of silver,

4 years, 10 months and 12 days.
He had all sacred vessels made
of silver.

and he gave as an offering 25 patens of silver.^

He also ob-
tained glory as
a confessor in
the time of Dio-
cletian.^

He was him-
self a con-
fessor.

He was him-
self a confessor
in the time of
Diocletian.

He was him-
self a confessor
at the time
when Maximin
and Africanus
were consuls.

He by his teaching turned many to baptism and faith and
among them Valerianus, a man of high nobility, husband of the
holy Cecilia.

1 The catacomb of Calepodius on the Via Aurelia, of which few traces now are
visible. The body of Callistus may have been hurriedly buried there because it was
nearer to the scene of his martyrdom than his own cemetery. For the traditional
account ot his death see Acta Sanctorum, October, vol. VI, p. 430.

2 The Liherian Catalogue says: "He was bishop in the time of Alexander, from
the consulship of Maximus and Elianus (a.d. 223) until the year when Agricola and
Clementinus were consuls (a.d. 230)."

3 The number is intended probably to correspond to that of the parish churches,
one paten for each church. Glass was also a favorite material for the sacred vessels
at this early period. Cf. jz^^o, pp. 7, n. i ; iq. Lowne, Christian Art and Archceology,

PP- 343, 357-

* A careless anachronism. The history of Pope Urban has been apparently con-
fused with that of a confessor Urban, who may have lived under Diocletian.

22 ' LIBER PONTIFICALIS

These he guided even to the palm of martyrdom/

and many were crowned with and through his exhortations
martyrdom through his words. many were crowned with mar-
tyrdom.

He held 5 ordinations in the month of December, 19 priests,
7 deacons, 8 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried in the cemetery of Pretextatus on the Via
Appia.^

The blessed Tiburtius buried him. May 19.

And the bishopric was empty 30 days.

XIX. PONTIANUS (230-235)

Pontianus, by nationality a Roman, son of Calpurnius, occu-
pied the see
5 years, 2 months and 22 days. | 9 years, 5 months and 2 days.

He was crowned with martyrdom. He was bishop in the time
of Alexander, from the consulship of Pompeianus and Pelinianus
(a.d. 231).

At that time Pontianus, the bishop, and Ypolitus, the priest,^

1 The Passion of St. Cecilia, with some form of which the author of the Lib. Pont.
was acquainted, was compiled, in the opinion of Mommsen, during the fifth century
and probably in Africa. The following is the earliest version given in the Acta Sanc-
lorum (May, vol. VI, p. n). "Cecilia, a virgin of lofty rank, carried always the
gospel of Christ hidden in her bosom. . . . She was espoused to a young man, Valeri-
anus. . . . Valerianus . . . found the holy Urbanus, the bishop, who had already been
twice a confessor and was in hiding among the tombs of the martyrs. ... ' Dost thou
call thyself that Urbanus whom the Christians entitle their pope ? I hear that he is now
condemned a second time and again he has betaken himself into hiding for the same
cause.' . . . (Valerianus and Tiburtius, his brother,) were executed with the sword.

The holy Urbanus baptised in her (Cecilia's) house more than four hundred of
both sexes. . . . Almachius commanded that CeciHa should be brought before him
and he asked her, saying. ... 'Of what state art thou?' Ceciha said, 'A free
woman and a noble of high rank.' . . . The examiner beheaded (Cecilia)."

2 Pope Urban was buried in the cemetery of Callistus, where his epitaph has been
discovered. Another Urban, perhaps the confessor, was buried in the cemetery of
Praetextatus and his name preserved by the neighboring church of San Urbano alia
CafFarella. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 143, n. 5.

3 This is thought to be the famous Hippolytus, bishop of Porto, mentioned in the
Introduction, p. iv, whose statue is now in the Lateran museum. A translation of his
work. On the Refutation of Heresies, which treats of pagan science and philosophy,

PONTIANUS, ANTEROS

were transported into exile by Alexander to the island of Bucina^
in Sardinia during the consulship of Severus and Quintianus (a.d.
235). In that island he was maltreated and beaten with clubs
and he died, October 30. In his place Antheros was ordained,
November 21.

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 6 priests,
5 deacons, 6 bishops in divers places.

And the blessed
Fabianus brought
him back in a boat
and buried him in the
cemetery of Calistus
on the Via Appia.^
And the bishopric
was empty 10 days.

And the blessed
Fabianus brought
him back with clergy
in a ship and buried
him in the catacombs.

And he was buried
in the cemetery of
Calistus on the Via
Appia. The bishop-
ric was empty from
the day of his burial
until November 21.

XX. Anteros (235-236)

Antheros, by nationality a Greek, son of Romulus, occupied the
see
I month and 12 days. | 12 years, i month and 12 days.

He was crowned with martyrdom at the time when Maximin
and Africanus were consuls (a.d. 236).^

He collected carefully from the notaries the acts of the martyrs
and of the readers and deposited them in the church,

because at one time Maximus, a
priest, had been a martyr.^

for the sake of one Maximinus
a priest, who had been crowned
with martyrdom.

jugglery and priestcraft, as well as of Jewish and Christian heresies, is in the Ante
Nicene Fathers, vol. V. Cf. Lightfoot, Apostolic Fathers, Part I, Vol. II, pp. 316-477.

1 No island of this name is known near Sardinia. The word is probably garbled.

2 The epitaph of Pontianus has disappeared, but on the doorway of the papal
crypt among other graffiti the following words have been roughly scrawled : "Mayest
thou live, Pontianus, ... in God with all." They may have been written by a wit-
ness of his interment. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 146, n. 8.

^ The Liberian Catalogue says of Anteros simply that he died after a pontificate of
forty days. His name does not occur in the lists of martyrs.

* No other clear reference to this martyred priest, Maximus or Maximinus, has

24 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He created one bishop in the
city of Fundi, in the Campania,
during the month of December.

He held one ordination, i
bishop, in the month of Decem-
ber.

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia,^
January 3.

And the bishopric was empty 13 days.

XXI. Fabianus (236-250)

Fabianus, by nationality a Roman, son of Fabius, occupied
the see 14 years,

I month and 10 days. | 11 months and 11 days.

He was crowned with martyrdom. He was bishop in the time
of Maximus and Africanus (a.d. 236) until the year when Decius
was consul the 2nd time and Quadratus was his colleague (a.d. 250),
and he suffered January 29.

He divided the districts among the deacons ^ and created
7 subdeacons to be associated with the 7 notaries, that they
might faithfully compile the acts of the martyrs, omitting
nothing.^

And he commanded many buildings to be erected throughout
the cemeteries.^

And after his passion Moyses and Maximus, priests, and Nico-
stratus, a deacon, were seized and committed to prison.

At that time Novatus arrived from Africa and drew away from

come down to us. On the other hand there are numerous unidentified martyrs of the
name in the Roman calendars and the date of his death falls during the persecution of
Maximin. The author of the Lib. Pont, was in possession of a tradition or a history
which has since been lost. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. xcv-xcvi.

1 His brief epitaph is in the papal crypt. Duchesne, ibid., p. 147, n. 4.

2 On the ecclesiastical divisions of the city, see supra, p. 10, n. 3.

3 The seven subdeacons of Rome are mentioned in a letter of Cornelius written
about two years after Fabianus' death to Fabius of Antioch. Eusebius, Church History,
VI, c. 43, tr. McGiffert, Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers, Series 2, vol. I, p. 288.
Infra, p. 35, n. i. Hamack, Sources of the Apostolic Canons, tr. Wheatley, pp. 93-95.
On the work of the notaries in preserving records of the martyrs see supra, p. 8, n. i.

* De Rossi thinks that Fabianus continued the construction of the cemetery of
Callistus both above and below ground. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 149, n. 5.

FABIANUS, CORNELIUS 25

the church Novatian and certain confessors.^ Afterwards Moyses
died in prison, when he had been there 1 1 months ; and therefore
many Christians fled to divers places.

He held 5 ordinations in the month of December, 22 priests,
7 deacons, 11 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia,^
January 20.

And the bishopric was empty 7 days.

XXII. Cornelius (251-253)

Cornelius, by nationality a Roman, son of Castinus, occupied
the see 2 years,

3 months and 10 days. | 2 months and 3 days.^

He was crowned with martyrdom.

While he was bishop Novatus ordained Novatian without the
church and Nicostratus in Africa.^ After this the confessors who
had left Cornelius returned into the church together with Maxi-
mus, the priest, who had been with Moyses, and they became faith-
ful confessors. Then Cornelius, the bishop, was banished to
Centumcellae ^ and there he received a letter written and sent for
his encouragement by Cyprian, which Cyprian wrote in prison to
tell of Celerinus, the reader.®

1 This passage and the allusion to the consecration of Novatian as antipope in the
time of Cornelius refer to the beginnings of the Novatian schism which lasted two
centuries and spread over the empire. Novatus, Novatian and their adherents refused
to readmit to communion those Christians who under stress of persecution had sacri-
ficed to idols after being baptized. Eusebius has an animated account of the discussion
over this question at the close of the terrible persecution of Decius ; Church History,
VI, cc. 42-45, tr. McGiffert, pp. 285-291.

2 The name and title of Fabianus are cut into the stone of the papal crjqat in the
catacomb of Callistus, close to those of Anteros. The letters MTP, the abbreviation
for martyr, have been added to the inscription, but they are not cut so deep and are
probably by a later hand. Duchesne, ihid., p. 149, n. 8.

3 The Libcrian Catalogue adds, "from the 3rd consulship of Decius and the 2nd of
Decius (a.d. 251) to the year when Gallus and Volusianus were consuls (a.d. 252)."

* C/. n. I on this page. Also for letters of Cornelius describing some of these events,
Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 17, 106; p. 18, in.

* The modern Civitavecchia.

«The Passio Cornelii, composed perhaps in the fifth century, thus expands this
passage. "At the same time the blessed Cyprian, the bishop, wrote to the blessed

26 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He during his pontificate at the request of a certain matron,
Lucina, took up the bodies of the apostles, blessed Peter and Paul,
from the catacombs by night ; first the body of the blessed Paul
was received by the blessed Lucina and laid in her own garden
on the Via Ostiensis,

near the place | beside the place

where he was beheaded ; the body of the blessed Peter was received
by the blessed Cornehus, the bishop, and laid near the place where
he was crucified, among the bodies of the holy bishops, in the shrine
of Apollo, on the Mons Aureus,^ in the Batican, by the palace of
Nero, June 29.^

Afterwards he held one ordi-
nation, 8 priests, and walked by
night from Centumcellae.

Cornelius, while he was in custody, to tell of Celerinus, the reader, what stripes he had
endured for the faith and confession of Christ." As a matter of fact Cyprian himself
was not in prison when he wrote to Cornelius in exile. His letter has been preserved,
along with others in which the sufferings of Celerinus are described. Epp., Ix, xxi,
xxxix, Corpus Scriptorum Ecdesiasticorum Lathwrum, vol. Ill, pp. 691-695, 529-
532, 581-585; Eng. tr. in Ante Nicene Fathers, vol. V, Epp. Ivi, xx, xxxiii ; pp.
350-352, 298-299, 312-314. The tenor of the letter to Cornehus may be inferred
from an extract. " It cannot be sufficiently expressed how great were the exultation
and the joy here when we heard of your success and courage, that you had stood forth
as a leader of confession to the brethren there, and that, moreover, the confession of
the leader had been multiplied by the loyalty of the brethren ; so that while you
precede them to glory you have made many your companions in glory and have
persuaded the people to confess by being first yourself prepared to confess on behalf
of aU."

1 A popular name for the Janiculum, perhaps a corruption from Mons Aurelius.
The name is perpetuated by the church of San Pietro in Montorio.

2 A very ancient tradition, confirmed by an inscription of Damasus, ascribes to the
bodies of the two apostles a temporary sojourn in a crypt known as "ad Catacumbas,"
beneath the present church of San Sebastiano on the Via Appia. Duchesne supposes
that this sojourn took place during the persecution of Diocletian, that the sacred
bodies were then removed from their tombs in the Vatican and on the Via Ostiense
(C/. supra, p. 5, infra, p. 57) and laid together in this more inconspicuous spot for the
sake of safety. He argues that the author here is confusing the date when they were
hidden away with the date of their restoration, that the persecution under Cornelius was
the occasion of their concealment and that the peace under Constantine was in all likeli-
hood the signal for their return to their venerated sepulchres. Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. civ, and p. 151, n. 7. Also vifra under Damasus, p. 81.

CORNELIUS

At that time Decius heard that he had received a letter from the
blessed Cyprian, bishop of Carthage/

He sent to Centumcellae and

and he had him brought from
Centumcellae,

brought out blessed Cornelius,

and he sum-
moned him be-
fore his pres-
ence at night

and said to

nim :

and he sum-
moned him be-
fore his pres-
ence in Ter-
lude,^ in front
of the temple
of the palace.

and came near
to him and
said :

and he sum-
moned him be-
fore his pres-
ence with the
prefect for the
city in an in-
terlude of the
night.

and said to
him :

and he sum-
moned him be-
fore his pres-
ence with the
prefect of the
city in an in-
terlude of the
night, in front
of the temple
of Pallas,
and said to
him :

"Hast thou determined to regard neither the gods nor the ordi-
nances

of our ancestors | of princes

and to have no fear of our threatenings, that thou receivest and
sendest letters harmful to the state?"

Cornelius, the bishop, answered and said: "I have received a
letter concerning the crown of the Lord, not harmful to the state

but rather succor to the soul." I but counsel to the spirit."

Then Decius ordered
that he be beaten
upon the mouth with

Then Decius, full of
wrath, ordered that
the blessed Cornelius

Then he ordered that
he be beaten upon
the mouth with a

1 The following account of the trial and execution of Cornelius by Decius is entirely-
apocryphal. Decius died almost two years before Cornelius and the latter perished
in exile at Civitavecchia. The Libcriaii Catalogue preserves the earlier and authentic
tradition : "being banished to Centumcellae he there fell asleep in glory."

2 A corrupt form. Some manuscripts read, "in Tellude," i.e. "in Tellure," the
temple of Tellus where the Senate sometimes met. It stood near the forum of Nerva
and the temple of Pallas (Minerva) was in the forum. Cf. Jordan, Topographic drr
Stadl Rom, Vol. II, p. 381.

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

a scourge and led to
the temple of Mars ^

be beaten upon the
mouth with a scourge
and led to the temple
of Mars

scourge and led be-
fore the temple of
Mars

to worship and, if he would not worship, be beheaded. This was
done.

And he was beheaded

by the temple of Mars | in the place aforesaid

and became a martyr.

And his body was taken up at night by the blessed Lucina and
the clergy and was buried in a crypt in her own garden, near the
cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia,^ September 14.

And the bishopric was empty 66 days.

XXIII. Lucius (253-254)

a Tuscan from the city of Luca,
son of Lucinus,

3 months and 3 days.

Lucius, by nationality
a Roman, son of Purphirius,

occupied the see 3 years,
8 months and 10 days.

He was crowned with martyrdom. He was bishop in the time
of Gallus and Volusianus (a.d. 252), until the year when Valerian
was consul for the third time and Gallicanus ^ was his colleague
(a.d. 255). He was in exile. Afterwards by the will of God he
returned in safety to the church.

He ordained that in every place two priests and three deacons
should abide with the bishop to be witnesses for him to the church.*

^ There was a famous temple to Mars just outside the city wall, on the left of the
Via Appia. From there it was a plausibly short distance to the cemetery of Callistus.

' The body of Cornelius was translated from Civitavecchia to a crypt close to the
cemetery of Callistus. The inscription has been recovered. Duchesne, Lib. Pont.,
vol. I, p. 152, n. 14.

' The name should be Gallienus.

* The system of private attendance upon the pope by members of the clergy,
regular or secular, seems to have been first instituted by the council of 595 under
Gregory I. Until that time the pope received personal service from laymen. Duchesne

LUCIUS, STEPHEN I 29

He was also beheaded by Valerian, March 5.

He, while on his way to his
passion, gave authority to Ste-
phen, archdeacon of his church.^

He gave authority over the
whole church to Stephen, his
archdeacon, while he was on his
way to his passion.

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 4 priests, 4
deacons, 7 bishops in divers places.
He also was buried

in the cemetery of Calistus

near the cemetery of Calistus
in a sandpit,

on the Via Appia,^ August 25.

And the bishopric was empty 35 days.

XXIV. Stephen I (254-257)

Stephen, by nationality a Roman, son of lobius, occupied the see
4 years, 2 months and 15 days. | 6 years, 5 months and 2 days.

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He was bishop in the time of Valerian and Gallicanus and Maxi-
mus until the year when Valerian was consul for the 3rd time and
Gallicanus for the 2nd time ^ (a.d. 255).

In * his time he was carried into exile ; and afterwards by the

suggests that in ascribing this ordinance to Lucius our author may have been animated
by the memory of the charge of adultery brought against Pope Symmachus later and the
difficulty which that pope experienced in clearing himself for lack of witnesses. Cf.
infra, p. 117, n. 2 ; Duchesne, Lib.Ponl., vol. I, p. 153, n. 2. There is no other record of
an edict of the sort so early.

1 This incident is probably taken from an apocrjqahal martyrology, or Passion of
Lucius, now lost. Lucius is not usually reckoned among the martyrs, for although
banished for a while he was permitted to return and died at Rome.

2 A piece of the tablet which marked the tomb of Lucius and bears his name has
been discovered in the course of excavation in the catacomb of CaUistus. Duchesne,
ibid., p. 153, n. 5.

^ Gallicanus should be Gallienus. The Liberian Catalogue gives the synchronism
more exactly. "He was bishop in the time of Valerian and Gallienus, from the 2nd
consulship of Volusianus and the first of Maximus (253) until, " etc.

* The following paragraph is contained in only one manuscript of the composite
seventh century text and is evidently an interpolation of that period. The early lists
mention Stephen simply as bishop, not as martyr. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 154,
n. I.

30 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

will of God he returned in safety to the church. And after 34 days
he was tried by Maximian ^ and committed to prison with 9 priests
and 2 bishops, Honorius and Castus, and 3 deacons, Xistus, Dionis-
ius and Gaius. There in prison, near the arch of Stella,^ he held a
synod and all the vessels of the church he entrusted to the authority
of his archdeacon, Xystus, and the money coffer. After 6 days he
himself was brought forth under guard and beheaded.

He forbade priests and deacons to use their consecrated garments
for daily wear save in church.

He held two ordinations in the month of December, 6 priests,
5 deacons, 3 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia,
August 2?

And the bishopric was empty 22 days.

XXV. Xystus H (257-258)

Xystus, by nationality
a Greek, | a Roman,

previously a philosopher,^ occupied the see

2 years, 11 months and 6 days. | i year, 10 months and 23 da3^s.

He was crowned with martyrdom.

He was bishop in the time of Valerian and Decius,^ when there
was the great persecution.
At that time he was seized

by Valerian

and taken to offer sacrifice to demons. But he despised the com-

1 An obvious anachronism.

2 I.e. " Arcus Stillse," an arch of the aqueduct (the dripping arch, arcus stillans) ;
either the Porta Capena or the arch of Drusus. Cf. Jordan, Topographic, Vol. II, p. 380.

^ The place of Stephen's burial is mentioned in all the liturgical calendars after 336
but his epitaph has not been found. Duchesne, ibid., n. 4.

* There seems to have arisen some confusion between Pope Xystus and a Py-
thagorean philosopher, Sextius, whose Sententice were translated from Greek into Latin
by Rufinus in the fifth century.

^ The Liherian Catalogue omits the usual imperial synchronisms. The author of
the Lib. Pont, supplies them, coupling Valerian and Decius as if they were contempo-
raries.

XYSTUS II , 31

mands of Valerian. He was beheaded and with him six others, all
deacons, Felicissimus, Agapitus, Januarius, Magnus, Vincentius
and Stephen, about August 6}

And the priests kept charge ^ from the consulship of Maximus
and Gravio (a.d. 255) until the year when Tuscus and Bassus were
consuls (a.d. 258), from the consulship of Tuscus and Bassus until
July 20, when

there was the great persecution
under Decius.^

the exceeding cruel persecution
was raging under Decius.

And after the passion of the blessed Xystus, on the third day,
Lawrence, his archdeacon, suffered also, August 10, likewise the
subdeacon Claudius and Severus, the priest, and Crescentius, the
reader, and Romanus, the doorkeeper.'*

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 4 priests, 7
deacons, 2 bishops in divers places.

He himself was buried in the cemetery of CaHstus on the Via
Appia and the aforesaid 6 deacons were buried in the cemetery of
Praetextatus on the Via Appia, August 6.^

1 A letter of Cyprian, written from Carthage a month or thereabout after these
events, speaks of the news of the persecution at Rome. "But know that Xistus was
martyred in the cemetery on August sixth and with him four deacons." The church
at Carthage was expecting persecution also and C>T5rian hopes "that every one of us
may think less of death than of immortality." Ep. Ixxxi, tr. Ante Nicene Fathers,
vol. V, p. 408. According to tradition, Xystus was seated in a marble chair in the
midst of a church service, when he was seized and carried away to the scene of his
martyrdom. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 156, n. 8. Felicissimus and Agapitus, the
first two of the six deacons mentioned in the text, were interred, not with Xystus, but
in the cemetery of Prstextatus, where their tombs may now be seen. Duchesne, op.
cit., p. 155, n. 4.

2 I.e. during the vacancy in the bishopric following the execution of Xystus.
Letters of Cyprian written at this juncture are addressed, "To the priests and deacons
who are at Rome."

3 The foregoing unintelligible tangle of dates is a garbled version of the passage
in the Liberian Catalogue. Xystus was bishop " from the consulship of Maximus and
Glabrio (a.d. 256) until the year when Tuscus and Bassus were consuls (a.d. 258), and
he suffered August 6. And the priests kept charge from the consulship of Tuscus and
Bassus until July 21 of the year when ^milianus and Bassus were consuls (a.d. 259)."

* The later legends of St. Lawrence knew nothing of Claudius and Severus, though
the memor>' of Crescentius and Romanus was sometimes recalled. The Lib. Pont.
may preserx'e an earlier and more accurate tradition. Cf. Acta Sanctorum, August,

vol. 11, pp. 485-532-

* Duchesne prints the verse with which Pope Damasus later commemorated the

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

The aforesaid blessed Lawrence

was buried on the
Via Tiburtina in a
crypt in the Ager Ve-
ranus, August lo.^

was buried in the
cemetery of Cyriaco
in the Ager Veranus
in a crypt with many
other martyrs.

And the bishopric was empty 35 days.

was buried on the Via
Tiburtina in the cem-
etery of Cyriaces in
the Ager Veranus in
a crypt with many
other martyrs, Au-
gust 10.

XXVI. DiONYSius (259-268)

Dionysius, previously a monk, whose family we have not been
able to ascertain, occupied the see

8 years, [ 6 years,

2 months and 4 days.

He was bishop in the time of Galienus, from July 22 of the year
when Emilianus and Bassus were consuls (a.d. 259), to December
26 in the consulship of Claudius and Paternus (a.d. 269).

He assigned churches and cemeteries to the priests and appointed
parishes in the diocese.^

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 12 priests,
6 deacons, 8 bishops in divers places.

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia,
December 27.

And the bishopric was empty 5 days.

tomb of Xystus in the papal crypt. Op. cil., p. 156, n. 8. See infra, p. 82 and n. i.
Four out of the six deacons were buried with Xystus in the cemetery of Callistus. Supra,
p. 31, n. I.

1 The site of the present famous basihca of San Lorenzo in Agro Verano or fuori
le Mura. For the building of the basilica see infra, p. 61.

^ Duchesne takes this sentence to mean that Dionysius carried out the parish
organization of the city, assigning certain suburban cemeteries to certain urban
churches, so that each church should have its special cemetery. He also assigned
the boundaries of the episcopal dioceses within the metropolitan diocese of the pope.
The word "parochia," parish, was employed at this period to signify either a rural
parish in the modern sense or the whole territory governed by a bishop. Lib. PonL,
vol. I, p. 157. n. 3-

DIONYSIUS, FELIX I, EUTYCHIANUS 33

XXVII. Felix I (269-274)

Felix, by nationality a Roman, son of Constantius, occupied
the see
2 years and 10 months. | 4 years, 3 months and 25 days.

He was crowned with martyrdom.^

He was bishop in the time of Claudius and Aurelian, from the
consulship of Claudius and Paternus (a.d. 269), to the year when
Aurelian and Capitulinus were consuls (a.d. 274).

He instituted the celebration of masses

over the sepulchres | over the memorials

of the martyrs.^

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 9 priests,
5 deacons, 5 bishops in divers places.

He built a basilica on the Via

He also was buried in his own
cemetery on the Via AureHa at
the 2nd milestone, May 30.

Aurelia, where also he was
buried. May 30, 2 miles from
the city of Rome.

And the bishopric was empty 5 days.

XXVIII. EUTYCHIANUS (275-283)

Eutycianus, by nationality a Tuscan, son of Marinus, from the
city of Luna,^ occupied the see

8 years, lo months and 4 days. | i year, i month and i day.

He was bishop in the time of Aurelian, from the 3rd consulship

1 Pope Felix was not counted a martyr in the early lists and he was buried with his
predecessors in the cemetery of Callistus. He is confounded here with two martyrs of
the same name who were associated with a basilica on the Via Aurelia. Duchesne,
Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. cxxv, 158, n. 3.

2 The poet Prudentius is witness to the fact that at the end of the fourth century
the custom existed of celebrating masses in memory of the martyrs "ad corpus," either
in the cemeterial basilicas over the tombs or in the subterranean vaults themselves.
Peristephanon, lib. xi, v. 171, etc. Quoted by Duchesne, op. cit., p. 158, n. 2.

' The modern Luni.

34 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

of Aurelian when Marcellinus was his colleague (a.d. 275), until
December 13 of the year when Carus was consul for the 2nd time
and Carinus was consul with him (a.d. 283).

He ordained that fruit might be blessed upon the altar, but only
beans and grapes.^

He in his time buried 342 martyrs in divers places with his
own hand.^ He also ordained that whenever anyone of the faith-
ful buried a martyr, he should bury him in a dalmatic or a purple
tunic and the report of it should be brought to himself (Euty-
chianus) .

He held 5 ordinations in the month of December, 14 priests, 5
deacons, 9 bishops in divers places.

And he was crowned with martyrdom.^

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia,
July 25.4

And the bishopric was empty 8 days.

XXIX. Gaius (283-296)

Gains, by nationality a Dalmatian, of the family of Dioclitian,
the emperor, son of Gaius, occupied the see 11 years, 4 months

and 9 days. | and 12 days.

He was bishop in the time of Carus and Carinus, from Decem-
ber 17 in the 2nd consulship of Carus when Carinus was his
colleague (a.d. 283), until April 22 of the year when Diocletian
was consul for the 4th time and Constantius for the 2nd time
(a.d. 296).

^ Prayers for the blessing of the first fruits are found in various early Roman litur-
gies. They had, of course, both Jewish and pagan archetypes. The bean and grape
have been from ancient times the chief food crops of the Italian people. Duchesne,
Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 150, n. i.

2 No persecution of importance is recorded under Eutychianus. Whether this
sentence and the following refer to the original burying of martyrs or to the translation
of their bodies is impossible to say. They may both be entirely apocryphal.

' There is no other record of Eutychianus' martyrdom. The words may be an
interpolation.

^ His inscription is in the papal crypt. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 160, n. 6.

GAIUS

He decreed

that whoever was worthy to be
bishop must rise from door-
keeper through each rank, step
by step, to the higher place.

that all the offices in the
church should be thus held in
turn : whoever was worthy to be
bishop must first be doorkeeper,
reader, exorcist, acolyte, sub-
deacon, deacon, priest and then
be ordained bishop.^

He divided the districts among the deacons.

He fled from the persecution of Diocletian into the crypts.

and while dwelhng there died a
confessor.

and while dwelling there was
crowned with martyrdom after
8 years.^

He held 4 ordinations in the month of December, 25 priests,
8 deacons, 5 bishops in divers places.

He, after 11 years, was crowned with martyrdom in company
with Gavinius, his brother, on account of the daughter of Gavinius,
the priest, whose name was Susanna.

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia,
April 22.^

And the bishopric was empty 1 1 days.

1 Pope Cornelius, writing thirty years before this of Novatian and the schism in the
Roman church, gives the earliest known enumeration of the seven ranks in the hierarchy
of the order. "This avenger of the Gospel then did not know that there should be one
bishop in the catholic church ; yet he was not ignorant — for how could he be ? — that in
it there were forty-six priests, seven deacons, seven subdeacons, forty-two acolytes,
fifty-two exorcists, readers and doorkeepers." Eusebius, Church History, \T, c. 43, tr.
McGiffert, p. 288. See under Pope Sylvester, infra, p. 46. On the institution of
the graded hierarchy see Cambridge Medieval History, vol. I, pp. 150-152.

2 The legend of Gaius' martyrdom is not authenticated. His name is not in the
early martyrologies and the persecution of Diocletian did not begin until seven years
after his death. We have in our text, however, three different versions of the legend,
the last connecting him with the passion of St. Susanna. In fact she is sometimes
said to have been a niece of Gaius. Acta Sanctorum, February, vol. Ill, p. 62; August,
vol. II, p. 631 ; Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. xcviii.

' The tablet which marked his tomb was discovered in fragments and put together
by De Rossi. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 161, n. 7.

36 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

XXX. Marcellinus (296-304)

Marcellinus, by nationality a Roman, son of Projectus, occu-
pied the see
8 years, 2 months and 25 days. [ 9 years, 4 months and 16 days.

He was bishop in the time of Diocletian and Maximian, from
July I in the 6th consulship of Diocletian and the 2nd of Constantius
(a.d. 296) until the year when Diocletian was consul for the 9th
time and Maximian for the 8th (a.d. 304). At that time was a
great persecution, so that within 30 days 17,000 Christians of both
sexes in divers provinces were crowned with martyrdom.^

For this reason Marcellinus himself was haled to sacrifice, that
he might offer incense, and he did it.

And after a few days,^ inspired by penitence, he was beheaded
by the same Diocletian and crowned with martyrdom for the faith
of Christ in company with Claudius and Cyrinus and Antoninus,

and the blessed Marcellinus on
his way to his passion adjured
Marcellus, the priest, that he
should not fulfil the commands
of Diocletian.

1 This exaggerated estimate seems to be founded upon a misconception of a state-
ment in the apocryphal Preface to Jerome's Martyrology. Mommsen, Lib. Pont.,

p. 41, note on 1. 5.

2 A single manuscript contains the following more detailed account. "And after a
few days a synod was held in the province of Campania in the city of Sessana, where
with his own lips he professed his penitence in the presence of 180 bishops. He wore
a garment of haircloth and ashes upon his head and repented, saying that he had sinned.
Then Diocletian was wroth and seized him and bade him sacrifice to images. But he
cried out with tears, saying, 'It repenteth me sorely for my former ignorance,'
and he began to utter blasphemy against Diocletian and the images of demons made
with hands. So, inspired by penitence, he was beheaded, " etc. Sessana is a corrupt
form of the name Sinuessa. The modern town is called Rocca di Mandragone. See
on the story of this council and the apostasy of MarceUinus, Introduction, p. ix. Petili-
anus, a Donatist bishop, with whom Augustine had a controversy, is the earliest au-
thority for Marcellinus' defection. Duchesne, Lit. Pont.,\o\. I, p. bcxiv; Momm-
sen, Lib. Pont., pp. liv, Iv. Petilianus says that Marcellinus not only offered incense
but also surrendered the sacred books to be burned. Augustine in reply is non-com-
mittal. At any rate, he remarks, "it is no affair of ours. For they have borne their
own burden, whether it was good or whether it was evil. We ourselves believe it was
good ; but whatever it was it was theirs." Augustine, Contra Litteras Petiliani; Migne,
Pat. Lai., vol. 43, cols. 323, 328.

MARCELLINUS, MARCELLUS 37

And afterwards the holy bodies lay in the street for an ex-
ample to the Christians 26 days by order of Diocletian.

Then the priest Marcellus and the other priests and the dea-
cons took up the bodies by night with hymns and buried them on
the Via Salaria in the cemetery of Priscilla in a chamber which is
well known unto this day, as Marcellinus himself had commanded,

when in penitence he was being
haled to execution, in the crypt
near the body of the holy Cris-
centio,

April 25.^

He held 2 ordinations in the month of December, 4 priests,
2 deacons, 5 bishops in divers places.

From that day the bishopric was empty 7 years, 6 months and
25 days while Diocletian was persecuting the Christians.

XXXI. Marcellus (308-309)

Marcellus,^ by nationality a Roman, son of
Marcellus, | Benedictus,

from the district of the Via Lata, occupied the see
4 years. I 5 years, 7 m^onths and 21 days.

He was bishop in the time of Maxentius, from the 4th consul-

1 The crypt of San Crescenzio in the cemetery of Priscilla is marked on seventh
century itineraries of the holy places in the environs of Rome. The grave of Marcel-
linus, however, has not been identified.

2 Eusebius, Jerome, Augustine and the authors of the Roman hidex and other early
lists omit either Marcellus or Marcellinus from their chronologies. There was evidently
some tendency to confuse the similar names. The Liberian Catalogue, however, gives
both and the Lib. Pont, copies it. Duchesne holds that Marcellinus was ignored
by the compilers because of the disgrace which he brought upon his office. Lib. Pont.,
vol. I, pp. Lxxiii, Ixxiv. Mommsen argues and supports his contention by the
chronology of the Lib. Pont, itself, that Marcellus was not included in the episcopal
lists because he was never regularly ordained bishop but merely performed some of
the duties of the head of the church during the seven years of interregnum that fol-
lowed the execution of Marcellinus. Lib. Pont., pp. liii-lv.

8 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

ship of Maxentius when Maximus was his colleague, until after the
consulship.^
He

made request of a certain ma-
tron, whose name was Priscilla,-
and

established a cemetery on the Via Salaria, and he appointed 25
parish churches^ as dioceses^ in the city of Rome to provide
baptism and penance for the many who were converted among the
pagans and burial for the martyrs.^

He ordained 25 priests in the city of Rome and 2 deacons, in
the month of December, and 21 bishops in divers places.

He was seized by Maxentius and held in confinement, because
he set the church in order, and imprisoned that he might deny his
bishopric and degrade himself by sacrifices to demons. Then,
forasmuch as he continually despised and scorned the words and
commands of Maxentius, he was condemned to the stable.^ But,
although he served many days in the stable, he did not cease his

1 The years 308-309, which the author attempts to designate here, were years of
some confusion in the consulate. Maxentius did not recognize the regular officials
and the usual formulae were not preserved.

2 The name of PrisciUa, introduced in a few manuscripts, is an anachronism, sug-
gested undoubtedly by the well-known cemetery on the Via Salaria. That cemetery
is much older than MarceUus. A few other manuscripts give the name NoveUa as
that of Marcellus' foundarion and De Rossi has proved the existence of such a cemetery
across the Via Salaria facing the cemetery of PrisciUa. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 165, n. 4.

3 MarceUus may have found it necessary to reorganize the churches after the per-
secution and the vacancy in the episcopate. See supra, pp. 7, n. 2 ; 21, n. 3. For a
brief account of the twenty-five parish churches of Rome in the fifth century see
Frothingham, Monuments of Christian Rome, pp. 39-41 ■ Gregorovius, History of Rome,
tr. Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 267-282.

* Tills passage maybe compared with supra, p. 32 and n. 2, to show how variable
was stiU the meaning of terms like "parish" and "diocese," which have since become

so exact.

^ Each parish church in the city was at first apparently connected with a suburban
cemetery or catacomb, where its dead, whether martyrs or not, were buried. Later
the service of the cemeteries became so arduous that monasteries were estabUshed
adjacent to take charge of them. Cf. infra, p. 163, n. i.

8 The reference here seems to be to the pubUc stables maintained as part of the
service of the imperial post. The story of the sufferings of MarceUus cannot be cor-
roborated from other sources but is not in itself inconsistent with what facts we know
of this turbulent period.

MARCELLUS, EUSEBIUS 39

service to the Lord with prayers and fastings. Moreover in the
ninth month all his clergy came by night and removed him by
night from the stable. A certain matron and widow, whose name
was Lucina, who had lived with her husband Marcus 15 years
and had been 19 years a widow, received the blessed man ; and she
dedicated her house as a church in the name of the blessed Mar-
cellus ^ and there day and night the Lord Jesus Christ was confessed
with hymns and prayers. But Maxentius heard of it and sent and
seized the blessed Marcellus a second time and gave orders that in
that very church

a second time |

boards should be laid down and the animals of the stable should be
collected and kept there and the blessed Marcellus should tend
them. And he died in the service of the animals, clad only in a
hair shirt.

And the blessed Lucina took his body

and he was buried | and buried it

in the cemetery of Priscilla on the Via Salaria, January 16.^
And the bishopric was empty 20 days.
Lucina herself was condemned by proscription.

XXXII. EusEBius (309 or 310)

Eusebius, by nationality a Greek, previously a physician, occu-
pied the see

2 years, i month and 25 days. [ 6 years, i month and 3 days.

He was bishop in the time

of Constantine.^ | of Constans.

1 The modem church of San Lorenzo in Lucina. The association with St. Lawrence
was achieved in the fifth century.

^ The epitaph erected by Pope Damasus (see infra, p. 82, n. 1) over the grave of
Marcellus is printed by Duchesne ; op.cit.,p. 166, n. 10. It alludes to a rebellious
faction in the church and to an apostate who denounced the pope to the tyrant
INIaxentius and brought about his banishment. It does not mention the manner of his
death.

^ The author of the Lib. Pont, has inserted th^ name of Constantine and the
succeeding sentence into the text as allusions to the legend of the discovery of the True
Cross by the Jew Cyriacus. The Latin version of the legend is in the Acta Sanctorum,

40 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

While he was bishop the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ was
found, May 3, and Judas was baptised, who is also Quiriacus.

He discovered heretics in the city of Rome and reconciled them
by the laying on of hands.^

He held
3 ordinations | i ordination

in the month of December, 13 priests, 3 deacons, 14 bishops in
divers places."

He also was buried in the cemetery of Calistus

in a crypt j

on the Via Appia, October 2.

And the bishopric was empty 7 days.

XXXni. MiLTiADES (31 1-3 14)

Miltiades, by nationality an African, occupied the see 4 years,
7 months and 8 days, from July 7 in the

9th consulship of Maximin un-
til the 2nd consulship of Maxen-
tius,

9th consulship of Maxentius
until the 2nd consulship of Maxi-
mus,

which was in the month of September, when Volusianus and Rufinus
were consuls (a.d. 311).^

He decreed that no one of the faithful should in any wise keep
fast upon the Lord's day or upon the fifth day of the week, because
the pagans celebrated those days as a sacred fast.^

May, vol. I, p. 445. The other legend, which attributed the discovery of the Cross
to the empress Helena, became eventually the more popular in the West.

^ The rite employed by the early Roman church in the reconciliation of heretics
seems to have been very similar to that of confirmation. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I,
p. 167, n. 3.

2 Eusebius was pope for four months only, from April to August. He, therefore,
could have held no ordinations in December.

3 The tomb of Eusebius is in a special chamber of the catacomb of Callistus, at
some distance from the large chamber where the third century popes are buried.

'' The consular synchronisms are confused here and in the Liberian Catalogue, partly
because Maxentius recognized a different set of consuls from the regularly elected offi-
cials and both the Catalogue and our author attempt to name them all. Our author
omits the latter part of his clause, "until January 11 in the year when Volusianus and
Annianus were consuls (a.d. 314)."

^ Sunday fasting has been forbidden in the church since the rise of the dualist sects

MILTIADES, SYLVESTER 41

And he discovered Manicheans in the city.^

He appointed that consecrated offerings should be sent through-
out the churches from the bishop's consecration ; these are called
the leaven.^

He held i ordination in the month of December, 7 priests, 5
deacons, 1 1 bishops in divers places.

He was buried in the cemetery of Calistus on the Via Appia

in a crypt I

December 10.

And the bishopric was empty 16 days.

XXXIV. Sylvester (314-335)

Sylvester, by nationality a Roman, son of Rufinus, occupied
the see 23 years, 10 months and 11 days.

He was bishop in the time of Constantine and Volusianus, from
February i until January i in the consulship of Constantius and
Volusianus.^

He was an exile on Mount Syraptin,^

who testified by that observance their abhorrence of the material world. Thursday
also is rarely a fast day, although the reason for the latter rule is not so clear. Duchesne,
Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. i68, n. 2.

1 This famous dualist sect had arisen some thirty years before the pontificate of
Miltiades. For a convenient account of its history and doctrines see " Manicheanism,"
Harnack and Conybeare, Encyclopedia BrUannica, nth edition.

2 An obscure passage which has given rise to much debate over the possible use of
leaven in the Host. See " Fermentum , " Ducange, Glossarimn Med. et Inf. Lat. Duchesne
quotes a letter of Pope Innocent I to Decentius, which evidently refers to the same
custom. "And the priests of these (parish) churches, because they are prevented by
their charges from assembling with us on the Lord's day, receive through acolytes the
leaven prepared by us, in order that they may not suppose themselves divided from our
communion on that great day ; but I do not think it right to do this for the parishes
(rural), because the sacred elements ought not to be carried a long distance, nor do we
send them to the priests situated at the various cemeteries, for those priests have the
right and privilege of preparing them." Duchesne, op. cit., p. 169, n. 4. Mansi,
Amplissima Colleciio, vol. Ill, p. 1028. As late as the eighth century the Host was
sent about in Rome from the pope's altar, as here described, on Holy Thursdays.
Atchley, Ordo Romanus Primus, pp. 106-108.

^ The Liberian Catalogue says : "He was bishop in the time of Constantine, from the
consulship of Volusianus and Annianus (a.d. 314), January 31, to December 31 in the
year when Constantius and Albinus were consuls (a.d. 335)."

* This form of the name is found in the fifth century Armenian text of the legend

42 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

driven by the persecution of
Constantine,

and afterward he returned and baptised with glory Constantine
Augustus, whom the Lord cured

through baptism |

of leprosy, from whose persecution he had fled when he was in
exile. He built a church in the city of Rome, in the garden of one
of his priests who was called Equitius, and he appointed it as a
parish church of Rome, near the baths of Domitian, and even unto
this day it is called the church of Equitius.^ There also he offered
the following gifts : ^

a silver paten,^ weighing 20 pounds,^ the gift of Constantine
Augustus.
He gave likewise :

of the miraculous healing of Constantine. In the two epitomes of the Lib. Pont, and
in the second recension it is written Seracten or Soracten, with the evident intention of
identifying the spot with the well iinown mountain near Rome. Duchesne believes
that the Constantinian legend originated early in the fifth century in the Syrian or
Armenian communities of the Eastern church. Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. cix-cxx.
The most trustworthy account of the actual baptism of the emperor is furnished by
Eusebius in his Life oj Constantine, tr. Richardson, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, -
ser. 2, vol. I, pp. 555-556. The ceremony took place shortly before the illustrious
convert's death, near Nicomedia in Asia Minor. Cf. Coleman, Constantine the Great
and Christianity for literature on this and associated topics.

1 The church is now generally known as San Martino ai Monti. Remains of Syl-
vester's edifice still exist below the present structure. The baths here called by Domi-
tian's name are more usually styled the baths of Trajan or the baths of Titus.

■ On the value of this and subsequent lists of real and movable property bestowed
upon the churches see Introduction, pp. ix-x. Duchesne has a lengthy discussion of the
questions involved. In the course of it he prints an interesting document of the year
471, a deed of gift of lands, precious vessels and other articles from a man and his
wife to a church near Tivoli. The deed is strikingly similar in phraseology and arrange-
ment to the lists of the Lib. Pont.; op. cit., pp. cxl-cliv. Of course the churches
were plundered many times over in the centuries that followed.

3 The paten of this early period, as represented in the mosaic of San Vitale in Ra-
venna, for example, was a large, flat bowl and was used to hold the consecrated Host
for the bishop and his assistants, the bread for the laity being broken and distributed in
bags. An ordinary church or an altar in a large church owned but one paten, though
a number of chahces. The paten, however, might also hold the consecrated oil or
chrism, as below. Duchesne, o;>. cU., p. cxliv; Lowrie, Christian Art and Archa-

ology, pp. 343-354-

^ The Roman pound, nearly equal to twelve oimces avoirdupois.

SYLVESTER 43

2 silver beakers,^ weighing each ten pounds ;
a golden chalice, weighing 2 lbs. ;
5 chaUces for service ,2 weighing each two lbs. ;
2 silver pitchers,^ weighing each ten lbs. ;

1 silver paten, overlaid with gold, for the chrism, weighing
5 lbs. ;

10 chandeliers,^ weighing each eight lbs. ;
20 bronze lamps, weighing each ten lbs. ;
12 bronze candelabra, weighing each three hundred lbs. ; ^

2 silver pitchers, weighing each ten lbs. ;

I silver paten overlaid with gold, for the chrism, weighing

5 lbs. ;
10 chandeliers, weighing each eight lbs. ;
20 bronze lamps, weighing each ten lbs. ;
12 bronze candelabra, weighing each three hundred lbs. ;
the Valerian manor in the Sabine region,^ which yields 80 solidi ; ^
the Statian ^ manor in the Sabine region, which yields 55 sol. ;

^The "scyphus" or beaker was a large vessel, shaped like a goblet, in which the
wine was placed for consecration on the altar and from which it was poured into the
smaller chalices for distribution to the congregation. At least this is Duchesne's theory ;
ibid., p. cxliv. Sometimes, however, the term "chalice" is used to denote the vessel
of honor for the altar. For the shape see the illustrations in Lowrie, op. cit., passim.

2 The "chahces for service" were used to carry the wine to the laity.

3 The "ama," pitcher or flagon, was a large receptacle which, in Duchesne's opinion,
was set to receive the offerings of wine presented by the faithful. Lowrie suggests
that it contained the wine and water which were mixed for the Eucharist. Op. cit.,

P- 347-

■* The churches of this and later centuries were illuminated by a wealth of lamps,
chandeliers, candlesticks and candelabra, suspended from the roof or standing upon
the floor. A large variety of terms is employed to enumerate the different kinds and
shapes of lights, an exact translation of which is now impossible. The lamps and
chandeliers found at Pompeii are smaller and far less sumptuous than these products of
fourth century workmanship. Lowrie, op. cit., pp. 349-352. It wiU be noticed that
no Hghts were placed upon the altar. The officiating priest still stood behind it, facing
the people, and illumination came from overhead or from the sides.

5 Or thirty pounds. The figures throughout these lists vary in different manu-
scripts.

8 It is impossible to locate most of the lands mentioned in the fists. The word
"fundus," here translated manor, means a farm or piece of country property.

^ The solidus was a gold coin introduced by Constantine and worth at this time
about $3.50 in our money.

* A small hamlet caUed Stazzano perpetuates the name to-day.

44 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the manor of Duas Casee in the Sabine region, which yields

40 sol. ;
the Percihan manor in the Sabine region, which yields 20 sol. ;
the Corbian manor in the region of Cora,^ which yields 60 sol. ;
a house in the city, with a bath, in the Sicinine district,^ which

yields 85 sol. ;
a garden within the city of Rome in the district of Ad Duo

Amantes,^ yielding 15 sol. ;
a house in the district of Orfea within the city,^ which yields

58 and one third sol.
He made a regulation for the whole church. Likewise in his
time was held a council

with his approval 1 at his bidding

in Nicea in Bithynia, and there were gathered together 318 catholic
bishops,

and 208 others unable to attend |

sent their signatures.

And they set forth in full the

holy, I

catholic and unspotted faith and condemned Arrius and Fotinus
and Sabellius and their disciples.^

And after consultation with Augustus he assembled 277

bishops I

' The modern village of Cori in the Campagna.

2 It is impossible to identify all of the city districts enumerated in the lists. The
Sicinine district, however, was in the neighborhood of the church of Santa Maria
Maggiore, which was known in the fourth century as the "basilica Sicinini." Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 188, n. II.

' Probably in the vicinity of the Esquiline Hill, not far from the church of San
Martino, like the houses mentioned before and after.

* A "lake of Orfeus" is included in the region of the Esquiline by topographers of
the fourth century. A church of Santa Lucia in Orphea stood later near the church
of San Martino.

^ This is, of course, the great Council of Nicea. The idea that Photinus and Sabel-
lius, as well as Arius, were condemned by the council originated with the authors of
the popular, unhistorical lives of Sylvester, who were concerned to make their hero
crush as many errors as possible.

SYLVESTER 45

in the city of Rome ^ and he condemned a second time Calistus and
Arrius and Fotinus and Sabellius ; and he decreed that an Arian
priest who became convinced of his error should not be received
except by the bishop of his particular locality ; and that the chrism
should be consecrated only by the bishops ; and he established the
privilege of the bishops, that they should anoint those who had
been baptised ^ to avert the propagation of heresy.^

He furthermore decreed that a priest might anoint with the
chrism one who had been baptised and taken from the water, in
case of the approach of death.

He decreed that no layman should presume to bring a charge
against one of the clergy.^

He decreed that deacons should wear dalmatics ^ in church and
napkins of mixed wool and linen over their left arms.®

He decreed that no member of the clergy should enter a court
for any cause whatever or plead his case before a civil judge, unless
it were in a church.^

He decreed that the sacrifice of the altar should be performed
not upon a cloth of hair nor one that was colored, but only upon

* On this Council of Rome see Introduction, p. ix. The records of the council and
of the canons promulgated by it and by Sylvester at this time are fabrications of the
age of Symmachus, intended to provide sanction for episcopal claims and to exalt the
episcopal office in general. They are the oldest set of apocryphal canons in existence
dealing with matters of church discipline. Duchesne, op. cit., p. cxxxiv.

2 I.e. administer the sacrament of confirmation.

' A free translation of an enigmatical clause, "propter hereticam suasionem."

* On its face an impossible decree. The councils of this and later periods issued
stipulations as to the methods to be employed in bringing suit against members of the
higher clergy.

^ The dalmatic worn by a Roman deacon as well as by a bishop at this time, a long,
flowing tunic with wide sleeves, is pictured in many church frescoes and mosaics. It
was, as the name indicates, originally an Oriental garment, introduced into Rome during
the second century and worn in pubHc first apparently by the emperor Commodus.
It was distinguished by a purple stripe, which ran over each shoulder and down to the
bottom of the skirt on both sides and sometimes around the edge of the sleeve. Pope
Symmachus (498-519) granted to St. Caesarius of Aries the privilege of clothing his
deacons in dalmatics like those worn by the deacons at Rome. Lowrie, op. cit., pp.
394-396.

^ The towel or napkin carried by the deacon for use in his part of the service be-
came in course of time the maniple. Lowrie, op. cit., pp. 410-413.

^ The word translated civil is "cinctum," i.e. clad in official robes. This spurious
decree represents an effort to oblige the clergy to bring their suits to the episcopal
courts. There is no parallel to it in authentic records. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 190, n. 23.

46 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

linen sprung from the earth, even as the body of our Lord Jesus
Christ was buried in pure linen cloth ; ^ ,

thus mass should be celebrated. |

He decreed that anyone who wished to advance or make prog-
ress in the church must be a reader 30 years, ^ an exorcist 30 days,^
an acolyte 5 years, a subdeacon 5 years,

a custodian of the martyrs 5
years ,^

a deacon 7 years, a priest 3 years ; that he must be approved on
every hand, even by them who are without, and must have good
witness borne to him, the husband of one wife,^ who had herself
received the blessing of the priest, and that thus he might attain
to the rank of bishop ; that he must not enter upon a greater or
superior office, but accept modestly the order of rank by years,
and he must have the goodwill and favor of all the clergy with no
one anywhere in the clergy

or among the faithful |

* Mosaics of- the sixth and seventh centuries in the churches of San Vitale and San
ApoUinare in Classe in Ravenna show the early table altar set with chalice and bread
and covered with a white linen cloth.

2 Some manuscripts give, "first a doorkeeper, then a reader," etc. There is much
variation in the figures throughout the passage. An authentic decree of Pope Zosimus
in 418 states what was undoubtedly the accepted system. A man who had been
dedicated to the church from infancy must remain a reader until his twentieth year.
If an adult desired to enter the clergy, he must serve as reader and exorcist for five
years. Thereafter he must be acolyte and subdeacon four years and deacon five years.
From the priesthood he might be elevated to the bishopric if his life were holy and he
had been married but once, not to a widow, and had never been a penitent. Duchesne,
op. cil., p. 191, n. 25 ; Mansi, Amplissima Colledio, vol. IV, p. 347 ; Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I,
p. 50, 339. C/. supra, p. 35 and n. i.

3 Two manuscripts read, "afterward an exorcist for the time required by the
pontiff;" two others, "afterward an exorcist for the time which the bishop may
appoint." Mommsen, Lib. Pont., p. 51, notes.

* It seems probable that the care of the tombs of the martyrs in the vicinity of
Rome was entrusted to subdeacons at the opening of the sixth century. Gregory
of Tours often speaks of the "martyrarii " who performed a similar duty in the church
of Gaul. Duchesne, ibid., n. 25.

^ Early in the fourth century both popes and councils took the position that no man
could be ordained who had been married more than once or had espoused a widow.
Duchesne, ibid., n. 26.

SYLVESTER 47

opposed to him. He held 6
ordinations | orders

of priests and deacons in the month of December, 42 priests, 27

deacons at different times in the city of Rome, 65 bishops in divers

places.

In his time Constantine Augustus built the following basilicas

and adorned them :

the Constantinian basilica,^ where he offered the following gifts :
a ciborium of hammered silver, which has upon the front
the Savior seated upon a chair, in height 5 feet, weighing
120 lbs., and also the 12 apostles, who weigh each ninety
pounds and are 5 feet in height and wear crowns of purest
silver; further, on the back, looking toward the apse are
the Savior seated upon a throne in height 5 feet, of purest
silver, weighing 140 lbs., and 4 angels of silver, ^

which weigh each 105
lbs. and are 5 feet in
height and have jewels
from Alabanda ^ in their
eyes and carry spears ;

which are each 5 feet in height
upon the sides and carry
crosses and weigh each 105
lbs. and have jewels from
Alavanda in their eyes ;

^ San Giovanni in Laterano. As early as 313 a council called to try the case of
the Donatist heretics under Pope Miltiades met " in the house of Fausta in the Lat-
eran." Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 28, 313. Fausta was the wife of Constantine. The
basilica erected on the site was first called Constantinian in the record of the Roman
synod of 487. Mommsen, op. cit., p. xxvii and n. 4. Needless to say no vestiges
of this first basilica are visible in the present structure. The former fell to the
ground in 877 and was rebuilt once in the tenth century, twice in the fourteenth and
thoroughly "restored" in the seventeenth and nineteenth. For a description of the
several basilicas ascribed in our text to Constantine see Gregorovius, History of
Rome, vol. I, pp. 88-112.

2 The figure of Christ seated in the midst of his apostles was represented often in
the catacombs and on the sarcophagi of the fourth century. The mosaic of the apse
of the church of Santa Pudenziana dates from the end of that century. Christ en-
throned between angels was, for some reason, a subject less frequently chosen. A
nave mosaic of San ApoUinare Nuovo at Ravenna, built for Theodoric about the year
500, shows the latter scene, the attendant angels carrying spears, as here. This
ciborium of Constantine was destroyed by Alaric's Gauls and replaced by one given
by the emperor Valentinian in the pontificate of Xystus III. See infra, p. 95, n. i.

' A city in Caria, now .A.rab-Hissar.

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the ciborium itself
weighs 2025 lbs. of
wrought silver ; a
vaulted ceiling of
purest gold ; ^

and a lamp of pur-
est gold, which hangs
beneath the ciborium,
with 50 dolphins^ of
purest gold, weighing
each 50 lbs., and
chains which weigh
25 lbs. ;

the ciborium itself
weighs 2025 lbs. ;

a lamp of purest gold
beneath the ciborium
with 50 dolphins and
a chain which weighs
25 lbs. ;

the ciborium itself,
where stand the an-
gels and the apostles,
weighs 2025 lbs. of
wrought silver ;

a lamp of purest gold
which hangs beneath
the ciborium, with 50
dolphins, which
weighs with its chain
25 lbs. ;

4 crowns^ of purest gold with 20 dolphins, weighing each
fifteen lbs. ;

a vaulting for the basilica of polished gold, in length and in
breadth 500 lbs. ; ^

7 altars of purest silver, weighing each 200 lbs. ;

7 golden patens, weighing each thirty lbs. ;

16 silver patens, weighing each thirty lbs. ;

7 goblets of purest gold, weighing each 10 lbs. ;

A single goblet of coral set all about with prases and jacinths
and overlaid with gold, which weighs in all 20 lbs. and
3 ounces ;

20 silver goblets, weighing each fifteen lbs. ;

2 pitchers of purest gold, weighing each fifty lbs. and hold-
ing each 3 medimni ; ^

20 silver pitchers, weighing each ten lbs. and holding each
one medimnus ;

^ I.e. the vault of the ciborium from which depended the great lamp next described.

* An ornament of lamps or chandeliers, shaped like a dolphin ; probably each dol-
phin held a light.

^ I.e. circular chandeliers with pendant lights.

* The readings of this clause vary a little but none are quite intelligible. The
vaulting is that of the half dome of the apse.

^ The medimnus or niSifivoi was the Greek bushel, comprising about twelve
gallons or one and one half English bushels.

SYLVESTER 49

40 smaller chalices of purest gold, weighing each one lb. ;
50 smaller chalices for service, weighing each 2 lbs. ;
For ornament in the basilica :

a chandelier of purest gold before the altar, wherein burns

pure oil of nard, with 80 dolphins, weighing 30 lbs. ;
a silver chandelier with 20 dolphins, which weighs 50 lbs.,

wherein burns pure oil of nard ;
45 silver chandeHers in the body of the basilica,^ weighing

each 30 lbs., wherein burns the aforesaid oil;
on the right side of the basilica 40 silver lamps, weighing

each 20 lbs. ;
25 silver chandeliers on the left side of the basilica, weigh-
ing each 20 lbs. ;
50 silver candelabra in the body of the basiHca, weighing

each 20 lbs. ;
3 jars of purest silver, weighing each 300 lbs., holding 10

medimni ;
7 brass candlesticks before the altars, 10 feet in height,
adorned with figures of the prophets overlaid with silver,
weighing each 300 lbs. ;
and for maintenance of the lights there he granted :
the Gargilian estate in the region of Suessa,^ yielding

every year |

400 sol. ;
the Bauronican estate in the region of Suessa, yielding

360 sol. ;
the Aurian estate in the region of Laurentum,^ yielding 500

sol. ;
the Urban estate in the region of Antium," yielding 240 sol. ;

1 I.e. the central nave. The right side mentioned next would be the right aisle,
reserved at this time for women communicants, the left side the left aisle reserved for

men.

2 The modern Sessa in Latium. There is a village of Garigliano in that region

now.

3 The modern Torre Paterno in Latium. From the opening of the second century
to the close of the fourth the ancient villages of Laurentum and Lavinium united to
form one municipality.

* The modern Porto d'Anzio in Latium. Antiimi was a city in the fifth century

50 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the Sentilian estate in
the region of Ardea/
yielding 240 sol. ;

the estate of Castis in the region of Catina,^ yielding 1000 sol. ;
the estate of Trapes in the region of Catina, yielding

1650 sol. ;
2 censers of purest gold, weighing 30 lbs. ;
a gift of spices before the altar, every year 150 lbs.
The holy font where Constantine Augustus was baptised ^

by the same bishop Silvester |

of stone of porphyry, overlaid on every side within and with-
out and above and as far as the water with purest silver,
3009 lbs.
In the centre of the font is a porphyry column, which bears a
golden basin of purest gold, weighing 52 lbs., where is a

flame and where |

in the Easter season

burns balsam, 200 lbs., and the wick is of asbestos.
At the edge of the font

in the baptistery |

is a golden lamb pouring water, which weighs 30 lbs. ;
to the right of the lamb the Savior of purest silver, 5 feet in
height, weighing 170 lbs., and to the left of the lamb
John, the Baptist, of silver, 5 feet in height, holding an
inscribed scroll which bears these words: "Behold the
Lamb of God, Behold, Who Taketh Away the Sins of
the World," weighing

125 lbs. ; I 100 lbs. ;

and its bishop attended the synods at Rome. It suffered severely and dwindled in
size during the later disorders.

1 The colony of Ardea is mentioned as late as 223 a.d., but it sent no bishops to
the Roman councils of the fifth century. It was evidently dechning in population
in the interval. - Duchesne, op. cit., p. 192, n. 39.

*The modern Poggio Catino southwest of Rieti.

^ The most venerable part of the present Lateran baptistery is hardly older than
the end of the fourth century and most of it dates only from Xystus III. See infra,
p. 96. The stone font, however, is the original one stripped of its primitive decorations.

SYLVESTER 51

7 silver stags pouring water/ weighing each 80 lbs. ;
a censer of purest gold set with 49 prases, weighing 15 lbs.
He bestowed upon the holy font :
the estate of Festus,

the keeper of the
sacred bed-cham-
ber, which Con-
stantine Augustus
gave him,

in the region of Penestre,^ yielding 300 sol. ;
the estate of Gaba in the region of Gabii,^ yielding

202 sol. ;
the estate of Pictae in the aforesaid region, yielding

205 sol. ;
the Statilian" estate in the region of Cora, yielding 300

sol. ;
an estate in Sicilia Taurana, in the region Paramnense,^

yielding 500 sol. ;
within the city of Rome houses and

gardens, | granaries,

yielding 2300 sol. ;

the estate of Bassus, yielding 120 sol. ;

the estate of Laninae in the region of Cartioli,^ yield-
ing 200 sol. ;

the estate of Caculie in the region of Momentum,^
yielding 50 sol. ;

1 The stags may have been set around the font with the water running into it from
their mouths. In the Roman baths water often flowed in jets from animal heads.

2 Probably a corrupt form for Prasneste, the modern Palestrina. A second century
inscription in honor of one Valerius Priscus Festus has been found in the neighborhood.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 192, n. 47.

3 The modern Castiglione, twelve miles from Rome.

^ There was a "gens Statiha," to which belonged Titus Statilius Taurus, the friend
of Augustus.

5 Duchesne thinks this may be Palermo. Op. cit., p. 193, n. 51.

6 Probably Carsioli, near the modern village Carsoli in Latium.

"> This perhaps should read Nomentum, the modern Mentana, to which the Via
Nomentana led.

52 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the Statian estate in the Sabine region,^ yielding 350 sol. ;
the estate of Murinas in the Appian Alban region,^ yield-
ing 300 sol. ;
the estate of Virgo in the region of Cora, yielding 200 sol. ;

beyond the sea :

in the provinces of Africa :

the estate of luncis in the Mucarian region,^ yielding

800 sol. ;
the estate of Capsis in the region of Capsa,^ yielding

600 sol. ;
the estate of Varia Sardana in the Mimnian region,^

yielding 500 sol. ;
the estate of Camara? in the region of Crypta Lupi,^

yielding 405 sol. ;
the estate of Numae in the region of Numidia/ } ielding

650 sol. ;
the estate of Sulphorata in the region of Numidia, yield-
ing 720 sol. ;
the estate of Walzari, an olive plantation in the region

of Numidia, yielding 810 sol. ;

also in Greece, in the region

of Crete

in Greece :

the estate of Cefalina
in Crete, 1

yielding 500 sol. ;

1 Cf. supra, p. 43, n. 8.

2 I.e., in the Alban Hills near the Via Appia. A district still called Morena lies
between the Via Appia and the Via Latina.

3 Possibly the region of the Macae, a people living near the North coast. There
were African bishops entitled "luncensis," but the situation of their diocese is not
known. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 193, n. 55.

* A city in the southwestern part of the modern country of Tunis. The place is

now called Gafsa.

8 A bishop of Mina, in the province of Mauretania, attended the council of Carthage

in 525. Duchesne, ibid., n. 57.

6 A corruption, perhaps, of Syrtica Leptis, i.e. the city of Leptis in the Regio Syrtica,
the modern Tripoli.

7 The province of Numidia, which covered much the same territory as the modem

Algiers.

SYLVESTER S3

in Mengaulus : ^

the estate of Amazon, yielding 222 sol.
At the same time Constantine Augustus built

by request of Silvester, the
bishop,

the basihca of blessed Peter, the apostle, in the shrine of Apollo,^
and laid there the cofhn with the body of the holy Peter ; =^ the
coffin itself he enclosed on all sides with bronze, which is unchange-
able : at the head 5 feet, at the feet 5 feet, at the right side 5 feet,
at the left side 5 feet, underneath 5 feet and overhead 5 feet : thus
he enclosed the body of blessed Peter, the apostle, and laid it

away.

And above he set porphyry columns for adornment ^ and other
spiral columns which he brought from Greece.

1 A corrupt form. Duchesne accepts the suggestion of M. Vignoli that the island of
Gaulus is intended, the modern Gozzo near Malta. Op. cit., p. 193, n. 60.

2 The great Constantinian basilica of St. Peter stood with some alterations and
many additions until it was torn down by the popes of the Renaissance to make way
for the present edifice. The mosaic of the triumphal arch, which represented Con-
stantine offering a model of the church to Christ, seems to have kept its place to the
last and the stamp of the emperor was on the bricks of which the basilica was built.
For a good brief description of old St. Peter's see Frothingham, Momiments of Christian
i?owz€, pp. 25-29; Landsim, Destniction of Ancient Rome, pp. s^S^; Duchesne, o/i. cit.,
pp. 193-194, n. 61. The last-named quotes from some of the surviving contemporary
descriptions of the church and reproduces a groimd plan pubHshed by Alfarano in 1590.
There is a mass of hterature on the subject to which it is impossible to refer here.
On the site see supra, p. 5, n. 5.

3 The following rather confused description of the tomb of St. Peter is the oldest
and also the fullest in existence. The sarcophagus itself, enclosed stiU to all probability
in Constantine's bronze casing, lies in a small subterranean chamber connected by a
deep vertical shaft with the confession beneath the present high altar. In 1594, when
the foundations of this altar were being laid, Pope Clement VIII and three cardinals
saw at the bottom of the shaft, which the architect had laid open, a cross of gold lying
upon the tomb, but the pope ordered the shaft immediately filled up and it has never
since been opened. Whether the cross was the one placed there by Constantine is not
certain. The tomb was early made inaccessible, undoubtedly to protect it from in-
vading marauders.

* The porphyry columns apparently supported the ciborium above the altar, the
spiral columns next mentioned formed a line or colonnade in front of the confession,
separating it from the nave. Several of the latter may still be seen, adorning niches in the
pillars that support the cupola of the present cathedral, and one is venerated in a side
chapel. They served as models evidently for the huge bronze spiral columns of the

54 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He made also a vaulted roof ^ in the basilica, gleaming with
polished gold, and over the body of the blessed Peter, above the
bronze which enclosed it, he set a cross of purest gold, weighing
150 lbs., in place of a measure,^ and upon it were inscribed these
words: "Constantine Augustus and Helena Augusta this
House Shining with like Royal Splendor a Court Sur-
rounds,"^
inscribed in

clear, |

enamelled letters upon the cross.

He gave also ^ 4 brass candlesticks, 10 feet in height, overlaid
with silver, with figures in silver of the acts of the apostles,
weighing each 300 lbs. ;
3 golden chalices, set with 45 prases

and jacinths, |

weighing each 12 lbs. ;
2 silver jars, weighing 200 lbs. ;
20 silver chalices, weighing each 10 lbs. ;

modem baldachino. They were preserved with particular reverence because of a
tradition that arose in the Middle Ages to the effect that they had originally stood in
the Temple at Jerusalem. They are represented in Rafael's cartoon of the healing
of the impotent man at the Gate Beautiful.

^ I.e. the vaulting of the apse.

2 "In mensure locus," an unintelligible expression. Other manuscripts give
"in mensuram loci," which might mean that the cross was as large as the chamber
allowed.

^ The inscription is recorded nowhere else and, as it stands here, is obviously incom-
plete. De Rossi suggests the insertion of three words and the alteration of one ending
which would make it read, " Constantine Augustus and Helena Augusta beautify with
gold this royal house which a court, shining with like splendor, surrounds." Mommsen,
op. cit., p. 57, n. on line 13. Duchesne thinks that the "royal house" is the subterran-
ean tomb chamber, which during the fourth century was probably accessible to the
devout and not impenetrably sealed until the invasions of the fifth century ; in that
case the surrounding court would be the basilica itself. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 195,
n. 67.

•* Orosius relates that during Alaric's sack of Rome in 410 the precious vessels of
St. Peter's were deposited for safe keeping in the house of an aged, consecrated virgin.
They were discovered by the barbarians but before they were carried off Alaric learned
that they were the property of the apostle and restored them all in state to the basilica.
Historia adversiitn Paganos, lib. VII, c. 39, ed. Zangemeister, Teubner, pp. 292-293.

SYLVESTER 55

2 golden pitchers, weighing each 10 lbs. ;
5 silver pitchers, weighing each 20 lbs. ;
a golden paten with a turret of purest gold and a dove/
adorned with prases, jacinths and pearls,

I white stones,

215 in number, weighing 30 lbs. ;
5 silver patens, weighing each 15 lbs. ;
a golden crown before the body, that is a chandeHer, with

50 dolphins, which weighs 35 lbs. ;
32 silver lamps in the body of the basihca, with dolphins,

weighing each 10 lbs. ;
for the right of the basihca 30 silver lamps, weighing each

8 lbs. ;
the altar itself of silver overlaid with gold,

adorned on
every side with
gems, 400 in
number.

with 210

adorned on
every side with
210

prases, jacinths and pearls, weighing 350 lbs. ;
a censer of purest gold adorned on every side with jewels,
60 in number, |

weighing 15 lbs.
Likewise for revenue, the gift which Constantine Augustus
offered to blessed Peter, the apostle, in the diocese of the East : -
in the city of Anthiocia : ^

the house of Datianus, yielding 240 sol. ;

the httle house in Caene,^ yielding 20 and one third sol. ;

the barns in Afrodisia, yielding 20 sol. ;

the bath in Ceratheae, yielding 42 sol. ;

the mill in the same place, yielding 23 sol. ;

the cook shop in the same place, yielding 10 sol. ;

1 Vessels shaped like small turrets or towers and like doves were used to enshrine
the Host.

2 Antioch, it will be remembered, was traditionally the seat of Peter's first bishopric.
See sjipra, p. 4.

' Caene, Afrodisia and Ceratheae are aU quarters of the city of Antioch.

56 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the garden of Maro, yielding lo sol. ;
the garden in the same place, yielding 1 1 sol. ;
near the city of Anthiocia :

the property Sybilles, a gift to Augustus, yielding 322

sol.,

1 50 decades ^ of papyrus,

200 lbs. of spices,

200 lbs. of oil of nard, |

35 lbs. of balsam ;
near the city of Alexandria :

the property Timialica, given to Constantine Augustus by

Ambrosius, | Ambronius,

yielding 620 sol.,

300 decades of papyrus,

300 lbs. of oil of nard,

60 lbs. of balsam,

150 lbs. of spices,

50 lbs. of Isaurian storax ;
the property of Eutymus, who left no heir, ^ yielding

500 sol.,

70 decades of papyrus ;
in Egypt : ^

near the city of Armenia/ the property of Agapus, which

he gave to Constantine Augustus ;
the property of Passinopolis, yielding 800 sol.,

400 decades of papyrus,

50 medimni of pepper,

100 lbs. of saffron,

150 lbs. of storax,

200 lbs. of spices of cinnamon.

300 lbs. of oil of nard,

100 lbs. of balsam,

1 The decade was apparently a package containing ten sheets.

2 The property had, therefore, reverted to the imperial exchequer.

^ After 386 A.D. Egypt did not form part of the administrative division of the Orient,
as here, but constituted a separate division alone. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. cl.
* I do not know what city is meant here.

SYLVESTER 57

100 bags of flax,
150 lbs. of cariophylum/
100 lbs. of Cyprian oil,
1000 fine stalks of papyrus ;
the property which Hybromius gave to Constantine
Augustus, yielding 450 sol.,
200 decades of papyrus,
50 lbs. of spices of cinnamon,

200 lbs. of oil of nard, |

50 lbs. of balsam ;
in the province of the Euphrates, near the city of Cyrus : ^
the property of Armanazon, yielding 380 sol. ;

the property of Obarias,
yielding 260 sol.

At the same time Constantine Augustus ^ built the basilica
of blessed Paul, the apostle, at the bidding of Silvester, the bishop,
and laid his body away there in bronze and enclosed it, as he did
the body of the blessed Peter.'* And to this basilica he offered the
following gifts :

near Tarsus ^ in Cilicia :

the island of Cordionon, yielding 800 sol.

All the consecrated vessels of gold and silver and bronze he set
there, as in the basihca of blessed Peter, the apostle, so also he
ordained them for the basiUca of blessed Paul, the apostle. More-

' Perhaps a corruption for " carpheotum," a superior kind of frankincense.
2 Perhaps Cyrrhus, a city in Syria.

* One manuscript reads, " Constantine Augustus and Lord Constantius Augustus
built" etc. If Constantine really built the first basilica of St. Paul, it was a small and
unpretentious edifice. In 386 the emperors Valentinian II, Theodosius and Arcadius
ordered the erection of a great church on the site, which was completed early in the
fifth century. It was destroyed by fire in 1823 and the present basilica of San Paolo
fuori le Mura is almost entirely a latter-day reconstruction.

■* The empty sarcophagus of St. Paul was unearthed during the work of rebuilding
the present church. It is of marble and bears an inscription in fourth century letters,
"PAULO APOSTOLO ET MARTYRI." The tomb lay farther outside the city
walls than that of St. Peter and was rifled probably during the Saracen invasion, if
not before.

* It was evidently thought appropriate to endow the church of Paul of Tarsus
with lands in the vicinity of his birthplace.

58 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

over he placed a golden cross over the tomb of blessed Paul, the
apostle, weighing 150 lbs.

near the city of Tyre :

the property of Comitum, yielding 550 sol. ;
the property of Tymia, yielding 250 sol. ;
the property of Fronimusa, yielding 700 sol.,
70 lbs. of oil of nard,
50 lbs. of spices,
50 lbs. of cinnamon ;
near the city of Egypt :

the property of Cyrios, yielding 710 sol.,
70 lbs. of oil of nard,
30 lbs. of balsam,
70 lbs. of spices,
30 lbs. of storax,
150 lbs. of oil of myrrh ;
the property of Basilea, yielding 550 sol.,
50 lbs. of spices,
60 lbs. of oil of nard,
20 lbs. of balsam,
60 lbs. of saffron ;
the property of the island Maccabes, yielding 510
sol.,
510 stalks of fine papyrus,
300 bags of flax.
At the same time Constantine Augustus constructed a basiHca
in the Sessorian palace,^ where also he

placed and |

enclosed in gold and jewels some of the wood of the holy cross of
our Lord Jesus Christ, and he dedicated the church under the name
by which it is called even to this day, Hierusalem.^ In that
church

1 The Sessorian palace is known to have been a residence of the empress Helena.
Two inscriptions in her honor have been discovered there. In spite of alterations
and mutilations the present basilica still shows traces of its origin as a private hall.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 196, n. 75.

2 The title is now Santa Croce in Gerusalemme. In the fifteenth century an in-
scription was still legible beneath the apsidal mosaic, which commemorated the pay-

SYLVESTER 59

he offered the following gifts : | he offered these gifts :

4 candlesticks of silver burning before the holy wood,

like to the number of the 4 gospels, weighing each

80 lbs. ;
50 silver chandeliers, weighing each 15 lbs. ;
a goblet of gold, weighing 10 lbs. ;

5 golden chahces for service, weighing each one lb. ;
3 silver goblets, weighing each 8 lbs. ;

10 silver chalices for service, weighing each 2 lbs. ;

a golden paten, weigh-
ing 10 lbs. ;

a silver paten overlaid with gold and set with jewels,

weighing 50 lbs. ;
a silver altar, weighing 250 lbs. ;
3 silver pitchers, weighing each 20 lbs. ;
and all the land

about the palace he gave
as an offering to the
church ;

near the palace itself,

likewise the property of Sponsae on the Via Lavicana,''

yielding 263 sol. ;
near the city of Lauren tum^ the property of Patrae, yielding

120 sol. ;
near the city of Nepeta^ the property of Anglesis, yielding

150 sol. ;
near the aforesaid city the property of Terega,** which

yields 160 sol. ;

ment of a vow by Valentinian, Placidia and Honoria Augusti to the "holy church
Hierusalem." As for the relic of the cross, St. Cyril of Jerusalem, writing about
348, says that fragments of the sacred wood were dispersed through all the world.
Duchesne, ibid.

1 Or Labicana. One of the main roads leading over the Esquiline Hill to the Latin
town of Labicum.

2 Cf. supra, p. 50, n. i.

3 The modem Nepi in the upper border of the Roman province.

* The spot may have taken its name from the river Treia, which flows by Nepi.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 196, n. 79.

6o LIBER PONTIFICALIS

near the city of Falisca/ the property of Herculus, which
he gave to Augustus and Augustus gave to the church
of Hierusalem, yieldmg 140 sol. ;
near the city of Tuder ^ the property of Angul«, yielding
153 sol.
At the same time he built the basilica of the holy martyr Agnes ^
at the request of

Constantia,^ |

his daughter, and a baptistery in the same place,^ where both his
sister, Constantia, and the daughter of Augustus were baptised

by Silvester, the bishop,

where also he presented the following gifts :

a paten of purest gold, weighing 20 lbs. ;

a golden chalice, weighing 10 lbs. ;

a chandelier of purest gold with 30 dolphins, weighing

15 lbs.;
2 silver patens, weighing each 20 lbs. ;
5 silver chalices, weighing each 10 lbs. ;
30 silver chandeliers, weighing each 8 lbs. ;

^ Now Civita Castellana.

^ Now Todi, in Umbria.

3 The church of Sant' Agnese on the Via Nomentana, erected over the traditional
tomb of the virgin martyr, was rebuilt by Honorius I in the seventh century, so that it is
now uncertain if any part of the present structure belongs to the age of Constantine.

* The name of Constantine's daughter was Constantina. Originally an acrostic
inscription in the apse of the basilica commemorated the dedication of the church in
her name. Constantine's sister was Constantia. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 196, n. 80.

^ The small, circular building, now known as the church of Santa Costanza, was
used originally as a mausoleum but may have been intended also as a baptistery.
The huge porphyry sarcophagus, at present in the Vatican Museum, stood in a niche
in the wall facing the entrance and a baptismal font may have occupied the central
space under the dome. The arrangement would then have been similar to that in the
Lateran baptistery, and the shape of the two buildings, with their double apsed vestibules,
is not unlike. At any rate there is no vestige of another baptistery in the vicinity.
There is no unimpeachable account of the baptism of the princesses of Constantine's
house, but it is not, of course, improbable that such a ceremony took place. Am-
mianus Marcellinus tells us that in the year 360 the body of Helena, one of Constantine's
daughters, was sent to Rome to be buried on the Via Nomentana, outside the city,
where her sister Constantina already lay. Roman History, XXI, i ; tr. Yonge, Bohn's
Library, p. 244.

SYLVESTER 6i

chandeliers of
brass ;

chandeliers of
brass metal ;

lamps of brass
metal ;

40 candelabra of brass overlaid with silver and adorned

with reliefs ;
a golden lamp with 1 2 wicks,

which weighs 20 lbs., |

over the font, weighing 15 lbs. ;
likewise a gift

for revenue : |

all the land about the city of Fidelinae,^ yielding 160 sol. ;
on the Via Salaria as far as the ruins, all the land

of the holy Agnes, |

yielding 105 sol. ;
the land of Mucus, yielding 80 sol. ;
the property of Vicus Pisonis, yielding

350 sol. ; I 250 sol. ;

the land of Casulae, yielding 100 sol.
At the same time

Constantine Augustus | he

built the basilica of blessed Lawrence, the martyr,^ on the Via
Tiburtina in the Ager Veranus over the burial crypt, and he made
stairs of ascent and of descent to the body of the holy martyr
Lawrence. In that place he erected an apse and adorned it with

^ Probably FidencC, the modem Castel Giubileo, five miles from Rome, near the
Via Salaria.

2 The present church of San Lorenzo in Agro Verano is formed by the union of two
ancient basilicas, which were thrown into one by Honorius III in the thirteenth century.
The smaller of these two, which contains the present choir and covers the resting-place
of the saint, may owe its foundation to Constantine. Little beside the columns of the
lower floor can, however, with safety be ascribed to him, for the building was restored
at the beginning of the fifth century and again rebuilt, with the addition of the gal-
leries, at the close of the sixth. See infra, p. 89, n. 3 ; p. 168, n. 2. The description
given here is interesting as one of the earliest of a confession or tomb chamber of a
martyr in a basilica erected "ad corpus." The basilica was placed so that its altar
stood directly over the tomb, which was reached by steps leading down below the altar.

62 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

porphyry and the spot over the tomb he enclosed with silver and
beautified it with railings of purest silver, which weighed looo lbs. ;
and before the tomb itself within the crypt he set :

a lamp of purest gold with lo wicks, weighing 20 lbs. ;
a crown of purest silver with 50 dolphins, weighing 30

lbs.;
2 bronze candlesticks, 10 feet in height, weighing each 300
lbs.;
before the body of the blessed Lawrence, the martyr, images
overlaid with silver to show his passion and silver
lamps with 6 wicks, weighing each 15 lbs.
In the same locality : ^

the property of one Quiriaces, a religious woman, which
the fisc had seized in the time of the persecution, the
estate of Veranus,^ yielding 160 sol. ;
the property of Aqua Tuscia on one side, yielding 153

sol. ;
the property of Augustus in the Sabine region, yielding
to the name of the Christians^ 120 sol. ;

the property of Sul-
furatcB ■* yielding 62
sol. ;

the property of Micinae belonging to Augustus, yielding
no sol. ;

1 Here, as in the case of the lands bestowed on Sant' Agnese, the estates, so far as
their situation can now be determined, lay in the neighborhood of the basilica upon
which they were conferred.

* This is the land upon which the basilica stood. Duchesne thinks that a passage
like this, alluding to a well-known persecution with no mention of emperor or date, is
certainly taken from a source at least as old as the first half of the fourth century. Op.
cit., p. cl.

^ Duchesne believes that this passage also indicates the use of some primitive source,
that the expression, "name of the Christians," to signify the Christian community
antedates the persecution of Diocletian. The property here mentioned was perhaps
a part of the possessions of the church restored to it by the Edict of Milan.^ Duchesne,
ibid., pp. cl, cli.

^ The name may be derived from some sulphurous springs on the Via Tiburtina,
sixteen miles from Rome. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 198, n. 89.

SYLVESTER

the property of Termulae, yielding

65 sol. ; I 60 sol. ;

the property of Aranse, yielding 70 sol. ;

the property of Septi-
mitus, yielding 130
sol.
The gift which he offered :

a golden paten, weigh-
ing 20 lbs. ;
2 silver patens, weigh-
ing each 30 lbs. ;
a goblet of purest gold,

weighing 15 lbs. ;
2 silver goblets, weigh-
ing each 10 lbs. ;
10 silver chalices for
service, weighing
each 2 lbs. ;
2 silver pitchers, weigh-
ing each 10 lbs. ;
30 silver lamps, weigh-
ing each 20 lbs. ;
a jar of silver weigh-
ing 150 lbs., holding
2 medimni.
At the same time Constantine
Augustus built a basilica to the
blessed martyrs Marcellinus, the
priest, and Peter, the exorcist,
at Inter duas Lauros ; also a
mausoleum where his mother,
Helena Augusta, was buried on
the Via Lavicana, at the 3rd
milestone.^ And in this place.

At the same time Constantine
Augustus built a basilica on the
Via Lavicana at Inter duas Lau-
ros to blessed Peter and Mar-
cellinus, the martyrs ; also a
mausoleum where the most
blessed Augusta, his mother,
was buried in a sarcophagus of
porphyry, and he offered there :

^ The remains of the mausoleum of the empress Helena and the catacomb of Santi
Pietro e Marcellino may be seen about two miles from the Porta Maggiore at a place

64 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

both for love of his mother and
for veneration of the saints, he
offered votive gifts :

a paten of purest gold, weighing 35 lbs. ;

4 silver candlesticks overlaid with gold, 12 feet in height,

weighing each 200 lbs. ;
a golden crown, that is a chandeUer, with 120 dolphins,

weighing 30 lbs. ;
3 golden chalices, weighing each 10 lbs., set with prases and

jacinths ;
2 golden pitchers, weighing each 40 lbs. ;
an altar of purest silver, weighing 200 lbs. ;

before the tomb of the blessed
Helena Augusta, which is of por-
phyry carved with images,^

20 silver chandeliers, weighing each 20 lbs.

Likewise in the basilica of the
saints Peter and Marcellinus he
gave as a gift :

Likewise for the aforesaid holy
martyrs he gave to the basilica
as a gift :

an altar of purest silver, weighing 200 lbs. ;
2 patens of purest gold, weighing each 15 lbs. ;
2 silver patens, weighing each 15 lbs. ;
a large goblet of

the purest |

gold,

now called Tor Pignaitara on the Via Casilina, which was formerly the Via Labicana.
The basilica has completely disappeared. An imperial palace stood near by, "ad
Duas Lauros," near the two laurels, in the time of Septimus Severus and was the scene
of the assassination of Valentinian III in 455. The mausoleum is octagonal in shape
and surmounted with a dome. In the sixteenth century Bosio saw the ruins of a great
courtyard and portico about it, all of which have now vanished. Eusebius says that
the body of the empress was transported in state to Rome for burial. Life oj Constatp-
tine, Richardson, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Ser. 2, vol. I, p. 532.

1 The huge porphyry sarcophagus which was found in the mausoleum of Helena
was removed in the twelfth century to the Lateran by Pope Anastasius IV, who des-
tined it for his own sepulchre. Pius VI transferred it to the Vatican, where it now
stands near the sarcophagus from the mausoleum of Constantina. It is adorned with
figures in relief, chiefly battle scenes.

SYLVESTER

whereon the name of
Augustus was engraved,

weighing 20 lbs. ;
a smaller goblet of gold, weighing 10 lbs. ;
5 silver goblets, weighing each 12 lbs. ;
20 silver chalices for service, weighing each 3 lbs. ;
4 silver pitchers, weighing each 15 lbs. ;
every year 900 lbs. of pure oil of nard,

100 lbs. of balsam,

100 lbs. of spices for incense for the aforesaid holy mar-
tyrs, blessed Marcellinus and Peter ;
the estate of Laurentum near the aqueduct, with a bath, and

all the land from the Porta Sessoriana

as far as the Via
Penestrina, and
from the Via Itine-
ris Latinee as far as
Mount Gabus ; ^

the travellers' road
as far as the Via
Latina near Mount
Gabus, Mount Ga-
bus itself ;

and the travellers'
road as far as the
Via Latina near
Mount Albius,
Mount Albius it-
self ;

the property of Helena Augusta, yielding 1220 sol. ;
the island of Sardinia^ with all the property

belonging to that island, |

yielding 1024 sol. ;

the island of

Mesenum ' with the property
belonging to that island, | belonging to it, all of it.
yielding 810 sol. ;

1 It is impossible to form an exact idea of the area meant by this obscure description,
though the general location is clear enough. The "aqueduct" may be either the
Alexandrine or the Claudian, both of which pass near the Via Prasnestina and the Via
Latina. Mount Gabus or Monte Cavo may be any one of the hollow hillocks or
craters which dot the Campagna. Duchesne, op. cil., p. 199, n. 91.

2 The whole island cannot have been conveyed to the basilica. Our author has
in all likelihood omitted a list of the particular properties on the island.

5 Duchesne suggests that the peninsular of Misenum is intended. That is so nearly
an island that it might well pass for one in common speech. Op. ciL, p. 199, n. 93.

66 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the island of Matidia, which is Mount Argentarius/ yielding

600 sol. ;
the property in the Sabine region, which is called Duae Casae,
at the foot of Mount Lucretius,^ yielding 200 sol.
At the same time Constantine Augustus

by request of Silvester, the
bishop,

built a basilica in the city of Hostia^ near Portus, the harbor city
of Rome, to the blessed apostles Peter and Paul and to John the
Baptist, where he offered the following

gifts : I

a silver paten, weighing 30 lbs. ;
10 silver chalices, weighing each

two lbs. ; I 5 lbs. ;

2 silver pitchers, weighing each 10 lbs. ;
30 silver

chandeliers, | lamps,

weighing each 5 lbs. ;
2 silver goblets, weighing each 8 lbs. ;
a single silver paten for the chrism, weighing 10 lbs. ;
a bowl of silver for baptism, weighing 20 lbs. ;
the island which is called Assis,^ which lies between Portus

and Hostia ;
all the property along the sea as far as Digitus Solis,^ yielding

655 sol. ; I 300 sol. ;

the property of the Greeks in the region of Ardea, yielding 80
sol. ;

^ Monte Argentaro on the coast of Tuscany, also a peninsular almost cut off from
the mainland.

2 Mount Lucretilis, now known as Monte Genaro, made famous by Horace.

^ Ostia. Modern excavations on the site of the ancient city have not so far re-
vealed any Christian church or monument. Portus is, of course, the modern Porto
on the right bank of the Tiber.

^ This is apparently the island of the delta, formed by the two branches of the Tiber
at its mouth, but the name occurs nowhere else.

' Unknown.

SYLVESTER 67

the property of Quiritus in the region of Hostia, yielding 311

sol. ;
the property of Balneolum in the region of Ostia, yielding 42

sol. ;
the property Nymfulee, yielding 30 sol.
Likewise that which Gallicanus ^ offered to the aforesaid basilica
of the holy apostles Peter and Paul and of John the Baptist;
he offered the following :

a silver crown with dolphins, weighing 20 lbs. ;
a silver chaHce carved in rehef, weighing 15 lbs. ;
a silver pitcher, weighing 18 lbs. ;

the estate MalUanum^ in
the Sabine region, yield-
ing 115 and one third
sol. ;

the estate Picturae

in the region of Vellitrai,^ yielding 43 sol. ;
the estate of the Suri on the Via Claudia in the region of

Veii,^ yielding 56 sol. ;
the Gargihan estate in the region of Suessa,^ yielding 655
sol.
At this time Constantine Augustus built the basiUca of holy
John the Baptist in the city of Alba^ and offered there the follow-
ing:

1 The Acts of St. Gallicanus, composed later than the Lib. Pont, and in part
based upon it, ascribed to him the building of a basilica and hospital at Ostia. It
seems likely that the legendary saint is a reminiscence of the historical character
Pammachius, the proconsul and senator, who built a church and hospital at Porto
toward the end of the fourth century and also the church over the house of the martyrs
John and Paul on the Coelian Hill at Rome. The charitable institution at Porto is
the earliest of the kind known. The site has been explored sufficiently to show the
general plan : a basilica opening off a square court with rooms and halls for the poor
and sick arranged about it. Duchesne, op. cil., p. 199, n. 99. Frothingham, Monu-
ments of Christian Rome, pp. 48, 49.

2 Magliano, the present seat of the bishopric of Sabinum.

3 Velitrse, now Velletri in Latium.

* The ancient Etruscan town stood near the site of the modern village of Isola.
5 A property of the same name and situation is included among the lands bestowed
upon the Lateran basilica. Supra, p. 49.

«Albano in Latium. Some traces of Constantine's basilica are said to be still

68 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

a silver paten, weighing 30 lbs. ;

a goblet of silver gilt, weighing 12 lbs. ;

silver |

chalices for service, weighing each 3 lbs. ;
2 silver pitchers, weighing each 20 lbs. ;
the property of the Lake of Turnus^ with the adjacent fields,

yielding

the estate of Molae,^
yielding
60 sol. ;

50 sol. ;
the property

at Alba with the [

Lake of Alba,^ yielding 250 sol. ;
the estate of Mucus, yielding

160 sol. ; I 170 sol.;

all the empty barracks or houses belonging to the munici-
pality^ in the town of Alba,

everything in the neighborhood were offered as gifts to the holy
of the church of Constantine, church of Constantine;
was offered by Augustus ;

the property of Hortus, yielding 20 sol. ;

the property of Tiberius Caesar, yielding 280 sol. ;

visible. De Rossi has proved that the Christian church of Albano originated probably
in the camp of the Second Parthian Legion, which was stationed there during the third
century. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 199, n. 103.

1 The Laghetto di Turno, with its recollections of the ^neid, lies about two
miles from Albano. Funeral inscriptions have been found there testifying to the exist-
ence of a rural Christian community in the sixth century. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 200,
n. 104.

2 A place called II Molo is now about a mile from Albano.
' The famous Lago di Albano.

* These are undoubtedly the buildings left empty by the departure of the Second
Parthian Legion and the population of camp-followers and dependents. See supra,
p. 67, n. 6. The word translated barracks is " schenica " or " scenica," which here
has its original Greek sense of tents or camps, rather than its ordinary Latin associa-
tion with theatres and actors.

SYLVESTER 69

the property of Marinee/ yielding 50 sol. ;

the estate of Nemus,^
yielding 280 sol. ;

the property of Amartianae in the region of Cora, yielding 1 50

sol. ;
the Statilian property, yielding 70 sol. ;
the Median property, yielding 30 sol.
At the same time Constantine Augustus built a basilica of the
apostles within the city of Capua,^ which he called the Constantinian
basilica, and there also he offered the following gifts :

2 silver patens, weighing each 20 lbs. ;

3 silver goblets, weighing each 9 lbs. ;

15 chalices for service, weighing each 2 lbs. ;
2 silver pitchers, weighing each 10 lbs. ;

4 bronze candlesticks, 10 feet in height, weighing each 180

lbs.;
30 silver chandeliers, weighing each 5 lbs. ;
30 bronze chandeliers ;
And he offered certain property :

the Statilian estate in the region of Menturnae,* yielding 315

sol. ;
a property in the region of Gaeta,^ yielding 85 sol. ;
the property of Paternum in the region of Suessa, yielding

150 sol. ;
the property of Ad Centum® in the region of Capua, yielding

60 sol. ;
a property in the region of Suessa Gauronica,^ yielding 40 sol. ;
the property of Leo, yielding 60 sol.

* At Marino, near Albano.

2 The place may have some connection with the Lake of Nemi.
' There are no visible remains of Constantine's church in the modem Santa Maria
di Capua.

* Minturnae, a town in Latium, the ruins of which are to be seen near the modern
Trajetta.

^ The ancient Caieta, now Gaeta in Latium.

' This name does not signify, as might be supposed, "At the hundredth milestone,"
for Capua is 132 miles from Rome by way of the Via Appia, 138 by the Via Latina.
Duchesne, op. cit.. p. 200, n. 114.

^ Unquestionably a corruption for Suessa Aurunca, the full title in ancient times of
the modem Sessa.

70 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

At the same time Constantine Augustus built a basilica in the
city of Naples,^ to which he offered the following :
2 silver patens, weighing each

15 lbs.; I 25 lbs.;

2 silver goblets, weighing each ten lbs. ;
15 chalices for service, weighing each 2 lbs. ;
2 silver pitchers, weighing each fifteen lbs. ;
20 silver lamps, weighing each 8 lbs. ;
20 bronze lamps,

weighing each 10 lbs.

He built likewise an aqueduct, 8 miles in length ; he built also a
forum

in the same city ^ |

and he offered the following gift :

the property of Macarus, yielding 150 sol. ;

the Cimbrian property, yielding 105 sol. ;

the property of Sclina, yielding 108 sol. ;

the property of Afila;, yielding 140 sol. ;

the property of.Nymfulae, yielding 90 sol. ;

the property of the island^ with the fortress, yielding 80 sol.

At the same time the blessed Silvester established his parish

church^ in the city of Rome in the Third District, near the baths of

Domitian, which are called aiso the baths of Trajan ; the parish

church of Silvester, to which Constantine Augustus gave :

1 The basilica may have stood on the site of the church of Santa Restituta, the
medieval cathedral of Naples.

* A Neapolitan inscription in honor of Constantine has been discovered and two in
honor of Helena, but they contain no allusion to public works of this sort. Duchesne,
op. cil., p. 200, n. 116.

' Possibly the island of Nisida between Naples and Pozzuoli, called in classic
times "Nesis" or N^o-os, i.e., "the island," without other name.

^ The church already described on p. 42. The Third District may be either the
civil or ecclesiastical division, for the Third Region of Augustus comprehended this
neighborhood. The list of precious vessels and lamps is not dissimilar to the inventory
already given for this church, although the latter is longer. The two lists of lands of
the church are, however, quite different, as may be seen by comparison. The author
may have made two sets of extracts from the same document or may have drawn from
two different documents of different dates. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 200, n. 119.

SYLVESTER 71

a silver paten, weighing 20 lbs. ;

a silver pitcher, weighing 10 lbs. ;

2 silver goblets, weighing each 8 lbs. ;

10 silver chandeHer^ weighing each 5 lbs. ;

16 bronze candelabra, weighing each 40 lbs. ;

5 silver chaHces for service, weighing each 2 lbs. ;

the Percilian estate in the Sabine reg'on, yielding 50 sol. ;

the Barbatian estate in the region of Ferens,^ yielding 35 and

one third sol. ;
the Statian estate in the region of Tribula,^ yielding 66 and

one third sol. ;
the estate of Beruclae in the region of Cora, yielding 40 sol. ;
the Sulpician estate in the region of Cora, yielding 70

sol. ;
the estate of Taurus in the region of Beii,^ yielding 42 sol. ;
the Sentian estate in the region of Tibur,^ yielding 30 sol. ;
the Ceian estate in the region of Penestre,^ yielding 50

sol. ;
the estate of Termulae in the region of Penestre, yielding 35

sol. ;
the property of Cylon in the region of Penestre, yielding 59
sol.
He offered also all that was requisite to the parish church of
Equitius.

This Silvester held 6 ordinations in the month of December, 42
priests, 26 deacons, 65 bishops in divers places.

He was buried in the cemetery of Priscilla^ on the Via Salaria,

1 Ferentinum, now Ferentino, a small town on the Via Latina.

2 Trebula was the name of three ItaHan towns, one in Campania, now Maddaloni,
the others in Sabinum, one of which is now Monte Leone, the last has disappeared.
Duchesne is of the opinion that the second of the three is meant here. Op. ciL, p. 200,
n. 122.

3 Veii.

■* The modern Tivoli.

* Praeneste, now Palestrina.

^ The little church which stood over the catacomb of Priscilla was known as the
church of St. Sylvester in the early Roman topographies drawn up for the guidance of
pilgrims. The Itinerary ascribed to William of Malmesbury mentions Sylvester's
marble tomb. The site is vacant and grassgrown to-day. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 200,
n. 123.

72 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

three miles from the city of Rome, December 31, He verily died
cathohc and a confessor.^

And the bishopric was empty 15 days,

XXXV. Marcus (336)

Marcus, by nationaHty a Roman, son of Priscus, occupied the
see 2 years, 8 months and 20 days. He was bishop in the time of
Constantine, during the consulship of Nepotianus and Facundus
(a.d. 336), from February i until October i.

He ordained that the bishop of Hostia, who consecrates the
bishop, should wear the pallium and that by him the bishop of the
city of Rome should be consecrated.^ And he made regulations
for the whole church.

He built two basilicas, one on the Via Ardeatina, where he is
buried,^ and one in the city of Rome, in Pallacinis.'*

1 These words testify to the unusual veneration for the memory of Pope Sylvester.
In 1632 a silver "corona" of ancient workmanship, bearing a votive inscription to "the
holy Silvester," was found in a garden adjacent to Sylvester's parish church, San
Martino ai Monti. Duchesne thinks that the offering may have dated from the latter
half of the fifth century. The spurious lives of the pope, with their miracles and mar-
vels, may have increased popular reverence but the feeling seems to have existed before
the legends. Unfortunately, in spite of the length and importance of Sylvester's
pontificate, there are no authentic documents left to furnish us with an idea of the part
he actually played in the stirring events of his day or with more than the vaguest no-
tion of the situation at Rome under Constantine. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 201, n. 125.

2 In the time of Augustine the bishop of Ostia regularly performed the ceremony
of consecrating the pope and he retains that right to this day. Duchesne, Lib. Pont.,
vol. I, p. 203, n. 2. The use of the pallium or scarf by the bishop seems to have been
derived from the use of the pallium as badge of office by the civil magistrates of the
fourth and fifth centuries, as depicted on consular diptychs of the period. The earUest
writer to refer to the ecclesiastical pallium is St. Isidore of Pelusium about 440. He
speaks of the symbolical significance of the garment as of something well known. In
the sixth century Symmachus and succeeding popes sent pallia to other bishops.
Frescoes and mosaics of that century at Rome and Ravenna uniformly portray these
scarves on the shoulders of bishops. Their use was not confined to archbishops until
the ninth century. Lowrie, Christian Art and Archeology, pp. 407-410.

3 The small cemeterial church of Santa Balbina near the catacomb of Callistus. It
has now disappeared.

* The modern church of San Marco. It is impossible to attribute anything in
the present edifice to the fourth century. The mosaic in the apse dates only from the
reconstruction of the church in the ninth century. However, Pope Hadrian IV in
794 cited the mosaics and paintings in the basilica of his day as proofs of the use of
images at Rome in the time of the Council of Nicea. Mansi, Amplissima Collectio,

MARCUS, JULIUS I 73

* * * * * * * *i

He also was buried in the cemetery of Balbina on the Via
Ardeatina, which he himself had supervised and built, October 6.
And the bishopric was empty 20 days.

XXXVI. Julius I (337-352)

Julius, by nationahty a Roman, son of Rusticus, occupied the
see 15 years, 2 months and 6 days. He was bishop in the time of
Constantinus, son of Constantine, the heretic, from the consulship
of Felicianus (a.d. 337) and of Maximin.^ He endured many tribu-
lations and was in exile 10 months and after the death of this Constan-
tinus he returned in glory to the seat of blessed Peter, the apostle.^

He built 2 basilicas, one

in the city of Rome,
near the forum ,^

and another across the Tiber ^

and another on the Via Fla-
minia,

vol. XIII, p. 801. The name of the region where the church was built is as old as
Cicero, who says that Sextus Roscius was killed on his way from dinner "ad balneas Pal-
lacinas," near the Pallacine baths. Pro Roscio, VII, i8. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 203,
nn. 5 and 6.

1 A catalogue of gifts bestowed by the emperor Constantine upon the church of
Santa Balbina and the list of the clergy ordained by Marcus have been omitted. Here-
after such lists, unless possessing unusual interest or value, will not be included in the
translation. Those already furnished will serve as types.

2 The Liberian Catalogue has this, "in the time of Constantine, from the consulship
of Felicianus and Titianus (a.d. 337), from February 6 to April 12 in the year when
Constantius was consul for the fifth time and Constantius was Caesar (a.d. 352)."

3 The author of the Lib. Pont, has inserted here a sentence which would be more
appropriate in the history of Liberius, the next pope, who was in fact driven into exile
through the influence of an heretical emperor. Pope Julius, on the contrary, was sup-
ported throughout his pontificate by the orthodox Constans and after the latter's
death by Magnentius. He played an authoritative part in the doctrinal controversies
which in his day were distracting the Eastern branch of the church.

^ The church was rebuilt by Pelagius I in honor of the apostles, Philip and James,
and is now known as Santi Apostoli. Infra, p. 162, n. 2. It stands on the edge of the
ancient forum of Trajan.

^ The modern basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere, rebuilt by Gregory IV in the
ninth century and by Innocent II in the twelfth. It is called in the Lib. Pont, the
basiUca of Julius until the eighth century, when it is styled the basilica of Mary. The
first church on the site was probably erected by Callistus but, built in an era of perse-

74 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

and 3 cemeteries, one on the Via Flaminia, another on the Via
Aurelia and another on the Via Portuensis.^

He made a regulation that no member of the clergy should plead
any case in pubhc except in a church,^ and that the information
which concerns all in the faith

of the church |

should be collected by notaries, and that all documents should be
duly recorded in church by the chief of the notaries ; whether bonds
or instruments or deeds of gift or of exchange or of delivery or wills
or rescripts or manumissions of a member of the clergy, they should
be recorded in church within the sacred archives.^

* * •* * * * * *4

He also was buried on the Via Aurelia in the cemetery of Cale-
podus ^ at the third milestone

from the city of Rome, [

April 12.

And the bishopric was empty 25 days.

cution, it was perhaps only a small and unobtrusive hall of meeting. See supra, p. 20,
n. s.

1 The first of these three suburban foundations was the great basilica of San Valen-
tino, two miles beyond the city gate of the same name. It is mentioned in the early
pilgrim itineraries as a church of exceptional size and beauty but by the fourteenth
century it was already in ruins and now hardly a vestige is left above ground. Recent
excavations have disclosed the pavement of the nave and apse and have revealed among
other objects an epitaph set up in 359, only seven years after the death of Julius. The
second of the extramural churches was probably built above the cemetery of Calepodio,
where Julius was buried, the third may have been the basilica of Felix, now also dis-
appeared.

* A repetition of the apocryphal decree already ascribed to Sylvester. Supra, p. 45,
and n. 7.

^ An attempt to require all members of the clergy to register deeds, wills and other
legal documents in the episcopal court instead of in the municipal. There is no other
account of such a decree. Our text may record a custom or a policy which grew up
gradually rather than a formal enactment. It is likely that there was jealousy be-
tween the ecclesiastical and civil tribunals and some overlapping of jurisdiction.
Duchesne, Lih. Pont., vol. I, p. 206, n. 10.

^ List of ordinations.

^ Pope Callistus had been buried there. Supra, p. 21, n. i.

LIBERIUS 75

XXXVII. LiBERius (352-366)

Liberius, by nationality a Roman, son of Augustus, occu-
pied the see 6 years, 3 months and 4 days. He was bishop in
the time of Constantius, son of Constantine, to Constantius

Augustus III.^

He was sent into exile by Constantius because he refused to
consent to the heresy of Arius, and he was in exile 3 years. And
Liberius summoned together the priests and by their counsel or-
dained in his stead Felix, the venerable priest and bishop.^ And
Felix held a council and found two priests, Ursacius and Valens by
name, in sympathy with Constantius Augustus, the Arian, and in
the council of the 48 bishops he expelled them.^

1 The Liherian Catalogue ends here with the date of the opening of the pontificate
of Liberius, 352.

2 The history of Liberius and Felix, as given in our text, is a strange medley of
facts and legend. The actual occurrences seem to have been the following. Liberius,
early in his pontificate, was required by the emperor to recognize the Eastern Arian
bishops as members of the same communion. On his refusal he was condemned
to exile and spent three years in banishment in Thrace. The Roman clergy
meanwhile bound themselves by oath to accept no other bishop during his life-
time. However, the archdeacon Felix shortly afterward came to an understanding
with the emperor and was ordained bishop in Liberius' stead and accepted by most of
the clergy in the city. The Roman people, on the other hand, remained loyal to
Liberius and demanded his recall of Constantius, when the latter visited the city in
357. Liberius now proved willing to give certain pledges of tolerance and returned to
Rome in 358 to receive an enthusiastic welcome. It was planned at first that Liberius
and Felix should share the duties and prerogatives of the bishopric but outbreaks of
violence followed the attempt at compromise and Felix was compelled to leave the city.
Later he tried to get possession of the basihca of Julius, Santa Maria in Trastevere,
but was forced to retire. He died in November, 365. Liberius was inclined to be for-
giving and restored the adherents of FeHx to their original posts, but many of his party
were less placable. On the death of Liberius in 366 a schism broke out, the bitter
enemies of Felix chose Ursinus as pope, the moderates, who had upheld the pacifist policy
of Liberius, chose Damasus. See infra, pp. 79-80. For a discussion of the process
by which the legendary version of these incidents has been evolved and Felix has been
transformed from a heretic supplanter of Liberius to an orthodox saint installed by
Liberius' own hands, as in our text, see Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. cxx-cxxv.
A summary of Liberius' correspondence with Constantius and with other bishops
on these matters may be found in Jaffe, Regesta, pp. 33-35, 208-228.

3 The real Ursacius and Valens were bishops of Belgrade and Eszek respectively and
the chief representatives of the Arian sect in the West. They had been condemned
by the Council of Sardica under Pope Julius but were readmitted to communion by
Felix in fulfilment of his agreement with the emperor. The story given in the Lib.
Pont, is therefore an exact reversal of the truth. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 208, n. 6.

76 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

But after a few days Ursacius and Valens were impelled by zeal
to beseech Constantius Augustus to recall Liberius from exile that
he might maintain one single communion

but without baptising a second apart from the second baptism,
time.^

Then authority was sent by Catulinus, the commissioner,^ and
Ursacius and Valens went together to Liberius. And Liberius
accepted the commands

of Augustus I

that he should extend the one
single I

communion to the heretics, provided only that they should not
administer the second baptism.

Then they recalled Liberius from exile.

And on his return

from exile |

Liberius dwelt in the cemetery of the holy Agnes in the household

of the sister

of Constantius 1 of Constans

Augustus,^ as if he thought that through her intervention or at her

request he might come again into the city.

Then Constantia Augusta, who was faithful to the Lord Jesus
Christ, would not make request of Constantius Augustus, her
brother, because she understood his design.

At that time Constantius, in company with Ursacius and Valens^
assembled some men who belonged to the dregs of the Arians and,
pretending that he had held a council, sent and recalled Liberius
from the cemetery of the blessed Agnes. And that same hour

1 I.e. Liberius was not expected to demand the second baptism of all Catholics
who chose to join the Arian sect, as the Arians themselves did.

2 The title here translated commissioner is "agentem in rebus," i.e. one of the agents
of the imperial police instituted by Diocletian. They were employed often on business
connected with the general administration.

3 The fact that Liberius decorated the tomb of St. Agnes may have given rise
to the idea of his sojourn at the basilica and the existence of the mausoleum of Constan-
tina in the neighborhood may have suggested the addition of the princess. As a
matter of fact no princess of the name of Constantia or Constantina was living in 358.
Constantina, daughter of Constantine, died in 354. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 208, n. la

LIBERIUS 77

Constantius Augustus entered Rome and held a council with the
heretics and likewise with Ursacius and Valens and expelled Felix
from the bishopric, for he was catholic, and reinstated Liberius.

From that day forward there was a persecution of the clergy,
so that priests and clergy were slain in church and were crowned
with martyrdom.^ But FelLx, after he was deposed from the bishop-
ric, dwelt on his own estate on the Via Portuensis and there he slept
in peace, July 29. ^ Liberius entered the city of Rome, August 2,
and he was in accord with Constantius, the heretic.

Nevertheless Liberius was not baptised a second time,

but he gave his consent. |

And he held the basilicas of the blessed Peter and of the blessed
Paul and the basilica of Constantine for 6 years,^ and there was a
great persecution in the city of Rome, so that the clergy and the
priests could enter neither a church nor a bath.

This Liberius decorated with slabs of marble the sepulchre of
holy Agnes, the martyr.

Now all the years of Felix are included within the term of
Liberius.^ He

built the basilica of his own name
near the Macellum of Libia ^ and

held 2 ordinations.

1 The extent of the disorder may be inferred from the fact that at the Council of
Rimini in 359 there was no representative from the church of Rome.

2 The antipope Fehx II is here confused with a popular saint Felix, of whom nothing
is now known but the fact that he was revered in a basilica on the Via Portuensis, per-
haps the very basihca erected just before these events by Pope Julius I. Supra, p. 74,
n. I. Felix II died November 22, 365. For a different but equally erroneous version
of his death and burial see infra, pp. 78, 79. Duchesne, op. cit., pp. cxxiii, cxxivi,
209, n. 13.

3 Liberius lived for eight years after his restoration, 358-366.

* This sentence would seem to imply that at the date when it was written there was
no separate account of Fehx II, such as now follows the life of Liberius, and that the
separate account was an interpolation of one of the later editors of the Lih. Pont. The
imtrustworthy character of the account makes this supposition plausible.

^ Or "near the market of Livia." The famous church of Santa Maria Maggiore.
The framework of the structure, the columns and the mosaics of the nave may still
go back to Liberius. The church was the battleground of the warring factions under
Damasus and underwent a thorough restoration at the hands of Xystus III. Infra,
p. 94, n. I.

78 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

And he was buried on the Via Salaria in the cemetery of Pris-
cilla,^

September 9. | April 25.

And the bishopric was empty 6 days.

XXXVIII. Felix II (355-358)

Felix, by nationality a Roman, son of Anastasius, occupied the
see I year, 3 months and 2 days.

He declared ^ that Constantius, son of Constantine, was a heretic
and had been baptised a second time by Eusebius,

bishop of Nicomedia, | of Nicomedia near Nicomedia,

in the villa which is called Aquilone.^ And for this declaration,
by order of the same Constantius Augustus, son of Constantine
Augustus, he was crowned with martyrdom and beheaded.
He built a basilica on the Via Aurelia,^

* List of ordained clergy.

2 The location of the tomb of Liberius within the cemetery is unknown. Duchesne
gives an epitaph in verse, copied by a pilgrim of the seventh century, which from in-
ternal evidence he thinks may have been the inscription over the grave of Liberius.
Op. cit., p. 209, n. 19.

' For the unreliability of the succeeding narrative see supra, p. 75, n. 2, p. 77,
nn. 2 and 4. On p. 77 Felix is depicted as dying peacefully and being buried on the Via
Portuensis. Here he defies the emperor, suffers martyrdom and is buried in his basilica
on the Via Aureha. As in the preceding account he was confused with a saint of the
same name who was honored on the Via Portuensis, so here he is confused with two other
saints, also of the same name, who shared a basilica on the Via Aurelia. It is possible
that the story of his martyrdom was drawn from a Passion of one of the older saints.
Pope Fehx I had also been identified with one of them. Supra, p. 33, n. i. Duchesne,
Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. cxxiii, cxxiv.

* The name is taken from the Chronicle of St. Jerome, who says that Constantine,
not Constantius, was baptised near Nicomedia and died soon afterward at a villa called
Acyron in the same neighborhood. Jerome, Chronicon, ed. Helm, in Eusebius^ Werke,
vol. VII, pt. I, p. 234. {Die Griechischen Christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten drei
Jahrhuiiderte.) Our author is here trying to defend the story of Constantine 's baptism
at Rome {supra, pp. 42, 50) by explaining away Jerome's statement that he was
baptised in the East. He says not only that Constantius, "son of Constantine," was
the one baptised at Nicomedia but also that it was an heretical, second baptism.

^ The basihca of the two saints Fehx on the Via Aurelia may have been built by
Fehx II. Its site has not been discovered.

FELIX II, DAMASUS

two miles from the city,
where also he is buried,

while he was filling the office of priest, and he bought land around
the site of that same church, which he bestowed upon the church
which he had built.

He also was be-
headed, with many
clergy and faithful,
secretly near the
walls of the city, be-
side the aqueduct of
Trajan,

November 1 1 , and
thence the Christians
with Damasus, the
priest, stole away his
body by night,

and they buried him
in his aforesaid ba-
sihca on the Via
Aurelia, November 15,

He also suffered in
the town of Cora,^

November 1 1 , and
thence his body was
stolen away by
priests and clergy

and was buried in the
basilica which he
himself had built on
the Via Aureha, No-
vember 20, at the
second milestone.

m peace.

And the bishopric was empty 38 days.

He also suffered in
the town of Cora,
with many clergy and
faithful, secretly near
the walls of the city,
beside the aqueduct
of Trajan,

November 1 1 , and
thence his body was
stolen away at night
by priests and clergy
together with Da-
masus, the priest,
and was buried in his
aforesaid basilica,
which he himself had
built on the Via Au-
relia, November 20,
at the second mile-
stone, in peace.

XXXIX. Damasus (366-384)

Damasus, by nationality a Spaniard, son of Antonius, occupied
the see 18 years, 3 months and 11 days. And at the time of his
ordination ^ Ursinus was ordained also because of a dissension ;

' List of ordinations.

2 Cori in the Campagna. The festival of yet another St. Fehx was celebrated in
the country districts near Rome. There may have been a tradition of his martyrdom
at Cori.

' This and the following sentence do not appear in the two earhest abridgments

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

and a council of priests was held and they appointed Damasus,
inasmuch as the multitude was powerful and very numerous, and
thus Damasus was appointed. And they sent Ursinus from the
city and appointed him bishop of Naples ; and Damasus abode in
the city of Rome as bishop over the apostolic see.
He was bishop in the time of Juhan.^

At the

built two

same time

built two

built a

basilicas,

he built

basilicas,

basilica

one to the

one

two basi-

one, near

near the

blessed

licas, one,

the thea-

theatre to

Lawrence

near the

tre, to the

the holy

near the

theatre, to

holy

Lawrence,

theatre, 2

the holy

Lawrence,

and the

near the

Lawrence,

and the

other on

Via Ar-

other on

the Via

deatina,

the Via

Ardeati-

of the Lib. Pont. Duchesne regards them as interpolations, inserted to make the history
of Damasus correspond as closely as possible to that of Pope Symmachus. (C/. the
election under Symmachus of the antipope Laurentius, i>ifra, p. ii6.) Some of the
phrases in the two narratives are strikingly similar. Damasus' election was, of course,
contested by Ursinus and his adherents (For the general situation see supra, p. 75, n. 2),
but the deciding factor was not a church council but the civil government, which after
some hesitation pronounced in favor of Damasus and sentenced Ursinus to exile.
Ursinus was npt granted a bishopric or any other compensation, as was Laurentius, the
rival of Symmachus. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 213, nn. 3-5.

1 Our author is here attempting to continue the imperial synchronisms of the
Llberian Catalogue. His attempt is not successful, since the reign of Julian fell alto-
gether within the pontificate of Liberius.

2 The basilica of San Lorenzo in Damaso, which stands not far from the theatre of
Pompey. A dedicatory inscription, still preserved, seems to imply that the building
was erected on the site of Damasus' father's house. Damasus himself had been elected
pope in the church consecrated to St. Lawrence "in Lucina," and for that reason,
perhaps, chose the great Roman martyr for the patron of one of his own churches.
On either side of the original structure were porticos in which were stored the archives
and library of the Roman see. Excavations in the palace of the Cancelleria have
recently revealed fragments of the ground plan of onepf these porticos. Damasus
and his father before him had been connected with the custodianship of the archives
and Damasus may, therefore, have been interested in providing an adequate home for
them. They appear to have remained there until their removal, a century or more
later, to the Lateran. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 213, n. 7. Frothingham, Monuments of
Christian Rome, p. 46.

DAM.\SUS

na,^

na, "*

where he

is buried,

is buried.

is buried
in the cat-

and one

He dedi-

and the

acombs,

and the

over the

cated the

other over

and he

other over

Cata-

marble

the Cata-

dedicated

the Cata-

combs,^

slab.

combs,

the marble

combs,

where lay

whereon

where lay

slab.

where lay

the

the holy

whereon

the holy

bodies of

lay the

bodies of

the holy

Peter

the apos-

bodies of

the apos-

apostles,

and Paul,

tles, Peter

the apos-

tles, Peter

Peter

the

and Paul,

tles, that

and Paul,

apostles,
lay,

is the
blessed
Peter and
Paul,

and there

and he

and there

and he

and there

he beauti-

embel-

he beau-

beautified

he beau-

fied with

Hshed it

tified with

it with

tified with

verses

with

verses the

verses.

verses the

the very

verses.

very mar-

marble

ble slab

slab

whereon

the holy

bodies lay.

bodies

lay.3

^ Mommsen calls the passage, "on the Via Ardeatina . . . and one," an ancient
interpolation taken from the account later on of Damasus' burial place and introduced
here where it only confuses the sense. Lib. Pont., p. 83, note on 1. 7. The location of
the cemetery of Damasus, near that of Domitilla, is known but all sign of his basilica
has disappeared.

^ The basilica of San Sebastiano on the Via Appia, built to commemorate the tomb
of the martyr Sebastian, and the "Platonia," the crypt where the bodies of Peter and
Paul are said to have lain during the persecution begun by Valerian. See supra, p. 26,
n. 2 ; Lanciani, Pagan and Christian Rome, pp. 345-347. The basilica has since been
completely rebuilt.

3 The inscription of Damasus at this spot was often copied by pilgrims. It is

82 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He searched out many bodies of the saints and found them
and marked them with verses.^

He made a regulation for the church.
He was accused

spitefully |

and charged with adultery and a synod was called and he was jus-
tified by 44 bishops, who also condemned Concordius and Callis-
tus, the deacons, his accusers, and

expelled I ejected

them from the church.^

He appointed the basilica which he had built as a parish church
in the city of Rome.^

* * * * * * **4

He appointed that the psalms should be chanted day and night
in all the churches and he gave this command to priests and bishops

printed by Duchesne, op. ciL, p. civ, n. i. The following is a rough rendering in
English.

"This place, you should know, was once the dwelling of saints;

Their names, you may learn, were Peter and likewise Paul.

The East sent hither these disciples, as freely we confess.

For Christ's sake and the merit of His blood they followed Him among the stars

And sought the realms of heaven and the kingdoms of the righteous.

Rome was deemed worthy to preserve them as her citizens.

May Damasus offer them these verses, new stars, in theix praise ! "

1 At the time when the Liber Pontificalis was written the beautiful inscriptions of
Damasus still marked almost all of the numerous shrines and tombs of saints and
martyrs that filled the environs of the city and were the resorts of pilgrims and sight-
seers. Already the identity of some sepulchres had been confused, others had been
buried deep and altogether forgotten and his work of restoration and identification
came in the nick of time. Frothingham, op. ciL, pp. 45, 46. De Rossi has made a
collection of the Damasian inscriptions as far as they can be recovered. Inscripliones
Christiana: Urbis RomcE, vol. II.

2 Pope Damasus was accused in his old age of some grave offence, but the charge was
brought by a converted Jew, not by his deacons, and the case was tried before the
prefect of Rome, not before a church council. The emperor Gratian intervened and
Damasus was acquitted. The nature of the indictment is not known, but it seems un-
likely to have been adultery. Damasus was about seventy-five years old at the time.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 214, n. 15.

3 I.e. San Lorenzo in Damaso. It is mentioned as a "titulus," or parish church,
in the documents of the Roman synod of 499.

* Lists of gifts to the basilica and of ordinations.

DAMASUS, SIRICIUS

and monasteries.^ He also was buried on the Via Ardeatina in his
own basilica, December 11, near his mother and his sister,^
And the bishopric was empty 31 days.

XL. SiRicius (384-399)

Siricius, by nationahty a Roman, son of Tiburtius, occupied the
see 15 years. He made a regulation for the whole church

and sent it through the prov-
inces.^

He ordained

that without the leaven conse-
crated by the bishop of the dis-
trict no priest could perform the
rite of consecration.^

against all the heresies and sent
it throughout the entire world,
that it might be preserved in
the archives of every church
for a defense against all here-
sies.*

that no priest could perform
masses during all the week,
unless he received from the
bishop of the particular dis-
trict the consecrated sign which
is called the leaven.

1 This decree is an interpolation, suggested by the existence in later times of two
apocryphal letters written ostensibly by Damasus and St. Jerome to one another on the
subject of Jerome's edition of the Psalter. The earliest text of the Lihcr Poniificalis
attributed the institution of the recitation of the Psalms to Celestine I. See injra,
p. 92. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 214, n. 17.

'^Cf. supra, p. 81, n. i. Damasus' own epitaph and the tender one he wrote
for his young sister Irene, whose death robbed him of the fear of death, have both
survived. His mother's has been lost. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 215, n. 18.

» The following letters written by Siricius and containing general instructions for the
government of the church are still preserved : one to the bishop of Tarragona giving
fifteen canons for the churches in Spain, Gaul and Carthage, another to the church in
Africa reporting the decrees of the synod held at the Vatican in 386 and others to the
bishops in lUyria and to the orthodox throughout the provinces respecting the need
of care in ecclesiastical appointments. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, pp. 40-41, 25s, 257, 258,
259, 263.

* The author of this reading had, perhaps, in mind a letter addressed by Siricms to
the church at Milan on the subject of the heretic emperor Jovinian. Jaffe, op. cit.,
p. 41, 260.

^ A repetition in substance of the decree of Miltiades. Supra, p. 41, n. 2.

84 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He found Manicheans
in the city ^ |

and dispatched them into exile and ordained that

they should not partake of com-
munion with the faithful, be-
cause the holy body of the Lord
ought not to be mutilated in a
polluted mouth. He ordained
that

if any Manichean were converted and returned to the church he
should in no wise be admitted to communion, except he were kept
in the restriction of a monastery as one guilty every day of his
life, that so he might afflict himself with fastings and prayers and
prove himself under every trial until the day of his death and thus
through the clemency of the church might obtain his viaticum.
He ordained that a heretic

should be reconciled I should be received

through the imposition of hands in the presence of the whole
church.^

* * * * * * * *3

1 The second notice of Manicheans in Rome. (C/. supra, p. 41 and n. i.) That
they were active in the time of Siricius we know from the writings of Augustine, but
that Siricius undertook any such campaign against them as is indicated here is ex-
tremely doubtful. At least Augustine says nothing of it. Leo I, a half century later,
entered the lists against them, procured the exile of some and the reconciliation of
others to the church, but his labors in this direction are not mentioned in the Liber
Pontificalis. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 216, n. 3.

2 This is perhaps the first of the numerous episcopal decrees cited in the Liber
Pontificalis known to be derived from a specific and authoritative documentary source.
It is evidently based upon the letter of Siricius to Himerius of Tarragona. "At the
opening of your letter you stated that many who had been baptised by the impious
Arians were hastening to adopt the Catholic faith and that some of our brethren would
have them baptised a second time; but that is not permissible ... for we admit
Novatians and other heretics ... to the community of Catholics by merely the invoca-
tion of the sevenfold Spirit and the laying on of the episcopal hand." Mansi, Amplis-
sima Collectio, vol. Ill, p. 655. Cf. Introduction, p. viii, and supra, p. 83, n. 3. The
method of reinstating a heretic was first prescribed, according to our author, by Euse-
bius. Supra, p. 40 and n. i.

^ List of ordinations.

SIRICIUS, ANASTASIUS I 85

He also was buried in the cemetery of Priscilla on the Via
Salaria/ February 22.

And the bishopric was empty 20 days.

XLI. Anastasius I (399-401)

Anastasius, by nationaHty a Roman, son of Maximus, occupied
the see 3 years and 10 days.

He ordained that whenever the holy gospels were read the
priests should not sit but stand with bowed heads. ^ He made a
regulation for the church.

He built also the basihca which is called the Crescentian in the
Second District on the Via Mamurtini in the city of Rome.^

And he ordained

that no cleric from beyond the that no one from beyond the
sea sea

should be received

I into the ranks of the clergy
unless he showed the signature of 5 bishops

1 In the basilica of Sylvester. Duchesne gives his epitaph. Op. cit., p. 217, n. 5.

2 The Apostolic Constitutions, which represent the early Syrian usage, direct that
priests and deacons shall stand during the reading of the Gospel. Sozomen, the fifth
century historian, says that in his day the Alexandrian custom was peculiar in allowing
the bishop to keep his seat. Ecclesiastical History, VII, 19, tr. Nicene and Post-Nicene
Fathers, ser. 2, vol. II, p. 390. Duchesne thinks it possible that the Alexandrian
custom was in this respect, as in others, a reflection of the custom at Rome. Lib.
Pont., vol. I, p. 218, n. I.

2 The site of this basilica is now unknown. It is not mentioned, at least under this
name, after the fifth century. The Via Mamurtini is usually identified with the
modern Via Marforio, but the latter street lies outside the Second Districts, both civil
and ecclesiastical.

* Gregory I, in a letter to one of his bishops, gives the following injunction. "Do
not on any consideration accept Africans or unknown travellers who claim admission
to ecclesiastical orders, for some of the Africans are Manicheans and others rebaptised ;
moreover, many strangers who were actually members of the lower orders are known
to have laid claim often to higher honors." Epistola, II, 37 ; Migne, Patrologia Latina,
vol. 77, col. 575. The Liber Ponlificalis demands an especially high guarantee of
honesty. In ordinary circumstances an African priest or bishop on a visit to Rome
took with him credentials signed simply by the primate of his province or the bishop
of Carthage in order to gain access to the communion of the Roman chureh, but more
may have been required of one who wished to be ordained at Rome. Duchesne, op.
cit., p. 218, n. 4.

86 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

because at that time Manicheans
were found in the city of Rome.

on account of the Manicheans.

* 1

He also was buried in his own cemetery near the Ursus
Pileatus,^ April 27. And the bishopric was empty 21 days.

XLII. Innocent I (401-417)

Innocent, by nationality an Alban, son of Innocent, occupied
the see 15 years, 2 months and 21 days.

He made a regulation for the whole church and statutes con-
cerning monastic rules and concerning Jews and pagans ^ and he
found many Catafrigians ^

in the city |

whom he constrained to exile in a monastery.

He found Pelagius ^ and Caelestius, the heretics, and con-

1 List of ordinations.

2 The Salzburg Itinerary, one of the early guides for pilgrims, mentions the tomb
of Pope Anastasius on the Via Portuensis, not far from the city gate. Duchesne, op. ciL,
p. 219, n. 5. The name of the district, Ursus Pileatus, is explained by the tale that
there stood there once the image of a bear with a cap upon its head. Gregorovius,
History of the City of Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. I, bk. II, p. 256.

3 A number of the letters and decretals of Innocent I have survived but none
dealing particularly with monastic organization, Jews or pagans. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I,
pp. 44-49, 285-327. Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. XX.

■* I.e. Phrygians. The Theodosian Code (lib. XVI, 5, 40) contains a law of Hono-
rius, dated February 407, against Manicheans, Phrygians and PriscilHanists. The
term Phrygian is used as a synonym for Montanist.

^ The famous heretic and exponent of the doctrines of the original soundness of
human nature and the freedom of the will as against Augustine's theories of original
sin and absolute dependence upon divine grace. He and his friend Celestius were in
Rome for several years before the sack of Alaric, 410. The two then crossed to Africa,
where Celestius was tried for heresy and excommunicated by a synod called by the
bishop of Carthage. Pelagius meanwhile had gone on to Palestine, where in time he
too was summoned on a charge of heresy before a synod at Diospolis (Lydda) but was
acquitted. The African church felt that a reflection was thereby cast upon its action
in the case of Celestius and in 416 sent an appeal on the whole matter to Innocent at
Rome. Innocent upheld the African position and denounced the peculiar tenets of
Pelagius. His letters in reply to the appeal may be found summarized in Jaffe, op. cit.,
p. 48, 321-323. Mansi gives the entire text. Amplissima Collectio, vol. Ill, pp. 1071
et seq.

INNOCENT I 87

demned them. And he ordained that the child of a Christian
woman must be born a second time through baptism, that is must
be baptised, a doctrine which Pelagius condemned.^

At the same time he dedicated the basihca of the holy Ger-
vasius and Protasius,- built

by bequest, '

as the gift of an illustrious lady named Vestina, under the direc-
tion of the priests Ursicinus and Leopardus ^ and the deacon Livia-
nus. And the aforesaid lady made provision in her will that the
basihca of the holy martyrs should be built from the proceeds of
her jewels and her pearls, which should be sold at a fair price, and
that the building should be carried on until it was complete. The
most blessed Innocent, by request of the illustrious lady Vestina,
appointed the basihca a parish church of Rome and for that same
church she offered :

* * * * * * * *4

three twenty-fourths and three twelfths of the Porta Nomen-
tana, yielding 22 and one third sol.

He decreed that the sabbath should be observed as a fast day,
because on the sabbath the Lord was laid in the tomb and the
disciples fasted.^

He appointed that the basihca of the blessed Agnes, the martyr,
should be administered and cared for by the priests Leopardus and
Pauhnus and should be roofed over and decorated at their dis-

1 One corollary of Pelagius' teachings was that unbaptised infants have eternal

life.

2 The modern church of San Vitale is on the same site as this "Titulus Vestinae."

3 This same priest helped in the construction and embelUshment of the church of
Santa Pudenziana under Siricius and in the restoration of San Lorenzo under Zosimus.
See hijra, p. 89, n. 3. Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 49, 50, 54, 55-

4 Long list of gifts to the new basilica, precious vessels, houses, lands and finally one-
eighth of the customs collected at the Porta Nomentana.

5 Another decree with a clear basis in a genuine document. The letter of Innocent
to Decentius, bishop of Gubbio, contains the following passage : "Therefore we do not
deny that fast should be observed on the sixth day but we maintain that the same
should be practiced on the sabbath, because both days brought grief to the apostles
and those who had been with Christ." Mansi, Amplissima CollecHo, vol. Ill, p. 1028 ;
Jaffe, i?ege5/a, vol. I, p. 47, 311-

88 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

cretion.^ The control of the aforesaid parish church of Vestina was
entrusted to the priests.

* * * * * * * *2

He also was buried in the cemetery near Ursus Pileatus,^
June 27. I July 28.

And the bishopric was empty 22 days.

XLIII. ZosiMUS (417-418)

Zosimus, by nationality a Greek, son of Abramius, occupied the

see

7 years, 9 months and 24 days. | i year, 3 months and 11 days.

He made many decrees for the church and ordained that dea-
cons should wear napkins of wool and Knen to cover their left
shoulders

and that in all the parishes per-
mission should be granted to
bless the wax.

in all the parishes ^ and that the
wax should be blessed.^

He likewise gave order that no member of the clergy should

1 The basilica of St. Agnes, being outside the walls of the city, may have suffered
especially at the hands of the horde who accompanied Alaric. For a description of the
destruction that marked the sack of 410 see Lanciani, Destruction of Ancient Rome,
ch. V, pp. 56-70; Gregorovius, History of Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. I, chs. Ill and
IV.

2 List of ordinations.

* See supra, p. 86 and n. 2.

■• An extension to the deacons of the " parish " or suburban churches of the right
to wear the maniple bestowed by Sylvester upon the Roman deacons. Supra, p. 45
and n. 6. Neither this nor the following decrees are found among the records of
Zosimus elsewhere preserved.

^The Latin word in the first column translated "wax" is "cera," in the second
"cereus." Duchesne suggests that the "cera" was the wax used in Roman churches
for modelling little forms of the Agnus Dei to distribute to the people at Easter time.
The custom of blessing this wax and moulding the lambs is described in an Ordo Romanus
of the ninth century. On the other hand the " cereus " is undoubtedly wax for lighting,
and Duchesne conjectures that the author of the second text had in mind the blessing of
the Paschal candle, formulae for which were drawn up early in the sixth century.
Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 225, n. 2.

ZOSIMUS, BONIFACE I 89

drink in public, except in a chamber belonging to the faithful,
preferably to the clergy.^

** * * * * * *2

He also was buried on the Via Tiburtina, near the body of
blessed Lawrence, the martyr,^ December 26.
And the bishopric was empty 11 days.

XLIV. Boniface I (418-422)

Boniface, by nationahty a Roman, son of locundus, the priest,
occupied the see 3 years, 8 months and 6 days.

He was ordained by one faction on the same day as Eulahus and
there was dissension among the clergy for 7 months and 15 days.^

1 A similar ordinance was passed by the Council of Laodicea and the Council of
Carthage in the fourth century.

2 List of ordinations.

3 An inscription which was visible in the ninth century near the choir of the basilica
of San Lorenzo recorded the repair and rebuilding of the church by the priest Leopardus
at his own expense in the time of Zosimus. Cf. supra, p. 87 and n. 3. Duchesne
thinks that Leopardus' reconstruction may have included the sinking of the old basilica
to the level of the saint's tomb and the Constantinian confession so that one did not
have to be reached by a stairway from the other as in Constantine's day, but the whole
structure was partially subterranean, as it is at present. Cf. supra, p. 61. If that
was the case, the church itself was then provided with a new entrance, a flight of
stairs leading from the ground outside down into a vestibule, an arrangement similar
to that now to be seen at Sant' Agnese. After the small basilica was united with the
larger by Honorius III the independent entrance was closed up and the small church was
reached only through the larger one, as it is to-day. The three niches in the vestibule,
the middle one of which is now occupied by the tomb of Pius IX, were apparently used
for burial places soon after Leopardus finished them. At least De Rossi believes that
Zosimus was interred in one, Xystus III and HUary in the other two. Infra, pp. 97,
104. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 197, n. 84.

* Enough of the history of this brief schism has been recovered to make clear the
narrative of the Lib. Pont. Pope Zosimus was buried Friday, December 27, 418. On
their return from his obsequies the Roman deacons, headed by Eulalius, the archdeacon,
seized the basilica of the Lateran, shut out the priests and elected Eulalius as Zosimus'
successor. The priests on the ne.xt day elected Boniface, one of their number, in spite
of his own protests. Both parties held ordination ceremonies on Sunday, Eulalius and
his adherents in the Lateran, having dragged the bishop of Ostia from a sick bed to
officiate, Boniface in another church in the presence of nine other bishops. Both
claimed thereafter the authority of pope. The dispute was referred to Honorius at

90 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Eulalius was ordained in the basilica of Constantine and Boniface
in the basilica of Julius.^

At the same time Placidia Augusta heard of it, when she was
sojourning at Ravenna with her son, Valentinian Augustus, and
she reported it to Honorius Augustus who was at Milan. Then
both the Augusti sent authority and commanded that the two
bishops should depart from the city.'' And after they were driven
out Boniface dwelt in the cemetery of the holy FeHcitas, the martyr,
on the Via Salaria, and Eulalius in the town of Antium ^ near
the holy Hermes.

But when the next Easter came Eulalius was presumptuous,
because he had been ordained in the basilica of Constantine, and
he entered into the city and baptised and celebrated Easter in the
basihca of Constantine ; but Boniface celebrated the baptism of
Easter, as was his custom, in the basihca of the holy martyr Agnes.''

Ravenna, who ordered both- rivals to appear before a council of Italian bishops and
justify their pretensions. The council met in February or early March but seemed
unable to arrive at a satisfactory conclusion. It was accordingly decided to convoke
another in May, to which the bishops of Gaul and Africa should also be invited. Mean-
while, in order that Easter, which fell that year on March 30, might be celebrated
peaceably in Rome, the council and emperor together determined that Boniface and
Eulalius should remain outside the city in places appointed for them and that Achilleus,
bishop of Spoleto, should preside over the Paschal ceremonies within the city. Boni-
face obeyed the injunction but Eulalius made his way back to Rome, summoned his
party about him, and on Good Friday took possession again of the Lateran. The
prefect of the city was obliged to dislodge him by force and to station guards around
the bishop of Spoleto while he performed the episcopal office. As a result of Eulalius'
refractoriness Honorius sent a letter shortly to Rome declaring him a pretender and
Boniface the true pope. On April 10 Boniface made his entry into the city and was
received with general rejoicing. The schism had lasted a little over three months.
Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 228, nn. i and 2. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, pp. 5i-53-

1 Boniface I was neither elected nor ordained in the basilica Julia. An eye-witness
to his ordination says that it took place in the church of Marcellus, i.e. San Lorenzo in
Lucina. Our author has substituted the name of the basilica where Boniface II was
ordained when a rival excluded him also from the Lateran. Infra, p. 140.

2 There is no other mention of the participation of the Empress Placidia in this
affair. Her son Valentinian, if born at this date, was an infant of a few months only.

3 The modern Porto d'Anzio. CJ. supra, p. 50, n. 2.

* It seems curious that Boniface should have been allowed to remain in such close
proximity to the city while Eulalius was banished to Antium. It is possible that Boni-
face's stay in the cemetery of Felicitas is purely legendary, suggested by the fact that
he restored later the oratory of Felicitas and set up an inscription of gratitude for her
aid. CJ. infra, p. 91.

BONIFACE I 91

When the August! heard this,
they both sent and expelled
Eulalius by 52 bishops and by
their authority they recalled
Boniface into the city of Rome
and appointed him bishop but
they sent Eulalius away into
Campania.

And a synod was held and
Eulalius was deposed by 52 bish-
ops, because he had not been
rightfully ordained, and Boniface
took the seat of bishop by gen-
eral consent and EulaUus was
appointed bishop for the town of
Nepete.^

And after 3 years and 8 months Boniface died. The clergy and
the people asked that Eulalius be recalled.^ Nevertheless Eulalius
refused to return to Rome. And in that same place in Campania,
a year after the death of Boniface, Eulahus died.

Boniface decreed that no woman or nun should touch the con-
secrated altar cloth or wash it or offer incense in church but only
the ministering attendants ; ^ and that no slave should be ad-
mitted to the clergy nor any man Hable to curial service or any
other exaction.^

He built an oratory in the cemetery of the holy Felicitas near
her body and beautified the sepulchre of the holy martyr, Felicitas,
and of the holy Silvanus.^

1 The town of Nepi on the northern border of the Roman province.

2 In 420, a year after entering upon his office, Boniface fell seriously ill. At once
dissension arose over the question of his successor. Upon his recovery he wrote to
Honorius to ask that measures might be taken to prevent a fresh outbreak of the schism
at his death. Honorius replied with an edict to the effect that in case of a double
election the two rival candidates should henceforth both be debarred and that a new
pope should be chosen who could obtain the support of every one. Unfortunately the
edict could not always be enforced. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 229, n. 10. Jaffe, Regesta,
vol. I, p. S3, 353.

3 The exclusion of women from the ministry of the altar was already the ancient
and invariable practice as early as there is any reference to the subject.

* There was apparently throughout this period a regulation against the ordination
of slaves and "curiales." Innocent I excluded the latter class. Jaffe, op. cit., p. 47,
314. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 229, n. 12.

5 De Rossi has identified the cemetery of Felicitas with a catacomb and group of
tombs to the right of the Via Salaria about a mile from the city. The oratory of Boni-
face is mentioned in itineraries of the seventh century, although no traces of it are now
to be found. His inscription, however, may be read in Duchesne. There still exists
within the city, near the baths of Trajan, a chapel to the saint, dating from the time of
Boniface and perhaps built also by him. It is decorated with a fresco representing the
martyred Felicitas and her seven sons, among whom was the Silvanus noted in the
text. Duchesne, ibid., n. 13 ; Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 55-56.

92 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

* * * * * * * *i

He also was buried

in the cemetery of holy FeUcitas,
the martyr, on the Via Salaria,

on the Via Salaria, near the
body of the holy FeUcitas, the
martyr,

October 25.

And the bishopric was empty 9 days.

XLV. Celestine I (422-432)

Celestine, by nationahty

a Campanian, | a Roman,

son of Priscus, occupied the see 8 years, 10 months and 17 days.

He made many regulations and appointed that the 150 psalms
of David should be chanted antiphonally before the sacrifice by
everyone ; - this was not done previously but only the epistle of
blessed Paul, the apostle, was read and the holy gospel,

and thus masses were performed. I

He made a regulation for the whole church, in particular with
regard to the religious Hfe, and to this day it is kept preserved in
the archives of the church.^

He dedicated the basilica of JuHus and offered there after the
Gothic fire : *

a silver paten, weighing 25 lbs. ;

1 Short list of gifts to the oratory and list of ordinations.

2 The antiphonal chanting of the Psalms was at first a feature of the liturgy of the
Eastern church and thence was adopted into the service in Italy. It is known to have
been the practice in Milan in 387. This, of course, is the psalmody before public
mass as distinct from the psalmody of the canonical hours of prayer. With the recita-
tion of the Psalms followed by the Epistle and Gospel the office of the mass was assum-
ing shape. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 231, n. i.

3 Several letters of Celestine are still in existence. They relate to ecclesiastical
affairs in Gaul, Africa, Illyria and Britain and to Nestorius and the Council of Ephesus.
No one of them corresponds to the description here. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, pp. 55-57,
366-388.

* Santa Maria in Trastevere. See supra, p. 73 and n. 5. This is one of the rare,
surviving allusions to the damage done by Alaric's raid of 410. Orosius says that
Alaric charged his soldiers to respect the sanctuaries of Peter and Paul, but churches in

CELESTINE I, XYSTUS III

He also was buried in the cemetery of Priscilla on the Via
Salaria, April 6.

And the bishopric was empty 21 days.

XLVI. Xystus III (432-440)

Xystus, by nationality a Roman, son of Xystus, occupied the
see 8 years and 19 days.

After one year and 8 months he was accused by a man called
Bassus,^

and by order of Valentinian
Augustus a synod was held and
a great trial

Then Valentinian Augustus
heard it and ordered a holy
synod to be called together as a
council ; and when it was con-
vened there was a great trial
and the synodical judgment
was given

and he was acquitted by 56 bishops

and they expelled Bassus from
the communion.

and Bassus was condemned by
the synod but with the provi-
sion that at his death the vi-
aticum should not be denied
him

for the sake of mercy
and the compassion of the
church.

other parts of the city apparently were not spared. Orosius, Historiarum Adversum
Paganos Libri VII, VII, 39, ed. Zangemeister (Teubner), pp. 292-293. See also
infra, p. 95, n. i.

1 List of gifts offered to the churches of Julius, Peter and Paul. List of ordinations.

2 The whole of the ensuing account of the accusation and trial of Xystus is apocry-
phal, taken with modifications from a narrative entitled Gesta de Xysti Purgalione,
which was composed about the year 501, the period when the Gesta Liberii, the legend
of Liberius, was also fabricated. See supra, p. 75, n. 2. Xystus III was never tried
for any crime. The chief concerns of his pontificate were problems of dogma and the
Pelagian and Nestorian heresies. The story here given is obviously the work of some
one who aimed to create a precedent for the trial of Pope Symmachus by a church council

94 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

When Valentinian Augustus heard this and his mother, Placidia
Augusta, they were filled with holy wrath and proscribed Bassus
by an edict and bestowed all the lands of his estates upon the
cathoHc church. And Bassus, by the will of God, died within
3 months. And Xystus, the bishop, with his own hands wrapped
his body in linen cloths and spices and laid it near blessed Peter,
the apostle, in his family burial chamber.

He built the basilica of the holy Mary, which was called by
the ancients the basilica of Liberius,^ near the Macellum of Lybia,
and he offered there :

^ ^ ^ 4: ^ ^ ^ ^2

the tenements adjoining the steps of the basilica and all con-
tained therein.

He adorned with silver the confession of blessed Peter, the
apostle, to the weight of four hundred pounds. At his solicitation
Valentinian Augustus offered a golden relief with 12 doors and the
12 apostles and the Savior, adorned with jewels of great price,^

the which as a votive gift he set
up

over the confession of blessed Peter, the apostle.

at the direction of Theodoric. Seeinfra, pp. 117-118. The history of Pope Damasus was
also tampered with for a similar purpose. Supra, pp. 79, n. 3 ; 82, n. 2. In the narra-
tive here Valentinian plays the part of Theodoric later. Anicius Bassus was a consul
in 431 and his name was probably found in the Fasti. The two special features of this
story, the confiscation of Bassus' goods for the benefit of the Roman church and his
burial near the tomb of Peter, were no doubt suggested, the one by the basilica of
Junius Bassus, consul in 317, which had been converted into a church before the year
500 and the other by the sarcophagus of another Junius Bassus, who died in 359,
which is still one of the ornaments of the Vatican crypt. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol.
I, pp. cxxvi, cxxvii.

1 The basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. See supra, p. 77, n. 5; Gregorovius,
History of Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 184-189. Xystus did not build the basilica
but restored it. He added the mosaics of the triumphal arch which proclaim the divine
motherhood of Mary, the dogma enunciated by the Council of Ephesus during Xystus'
pontificate. Above them his inscription may still be read, "XYSTUS EPISCOPUS
PLEBI DEI," Bishop Xystus to the People of God.

2 List of gifts to the basilica of Mary.

' This is one of the notable works of art mentioned by Pope Hadrian in his letter
to Charlemagne on the sacred images at Rome. Mansi, Amplissima Colledio, vol.
XIII, p. 801. It was probably destroyed during the sack of the Saracens in 846. A
design showing Christ and the apostles seated beneath the arcades of a portico is
found on many sarcophagi of the fourth and fifth centuries.

XYSTUS III 95

Likewise Valentinian Augustus, at the request of Xystus, the
bishop, erected a ciborium of silver in the basihca of Constantine,
which

weighed 2,000 pounds, | weighed 1,610 pounds,

in place of the one which had been destroyed by the barbarians.^

At this time Valentinian Augustus made the confession of
blessed Paul, the apostle, out of silver, weighing 200 pounds. Also
Xystus, the bishop, set up the confession of blessed Lawrence, the
martyr,^ with porphyry columns and adorned

with slabs

the screen and the altar and the confession of holy Lawrence, the
martyr, with purest silver,

he made an altar |

weighing 50 lbs. ;

silver rails over the porphyry slabs, weighing 300 lbs. ;

an apse ^ above the rails with a silver figure of blessed Lawrence,

the martyr, weighing 200 lbs.

He built also the basihca to the holy Lawrence,^ which Valen-
tinian Augustus granted to him, where likewise he offered the fol-
lowing gifts :

^ ^ ^ 'I* 5iC ^ JjC "Ko

^ I.e. in place of the one given by Constantine and removed by the Goths of Alaric.
Supra, p. 47, n. 2.

2 The rich confession of St. Lawrence, built in the time of Constantine {Supra,
p. 62), had apparently been plundered also by the Goths, so that Xystus found it
necessary to restore most of the furniture. Duchesne thinks that the porphyry
columns of Xystus are those which still support the ciborium and that the porphyry
slabs of Xystus' screen now enclose the altar.

' I.e. a niche to hold the image of the saint.

* The larger basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura, forming the body of the present
structure and connected with the smaller and older church in the thirteenth century.
Supra, p. 61, n. 2. This is the generally accepted view, although Mr. Frothingham
claims to have grounds for maintaining that Xystus III built the church of San Lorenzo
in Lucina instead of the basilica outside the city. The latter was certainly in existence
before the end of the fifth century, but there is no monument or record to connect
it with Xystus beyond the ambiguous notice here. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 235, n. 12.
Frothingham, Monuments, p. 407.

^ List of precious utensils given to the basilica of St. Lawrence.

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He built also a monastery at
the Catacombs.^

He built also a baptismal
font for the holy Mary and beau-
tified it with porphyry columns.^

He erected in the baptistery
of the basilica of Constantine
the columns which had been col-
lected in the time of Constan-
tine Augustus, eight in number,
made of porphyry ; and he set
them in place and decorated
them with letters and verses ; ^

also a tablet in the cemetery of
CalUstus, where he recorded the
names of the bishops.^

basilica of

decoration

which pre-

been there ;

He built in the
Constantine a
around the font,
viously had not
that is, he set up the marble
architraves and the porphyry
columns which Constantine
Augustus collected and laid to-
gether and ordered to be set up
and he adorned them with
verses. He placed a tablet in
the cemetery of CalHstus on the
Via Appia, where he inscribed
the names of the bishops and
martyrs for a memorial.

1 The monastery of San Sebastiano, one of the first, if not actually the first, to be
built adjoining a suburban church, in order to provide for the religious services which
could no longer be adequately maintained by the clergy of the urban basilica with
which the cemeterial church was connected. For the site see supra, p. 8i and n. 2.

2 No trace of this baptistery now remains.

3 The eight porphyry columns and the inscription upon the architrave may still
be seen in the Lateran baptistery. Cf. supra, p. 50.

^ The marble tablet was set up in the papal crypt of the catacomb of Callistus and
bore the names of the martyred popes and other saints who were buried there. Du-
chesne gives a conjectural reading of the inscription, as made out by De Rossi :

"The Names of the Bishops, Martyrs and Confessors who are buried in the Ceme-
tery of Callistus

Xystus Dionysius Stephen Urbanus

Cornelius Felix Lucius Manno

Pontianus Eutychianus Anteros Numidianus

Fabianus Gains Laudiceus Julianus

Eusebius Miltiades Polycarp Optatus

Of These the First, the Holy Xystus, Suffered with Agapitus, Felicissimus and
XI Others."

The tablet itself has long disappeared but De Rossi derives his reading from two
early lists of inscriptions which seem to have been copied from the original stones.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 236, n. 16. It may be noticed that fourteen out of these twenty
names are those of popes.

XYSTUS III, LEO I

And In his time Peter, the
bishop, built the basilica of the
holy Savina in the city of Rome
and erected there a font.^

He also was buried on the Via Tiburtina in a crypt,

* 1

near the holy Lawrence.^

near the body of the blessed
Lawrence.

And the bishopric was empty 22 days.

From the death of Silvester
to Leo I is 99 years, 5 months
and 26 days.

XLVII. Leo I (440-461)

Leo, by nationality a Tuscan, son of Quintianus, occupied the
see 21 years, i month and 13 days.

He made a regulation for the
church.

In his time Demetria, the handmaid of God, built a basilica to
the holy Stephen in her own garden on the Via Latina at the third
milestone.^

He found two heresies,
Eutyches and Nestorius,^ the Eutychian

the
some

through
and the Nes- aid of
torian. bishops.

1 Minor gifts to the churches of Peter, Paul and Lawrence. List of ordinations.

2 The basilica of Santa Sabina on the Aventine. Its graceful columns are sup-
posed to have been taken from a neighboring temple to Juno Regina, despoiled by
Alaric. Its famous carved doors of cypress wood are among the finest examples of
fifth century art. According to the dedicatory inscription over the entrance the build-
ing was begun while Celestine was pope. It may have been finished under Xystus.

^ On this place see supra, p. 89, n. 3.

* This is Anicia Demetrias, of the house of the Anicii Probi, one of the group of
devout women at Rome, the friend and pupil of Augustine and Jerome. She left her
property for the building of a church to St. Stephen, which was erected toward the
close of Leo's pontificate. A few ruins now show where it stood and testify by their
rude workmanship to the decline of Roman skill during the years that saw the invasions
of Attila and Genseric. Frothingham, Monuments, p. 63.

^ Nestorius was charged with holding that there were two persons as well as two

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

and by request of Marcian Au-
gustus, the orthodox, and at his
bidding

He, by his own authority,
issued precepts and he sent to
Marcian Augustus, the ortho-
dox, cathohc prince, and an
assemblage was called and the
bishops were gathered together
with the prince and

the holy council of the bishops was held at Chalcedon

in the confession chapel of the
holy Euphemia; and 256 priests
were met together,

408 bishops

and they were assembled to-
gether with the Tome, that
contained the declaration of
faith of the apostohc, Roman
church and the autograph of
the holy bishop Leo. Then in
the presence of the cathohc
prince Marcian Augustus the
assembled council of bishops,
in number 1200, in company
with Marcian Augustus set forth
the catholic faith, two natures
in one Christ, God and man.

natures in Christ, the God-man, Eutyches that there was but one person and one
nature. For a good, general account of the Nestorian and Eutychian controversies
see Cambridge Medieval History, vol. I, pp. 494-515- <7- Luke Rivington, Roman
Primacy, 430-451, (Catholic) ; Puller, Primitive Saints aiid the See of Rome, (Protest-
ant); Hefele, op. cil., vol. IT, pp. 499-881. Ayer, Source Book of Ancient Church
History, pp. 476-481, 504-522.

1 The following two accounts in our text of the Council of Chalcedon are both
somewhat confused, the one in the first column giving, on the whole, a slightly more
accurate notion of its work than the other, as may be seen by a comparison with the
facts. The council met in 451 at the summons of the emperor Marcian and contrary
to the express desire of the pope. It held its sessions in the basilica of St. Euphemia

in the East in the basihca of the
holy martyr Euphemia ; ^ and
he gathered together 266 priests

beside

406 bishops

who sent their autographs,

and they condemned Eutyches
and Nestorius. And after 42
days, being gathered together
with the autographs, those who
were present, 1200 bishops, set
forth the faith in the presence of
Marcian, the most pious Augus-
tus,

LEO I

and he, together with Placidia
Augusta, professed his faith pub-
hcly before the eyes of the holy
bishops and Eutyches was con-
demned a second time.

Afterwards the emperor Mar-
cian and 1 50 bishops sent an offi-
cial letter and asked Leo, the
pope, to transmit to them an ex-
position of the catholic and apos-
tolic faith. Then the blessed
Leo expounded it and sent the
Tome and confirmed the holy
synod.

He wrote
many letters
setting forth
the true catho-
lic faith, which
are kept to this
day in the ar-
chives of the
Roman church.

He set

forth the true
cathoHc ' faith
in company

with many

bishops, and
his writings are
kept to this
day in the ar-
chives of the

And there the pious Mar-
cian Augustus, together with
his wife, Pulcheria Augusta,
laid aside his regal majesty and
professed his faith before the
eyes of the holy bishops and
they condemned Eutyches and
Nestorius. I Nestorius and

I Dioscorus.
And a second time the em-
peror Marcian with his con-
sort, Pulcheria Augusta, set
forth his faith and signed it
with his own hand and demand-
ed of the holy council that it
should send his profession to the
most blessed pope Leo and
condemn all heresies.

Moreover the most blessed
archbishop Leo sent many let-
ters regarding the faith, which
are preserved to this day in the
archives.

in Chalcedon. A confession chapel, "martyrium," would have been too small.
There were probably six hundred bishops in attendance. The number of those who
accepted its decisions afterwards cannot be estimated. About twenty sessions were
held during the twenty-four days of its duration. At one of these sessions the emperor
and empress were present and made public profession of the imperial creed. At the
emperor's urgent behest the bishops drew up a declaration of orthodox doctrine, basing
it to a large extent upon Leo's famous letter written two years earlier to the bishop
Flavianus and known as the Tome. It contained an exposition, drawn from Tertullian,
of the dual nature of Christ. Marcian then required of Leo a confirmation of the dogma
as set forth by the council and Leo gave it. Jaffe, Regesia, vol. I, p. 62, 423. Duchesne,
Lib. Font., vol. I, p. 239, n. 2.

lOO

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Roman church

on account of

the Eutychian

and Nestorian

heresies which

were condemned

in his time,
likewise a decretal, which he sent
about and circulated throughout
the whole world.^

He confirmed the synod of Chalcedon in many letters : 1 2
letters to Marcian, 13 letters to Leo Augustus, 9 letters to Fla-
vianus, the bishop, 18 letters to the bishops of the East, all of which
confirmed the faith of the synod.^

He replaced all the conse-
crated silver vessels in all the
parish churches after the Vandal
devastation.^

* * * *

He repaired the basilica of
blessed Peter, the apostle,^ and
restored the vaulting of blessed
Paul after the fire from God.^

He replaced the vessels of
the Roman church after the
Vandal war.

* 4

He made the vaulting and dec-
orated the basilica of blessed
Peter and repaired the basiUca
of Paul, the apostle.

1 It is impossible to identify this decretal. Leo wrote several of importance, ad-
dressed to bishops in different countries, but no single one, so far as we are aware, with
such wide application as to be described by the phrase here used, unless it be the Tome
already mentioned. In 453 that was being read in Greek by the monks of Palestine.
Jaffe, Regesta, p. 70, 500.

2 The Regesta of Jaffe enumerates in all 150 letters of Leo, of which 17 are addressed
to Marcian, 8 to the emperor Leo and 7 to Flavianus, bishop of Constantinople, the
last, however, anterior to the Council of Chalcedon. There are 13 more letters to the
bishops of Constantinople after Flavianus and 38 to other Eastern bishops at Alexan-
dria, Antioch, Jerusalem, Thessalonica, etc. Our author evidently knew something
of the extent of the correspondence. Duchesne, op. cit., vol. I, p. cxxxii.

^The sack of Rome by Genseric in 455. See Gregorovius, History of Rome, tx.
Hamilton, vol. I, ch. VI.

* Short list of vessels replaced in the basilicas of Peter, Paul and John.

^ The mosaic on the facade of old St. Peter's bore a dedicatory inscription com-
memorating a restoration by the praetorian prefect Marinianus and his wife Anastasia
at the request of Leo. Duchesne, op. cit., p. cxxvii, n. 4.

® The roof of the basilica of St. Paul had fallen in, destroyed perhaps by lightning.

LEO I loi

He made likewise the vaulting in the basilica of Constantine.^

He built also a basilica to the blessed Cornehus, bishop and
martyr, near the cemetery of Calhstus on the Via Appia.-

He, for the sake of the Roman name, undertook an embassy
and went to meet the king of the Huns, Atthela by name, and
dehvered all Italy from the peril of the enemy .^

He founded a monastery at the church of blessed Peter, the
apostle,

which is called the monastery
of the holy John and Paul/

He ordained that during the performance of mass ''sanctum
sacrificium," etc. should be repeated.^

He ordained that a nun should not receive the blessing of the
veiled head until she had been tried in virginity

40 years.^ I 60 years.

The inscription recording the fact of its ruin and of its reparation by two priests,
Felix and Adeodatus, during the pontificate of Leo is preserved in the museum of the
basilica. The mosaic of the triumphal arch was also a part of Leo's reconstruction.
Though badly restored, the design may still be made out and the inscription which
testifies to assistance from the empress Galla Placidia. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 240, n. 7.

1 Parts of the apsidal mosaic of the Lateran basilica, the bust of Christ in the clouds
and the Earthly Paradise at the foot, are perhaps work of the early fifth century.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 241, n. 8. Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 336-338.

2 No trace of this basilica now remains. It is mentioned in two itineraries of the
seventh century but not later. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 241, n. 9.

3 The well-known story of the meeting with Attila in 452. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I,
p. 68; Gregorovius, History of Rome, vol. I, pp. 228-230; Hodgkin, Italy and her

Invaders, vol. II.

* The first monastery to be attached to the Vatican basilica. By 732 there were
two others. They have all, of course, disappeared now, along with every other early
and medieval structure on that site. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 241, n. 11.

^ I.e. in the eucharistic formula ending, "quod tibi obtuht summus sacerdos tuus
Melchisedech sanctum sacrificium, immaculatam hostiam." Leo seems to have added
the words, " sanctum sacrificium, im.maculatam hostiam," to the reference to Mel-
chisedech's offering of bread and wine, instigated thereto possibly by the aversion of
the Manicheans to wine and in particular to its use in a sacred liturgy. Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 241, n. 12.

6 We have no early, authentic document that specifies the age required at Rome of a
woman who wished to assume the veil of a consecrated virgin. In Africa, at the begin-
ning of the fifth century, she was ordinarily expected to be at least twenty-five years old.
The Council of Saragossa, 380 a.d., fixed forty as the minimum age in Spain. An
edict of the emperor Marjorian in the time of Leo confirmed the act of the Spanish

I02 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He appointed guards from the Roman clergy over the tombs
of the apostles; they are called the "cubicularii." ^

*^ ^ ^ ^ 4e sts 5I; o

V •!» *T* *7* "^ *^ "l* ^

He also was buried

in the basihca of the blessed
Peter,3

April II.

And the bishopric was empty 7 days.

in the church of blessed Peter
the apostle,

XLVIII. Hilary (461-468)
Hilary, by nationahty a Sardinian, son of

Crispinianus, | Crispinus,

occupied the see 6 years, 3 months and 10 days.
He made a decretal and

sent it I disseminated it

throughout all the East ^ and letters concerning the catholic

and apostolic |

faith and he confirmed the three synods of Nicea, Ephesus and
Chalcedon '^ and the Tome of the holy

bishop I archbishop

church. None of the surviving decretals of Leo or his successors through the fifth
and sixth centuries alludes to the subject of age. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 241, n. 13.
Mansi, Amplissima Colleclio, vol. IV, p. 508..

1 An inscription dated 533 or 544 names one Decius, "cubicularius of the basilica
of St. Paul;" another of the same period mentions a "cubicularius of blessed Peter."
The confessions before the tombs of the apostles were being filled with gifts of such
price as to demand special warders or custodians. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 241, n. 14.

2 List of ordinations.

3 Leo was the first of the popes to be buried in the portico of St. Peter's. His
remains were brought within the sanctuary by Sergius I in 688 and now lie with those
of Leo II, Leo III and Leo IV in the left transept of the modern cathedral. Lanciani,
Pagan and Christian Rome, pp. 221-223.

* No documents survive to prove Hilary's correspondence with the Eastern branch
of the church, but it is not unlikely that they once existed. Duchesne, Lib. Pont.,
vol. I, p. cxxxii.

* Duchesne quotes this passage in support of his contention that the Liber Pon-
tificalis was first compiled in the early sixth century. See supra, Introduction, pp. xi-xii.
Until the time of Pope Vigilius, 537-555, the Roman church recognized only the three
ecumenical councils here enumerated; afterward it acknowledged also the Council
of Constantinople of the year 381. Duchesne, op. cit., p. xxxviii.

HILARY 103

Leo and he condemned Eutyches and Nestorius and all their dis-
ciples and all heresies ; and he maintained

the supremacy [ the authority

and the headship of the holy catholic and apostolic see.

He made a regulation for the church in the basilica of the holy
Mary during the consulship of Basiliscus and Hermenericus,
November 16.^

He built 3 oratories in the baptistery of the basilica of Con-
stantine, one to holy John the Baptist, one to holy John the
Evangelist, and one to the Holy Cross, all decked with silver and
precious stones ; ^

* * * * =f: * * *3

And in the city of Rome he provided vessels for service to be
carried about to the appointed stations : ^
a golden beaker

for the station, | with handles,

1 The Roman synod of 465. The date here given is exact. A letter of Pope
Hilary, still in existence, speaks of the bishops as in session on November 19. Jaffe,
Regesta, vol. I, p. 76. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 245, n. 2.

2 The first two oratories are still to be seen opening out of the Lateran baptistery.
The former preserves the bronze doors of Hilary with the dedicatory inscription above
them, "HILARUS EPISCOPUS SANCT^ PLEBI DEI," the latter Hilary's vault
mosaics. The oratory of the Holy Cross was torn down in the seventeenth century.

^ List of rich gifts to the three oratories, especially to that of the Holy Cross, which
he beautified with a court, portico and elaborate fountain. Lists of gifts to the basilicas
of the Lateran, Peter, Paul and Lawrence.

^ As early as the fifth century it was customary for the clergy of the whole Roman
church to assemble from time to time in one basilica or another for a stational mass,
tha t is, a mass where the entire city church was represented from bishop to laity. This
custom, like the distribution of the leaven {supra, p. 41 and n. 2), was apparently
intended to typify the unity of the Christian fellowship. The pope was the chief
celebrant at the altar but the priests of the twenty-five parish churches stood about
and assisted both in the consecration service and in the distribution of the blessed
elements to the people. Hilary provided a special set of altar vessels to be used at these
stational masses, to be stored during the intervals at the Lateran or at Santa Maria
Maggiore. Gregory I made out a definite schedule of the churches at which these
stations should be held, including the parish churches and certain oratories and ceme-
teries. For an eighth century ritual for the observance of the stational mass see Atch-
ley, Ordo Romanus Primus, p. 32 and passim. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 246, n. 9. Cam-
bridge Med. Hist., vol. I, pp. 158-159.

I04 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

weighing 8 lbs. ;

silver I

beakers for the parish priests, weighing each 10 lbs. ;
25 silver pitchers, weighing each 10 lbs. ;
50 silver chaHces for service, weighing each 2 lbs.

which he appointed to be kept

in the church of holy Mary.

All these he appointed to be
kept in the basilica of Constan-
tine or in that of holy Mary.

He built a monastery near the church of the holy Lawrence ^
and a bath I

and another in the open air,
and a villa

to the holy Stephen. He built
also an oratory of the holy Ste-
phen in the Lateran baptistery.

He erected also two libraries in the same place, likewise a
monastery within the city of Rome "ad Luna."

* :1c * * * * * *2

He also was buried near the holy Lawrence in a crypt near the
body of the blessed bishop Xystus.^
And the bishopric was empty 10 days.

1 This and the following buildings have now all disappeared. Hilary's monastery
of St. Lawrence may have stood upon the site of the present convent. One of his two
baths was evidently enclosed and heated like the usual Roman bath, the other was
an uncovered basin of cold water. The villa or ' ' pretorium ' ' may have been an hospice
for pilgrims or a papal residence. If the succeeding sentence in the text is an interpola-
tion, as seems probable, the two libraries were attached to the villa. Hilary's successor,
Simplicius, built a church to St. Stephen in the neighborhood (infra, p. 105), and for
that reason a later editor may have ascribed to Hilary a shrine to the same saint. The
location of the monastery within the city is unknown. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 247,

nn. 10, II, 12.

2 List of ordinations.

3 On his burial place see supra, p. 89, n. 3,

SIMPLICIUS

105

XLIX. SiMPLicius (468-483)

Simplicius, by nationality a Tiburtine,\son of
Castinus, I Castorius,

occupied the see 15 years,
I month and 7 days. 1 and 7 days.

He dedicated the basihca of the holy Stephen on the Celian
Hill in the city of Rome ^ and the basilica of the blessed apostle
Andrew near the basihca of the holy Mary ^ and another basilica
of the holy Stephen near the basihca of the holy Lawrence '^ and
another basihca of the blessed martyr Bibiana within the city of
Rome beside the Licinian palace where her body rests.^

He appointed weeks for holy Peter, the apostle, and for holy
Paul, the apostle, and for holy Lawrence, the martyr, when priests
should be in attendance

to administer baptism and pen-
ance to those who sought them,

for administering penance and
baptism,

1 I.e. from Tivoli.

2 The enigmatical, round church now called San Stefano Rotondo. It is still a
problem whether it was built originally for pagan or for Christian uses.

3 Later known as Sant' Andrea in Catabarbara. Simplicius took a secular hall,
erected by the consul Junius Bassus during the reign of Constantine and adorned
richly with scenes from Roman mythology and history, and transformed it into a
basilica by throwing out an apse on the end opposite the entrance and decorating it
with a mosaic of Christ and six apostles. The structure fell into ruin and was destroyed
in the seventeenth century. It stood near Santa Maria Maggiore on land now owned
by the convent of Sant' Antonio. Duchesne, Lih. Pont., vol. I, p. 250, n. 2. This is the
first mention of a pubHc building appropriated by the church. In the turmoU of the
period of Anthemius, Ricimer and Odoacer any one was free to take possession of the
decaying, civil monuments.

* This basilica also has been torn down, but there are remnants of an ancient oratory
with three apses a little to the southeast of San Lorenzo, near the stairs by which
one climbs to the upper part of the modern cemetery. Duchesne, op. cit., p.

250, n. 3.

5 The original church of Santa Bibiana was constructed perhaps out of one of the
pleasure houses which decked the gardens of the emperor Gallienus. The emperor's
full name was Publius Licinius Gallienus; hence the title applied to his palace. No
vestige of Simplicius' church is visible in the present basilica. Duchesne, op. at.,
p. 250, n. 4.

io6 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

throughout the 3rd district for the holy Lawrence, the first district
for the holy Paul, the 6th and 7th districts for the holy Peter.^

During his episcopate a report was sent from Greece, from
Acacius, bishop of Constantinople, to the effect that Peter of the
city of Alexandria was a Eutychian heretic ; and a petition came
from Acacius, the bishop, drawn up by his own hand.

At that time the church,
that is the first, apostolic see,
took action.

Then the church acted.

Then Simplicius,

the bishop and |

the head, learned of it and condemned Peter of Alexandria, against
whom Acacius charged innumerable crimes, but reserved for him
an opportunity for penance.

Forthwith Timotheus, a catholic, and Acacius wrote again,
saying that Peter was Kkewise implicated in the death of Proterius,
a catholic. Then

the archbishop | the pope

Simplicius took no heed and did not reply to Acacius but con-
demned Peter until such time as he should do penance.^

1 The priests of the three great basilicas had evidently reached a point where they
found themselves unable to accomplish all the various duties connected with their
offices, e.g. the performance of sacraments and services in the basilicas, the conduct
of funerals and other services in the suburban cemeteries attached to the basilicas, the
administration of the cemeteries and the properties belonging to the basilicas, the care
of their parishioners, especially during the troublous years of poUtical anarchy and social
upheaval. Simplicius devised a plan by which priests from the smaller churches in
the neighborhood should attend the greater basilicas to help provide spiritual ministra-
tions. In the twelfth century a similar system was still in vogue, the basilica of Santa
Maria Maggiore also receiving aid from adjacent priests. At that time the pries's of
Santa Maria in Trastevere, Santa Cecilia and San Crisogono in the seventh ecclesi-
astical district and of San Lorenzo in Damaso and San Marco in the sixth officiated at
stated intervals in the Vatican and priests of Santa Sabina, Santa Prisca, Santa Balbina
and Santi Nereo ed Achilleo in the first district in San Paolo. The Lateran basilica
was assisted by bishops from the vicinity of Rome. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 250, n. 5.

2 This brief and obscure narrative is an account of the part played by the pope in
the events of the Monophysite insurrection which followed the Council of Chalcedon.
See supra, pp. 97-99. The disciples of Eutyches and Cyril of Alexandria saw in the

SIMPLICIUS, FELIX III 107

4c * * * * * * *1

He was buried

near the blessed Peter,

in the basilica of blessed Peter,
the apostle,

March 2.

And the bishopric was empty 6 days.

L. Felix III (483-492)

Felix, by nationality a Roman, son of Fehx, priest of the parish
church of Fasciola,^ occupied the see 8 years, 11 months and 17
days.

Chalcedon decree another form of the Nestorian heresy, ascribing a dual personality
as well as a dual nature to Christ, and broke into a revolt that disturbed both church
and empire for a century. The struggle was most violent in Alexandria. There the
orthodox patriarch, Proterius, was assassinated in 457 and for some years the Mono-
physites held the see. The accession of Emperor Zeno to the throne, however, in 477
turned the tide temporarily in favor of the orthodox party. Peter Mongius, the
heretic patriarch, was deposed by imperial order and Timotheus Solofaciolus installed
in his stead. Acacius, bishop of Constantinople, was already in correspondence with
Simplicius regarding the lamentable state of affairs in Alexandria. Timotheus now
also sent a deputation to the pope to complain of Peter's unceasing intrigues against
him and to urge Simplicius to use his influence with the emperor to have Peter banished
to a distance. The letters of Simplicius to Zeno and Acacius on the subject may be
found summarised in Jaffe's Regesta, vol. I, pp. 78-79, 579-582. He seems to have made
no impression on the emperor, for Peter remained free as before until the death of
Timotheus in 482. The latter's orthodox successor proved to be unacceptable to both
Zeno and Acacius and negotiations were straightway undertaken by them for a com-
promise with the indomitable Peter. The result was the Henotikon Edict issued by
Zeno in 482, which condemned both extremists, Eutyches and Nestorius, ignored the
Chalcedon decree and attempted to formulate a doctrine to which Catholics and
Monophysites might all subscribe. Simplicius, learning of this change of face, wrote
to protest against the restoration of Peter, but with no more effect than before. Neither
Zeno nor Acacius replied to him. Jaffe, ibid., 586-589. The controversy was resumed
by Simplicius' successors, as we shall see. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 251, n. 6. On Zeno's
policy see Cambridge Med. Hist., vol. I, pp. 515-520.

1. Lists of gifts to the Vatican basilica and of ordinations.

2 An ancient name for the church now called Santi Nereo ed Achilleo. Duchesne
prints the text of several epitaphs, found in the basilica of San Paolo, which are prob-
ably those of the father of Felix III and of the latter's wife and two children. Petronia,
wife of Felk, died in 472, while her husband was only a deacon. Gregory the Great
was one of their descendants. In his Dialogues he recounts the vision which his aunt,
a consecrated virgin, had of their ancestor. Pope Felix, shortly before her own death.
Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. 240, n. 7, 253, n. 2. Gregory I, Dialogi, IV, 16; Migne,
Pat. Lat., vol. 77, col. 348. -,

io8 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He was bishop in the time of Odobacer,^ the king, until the
time of Theodoric,

the king. |

He built the basilica of the holy Agapitus near the basihca of the
holy Lawrence, the martyr.^

During his episcopate there came another report

from the region of Greece | from Greece

that Peter of Alexandria had been reinstated

in the communion |

by Acacius, bishop of Constantinople.^ Then the venerable

pope Felix

Felix, archbishop of the apos-
tolic see of the city of Rome,

sent an advocate

by resolution of the synod | by advice

of his see and held a council and condemned Acacius together with
Peter.

1 Odoacer. Theodoric did not take Ravenna until 493 but by 491 he was able to
send Faustus, prince of the Senate, as his ambassador to Emperor Zeno, a fact which
indicates that by this time he was pretty well master of Rome. Duchesne points out
that our author here resumes the imperial synchronisms which had been discontinued
since the period covered by the Liberian Catalogue. He argues that the author is
now competent to supply them from memory. Duchesne, op. cit., pp. xlv, 253, n. 4.

2 The situation of this church is now unknown, although it is mentioned in several
early itineraries. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 253, n. 5.

' The controversy of Simplicius with Acacius of Constantinople over Peter, the
Monophysite bishop of Alexandria {supra, p. 106 and n. 2), was promptly taken up
by Felix. The arrival in Rome of the orthodox claimant of the Alexandrian see, John
Talaia, entreating the pope's assistance, was the signal for him to put forth every
effort to induce Acacius to abandon Peter. The subsequent events are told in the
main correctly in our text but their order has been inverted. The first step in Felix'
proceedings was the sending in 483 of the envoys, Misenus, bishop of Cumae, and
Vitalis, bishop of Truentum, to summon Acacius to appear before the pope and his
council to answer for his contumacy. On their return in the following year Felix held a
synod which condemned and anathematised Acacius and sent an advocate, "defen-
sorem," with notification of the sentence to Acacius, to the emperor Zeno and to the
clergy and people of Constantinople. The documents may be found in Jaffe, Re-
gesta, vol. I, pp. 80-81, 591-595, 599-603. Cf. Puller, Primitive Saints and the See
of Rome, pp. 376 ff.

FELIX III

109

After 3 years another report came from the emperor Zeno that
Acacius had returned and was penitent.^ Then Pope Felix

held a council by agreement and |

sent two bishops, Mesenus and Vitalis, so that if they found Aca-
cius to be a confederate of Peter

they might condemn them again they might condemn them,
but if not they might offer him
the code of penance."

But they, when they had arrived at

Constantinople,

the city of Heraclea,

the city of Constan-
tinople,

were corrupted with bribes given them by the aforesaid bishop
and they did not carry out the injunctions of the apostolic see.^
And when they returned to Rome to the apostoHc see,

Pope Fehx called a council and
held an inquiry and

at that time the venerable pope
Felix called a synod and held a
discussion and

he found both bishops, that is Mesenus and Vitalis, guilty before
the court and corrupted with bribes; and he expelled Mesenus
and Vitahs, the bishops, from the communion. Then Mesenus
confessed that he had been corrupted by a bribe

and the council granted him an
opportunity for penance."*

1 This statement is quite fictitious. It was perhaps introduced by our author to
give ground for the sending of Misenus and Vitalis.

2 Misenus and Vitalis were given no such discretion in the affair as this account
implies. They were commissioned simply to cite Acacius to a trial before the pope.
A code of penance, "libellus paenitentije," was, however, in existence long before this
time. The African synods of 251 and 255 referred to a "libellus," where the divers
penalties for sins were written down. Schmitz, Die Bussbucher und die Bussdisciplin
der Kirche, vol. I, pp. 17, 45, 107.

3 In the documents pubhshed by Jaffe {supra, p. 108, n. 3), the pope accuses his
envoys of disobedience to instructions in communicating with the heretical party, in
acknowledging the authority of Peter and in accepting bribes.

* Misenus and Vitalis were both deposed and excommunicated. Misenus was
pardoned in after years by Pope Gelasius but Vitalis died before that time. Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 254, nn. 12 and 13.

no LIBER PONTIFICALIS

This took place in the time of Odobacer, the king.

5jS 'K 'p •!» 'I* •!» "l* ^ 1

He was buried

in the church of the blessed
Paul.-

in the basilica of blessed Paul,
the apostle.

And the bishopric was empty 5 days.

And after his death a regulation was made by the priests and
deacons for the whole church

that no one should ever pre-
sume to show himself hasty in
a matter which must sometime
come up for examination.^

LI. Gelasius (492-496)

Gelasius, by nationality an African, son of Valerius, occupied
the see 4 years, 8 months and 18 days. He was bishop in the time
of Theodoric, the king, and Zeno Augustus.^

In his time was found the church
of the holy Angel on Mount
Garganus.^

1 List of ordinations.

2 Felix III is the only pope buried at San Paolo. He may have chosen the spot
in order to lie with his family. Supra, p. 107, n. 2.

^ There is no other record of any action by the clergy during the interval between
Felix' death and the consecration of Gelasius, but in the days between the death of
Simplicius and the accession of Felix there had been an assembly of the Senate and clergy
of Rome in the mausoleum of Santa Petronilla, adjoining the Vatican basilica. There it
had been decided that no pope in the future should have power to alienate property
belonging to the church as a whole. The decision was declared null by the Roman
synod of 502 on account of the irregularity of the proceeding but Pope Symmachus
issued a decree to the same effect during the sessions of the same synod and with its
approval. The obscure clause of our text may be a reference to the decision which
was annulled. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 254, n. 16.

^ The synchronism is inexact. Zeno died in 491 and Anastasius was emperor during
the pontificate of Gelasius.

^ This sentence is found in only one manuscript and is undoubtedly a late inter-
polation. The earliest existing description of the miraculous discovery of the sanctuary
of St. Michael on Monte Gargano dates from the ninth century, although it purports

GELASIUS

III

In his time Manicheans were discovered in the city of Rome,
whom he transported into exile and whose books he burned with
fire before the doors of the basihca of the holy Mary.^

He, in accordance with a de-
cree of the synod, after the laws
of penance had been fulfilled,
reinstated the purified bishop
Mesenus with weeping and re-
stored him to his church. This
Mesenus had sinned in the mat-
ter of Acacius and Peter.^

He, in accordance with a syn-
odical decree, reinstated Me-
senus, the bishop, in the com-
munion and restored him to his
church, after the laws of pen-
ance had been fulfilled and Me-
senus was purified and received
again.

He was a lover
of the clergy and

of the poor ^ and he increased the clergy.

He deHvered the city of Rome from the peril of famine.''

to be taken from a "libellus" or record contained in the shrine itself. Waitz,
Scriptores Rcrum Langobardkarum, p. 541 • Paul the Deacon mentions an oracle of the
holy archangel on Monte Gargano which was plundered by the Greeks in the seventh
century. History of the Lombards, tr. Foulke, Univ. of Peiiii. Transls. and Reprints,
New Series, vol. 3, p. 200.

1 There is no other reference in contemporary historians to the episode here nar-
rated. If Duchesne's theory as to the date of the composition of the first part of the
Lib. Pont, be correct, the author may either have witnessed the burning of the Mani-
chean books or have heard of it from witnesses. Supra, Introduction; p. xi.

2 We still possess the report of this synod, held in March, 495, and two "libelli" or
declarations of Misenus which he presented to the assemblage, prostrating himself to the
earth. On Misenus see supra, p. 108, n. 3 ; p. 109 and nn. 1-4. It is a satisfaction to
find that in 4Q9 Misenus attended another council at Rome once more in his capacity of
bishop of Cums. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 256, n. 4. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 88.

3 Dionysius Exiguus, who knew of Gelasius through the priests he had trained,
writes of him that he spent all his substance on the poor and died himself in poverty,
that he looked upon his office as an opportunity to serve rather than to rule. Quoted
by Duchesne, op. cit., p. 256, n. 5.

4 About 494 Gelasius wrote a tractate in denunciation of the Lupercalia and the
party that wished to revive the celebration of the pagan rites. In the course of it he
asked, "As for your Castors, whose worship you refuse to abandon, why did they not
give you tranquil seas so that the ships might reach here with grain in winter and the
city suffer less with want ? " He wrote also to Firmina, a lady of rank, to request that
lands belonging to St. Peter, which had been seized by the barbarian and Roman armies,
should be restored to the church. They were needed, he said, for the support of the
hungry multitudes who were flocking to Rome from the provinces which had been
devastated by the wars. Jaffe, Regesta, pp. 89, 90, 672, 685.

112 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He made a regulation for the whole church.^ In his time an-
other report came from Greece to the effect that many crimes and
murders were being committed through Peter and Acacius

in Constantinople.^ |

At that time John of Alexandria,
the catholic bishop, |

fled and came to Rome to the apostolic see

Then the blessed Gelasius re-
ceived John

and the blessed Gelasius re-
ceived him with honor and be-
stowed upon him also a second
bishopric.^ Then he held a
synod and sent throughout the
countries of the East

and he sent again and condemned eternally Acacius and Peter,^

if they should not do penance in
accordance with the code and
seek for absolution.

if they did not repent ; notwith-
standing he allowed them op-
portunity for satisfying the
apostolic see and displayed the
clemency of the first see of the
church.

He dedicated the basilica of the holy Euphemia, the martyr,
in the town of Tibur,^

^ There exists a comprehensive decretal by Gelasius in twenty-eight chapters on a
variety of questions of church administration and discipline addressed to "all the bish-
ops in Lucania, Bruttium and Sicily." Jaffe, Regesta, p. 85, 636.

^ Both Acacius and Peter died before the accession of Gelasius. The reference
here must be to parties of their adherents, unless the author is simply confusing his
chronology, as he does below. On this whole controversy see supra, pp. 106-109 and
notes. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 256, n. 8.

^ John Talaia, orthodox bishop of Alexandria, had taken refuge in Rome ten years
earlier, in 482, just as Felix III became pope. Supra, p. loS, n. 3. Gelasius continued
to support John's cause.

^ Gelasius held three synods at Rome, no one of which, so far as we know, concerned
itself particularly with Acacius and Peter, whose case was regarded as settled. Gelasius
instead wrote letters to various Eastern prelates, condemning all who did not concur
in the sentence passed by his predecessor. Jaffe, Regesta, pp. 83-88, 620, 622, 638,
639, 664, 665, 669. The clauses in our text, granting opportunity for penance, are
obviously interpolations, Acacius and Peter being both dead.

^ The basilica of St. Euphemia at Tivoli disappeared early. Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. 256, n. II.

GELASIUS 113

twenty miles from the city,

and other basihcas | He dedicated also the basilica

of the holy Nicander, Eleutherius

and Andrew |

on the Via Lavicana in the village Pertusa.^

He built also the | and another

basihca of Holy Mary on the Via Laurentina in the estate
Crispinis,

twenty miles from the city.^ |

He wrote treatises and
hymns, as did blessed Ambrose,
the bishop, and books against
Eutyches and Nestorius, which
to-day are kept preserved in the
hbrary of the archives of the
church.

He wrote 5 books against
Nestorius and Eutyches ; he
wrote also hymns after the man-
ner of the blessed Ambrose ;
likewise two books against Arius ;
he wrote also prefaces to the
sacraments and prayers in care-
ful language and many eloquent
epistles regarding the faith.^

During his bishopric the clergy waxed greater.
* * * * * * * *<

I Sergius I, at the end of the seventh century, is said to have rebuilt an oratory to
St. Andrew on the Via Labicana. It was perhaps the basihca or group of basilicas
mentioned here. The site is now lost. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 256, n. 12.

^ This church also is now unknown.

' The hymns of Gelasius have all been lost, as also his refutations of Arianism.
Jaffe lists among his writings one treatise on the dual nature of Christ "against Eutyches
and Nestorius." Regesla, p. 89, 670. The prefaces and prayers were evidently parts
of a liturgy. In the ninth century the Liber Sacramenlonim or office of Gelasius was
distinguished from that of St. Gregory. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 257, n. 14. Jaffe
enumerates over one hundred letters of Gelasius dealing with matters of doctrine,
ecclesiastical government, morality and the temporal needs of his flock. Op. cit., pp.
83~95) 619-743. One of the most striking was written in 494 to the emperor Anastasius,
setting forth the superiority of the priestly to the civil power. "There are two powers
which for the most part control this world, the sacred authority of priests and the
might of kings. Of these two the office of the priests is the greater, inasmuch as they
must give account to the Lord even for the kings before the divine judgment. . . .
You know, therefore, that you are dependent upon their decision and that they will
not submit to your will." Jaffe, op. cit., p. 85, 632. Ayer, Source Book, p. 531.

* List of ordinations.

114 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He also v/as buried

in the basilica of blessed Peter,
the apostle,

in the church of blessed Peter,

November 21.
And

after his death

the bishopric was empty 7 days.

LII. Anastasius II (496-498)

Anastasius, by nationality a Roman, son of Peter,^ from the
5th district,

Tauma, |

of the Caput Tauri,- occupied the see i year, 11 months and 24
days. He was bishop in the time of Theodoric, the king.

He set up the confession of blessed Lawrence, the martyr, of
silver,

weighing 80 lbs. | which weighed 100 lbs.

At that time many of the clergy and of the priests withdrew
themselves from communion with him, because without consulting

the priests or the bishops or the them
clergy of all the catholic church

he had communicated with a deacon of Thessalonica, Photinus by
name, who was of the party of Acacius, and because he desired
secretly to reinstate Acacius and could not. And he was struck
dead by divine will.^

1 The epitaph of Anastasius states that his father was a priest. Duchesne, Lib.
Pont., vol. I, p. 25Q, n. 5.

2 For this district see supra, p. 10, n. 3.

3 This notice of Anastasius is bitter with the feeling engendered by the controversy
with the Eastern church, which had begun under Pope Simplicius and which under Felix
III and Gelasius had resulted in an open schism between the Western branch, led by
Rome, and the Eastern patriarchates and the emperor. See supra, pp. 106, 108, 100, 112.
Anastasius IT, upon his accession, sent two bishops to the emperor to beg that the seam-
less tunic of the Savior be no longer rent for the sake of a single dead man. He did
not propose to retract the censure of Felix III upon Acacius and his tenets but suggested

ANASTASIUS II, SYMMACHUS 115

* * * * * * * *i

And he also was buried

in the church of blessed Peter in
the Vatican,^

in the basilica of blessed Peter,
the apostle,

November 19.

And the bishopric was empty 4 days.

LIII. Symmachus (498-514)

Symmachus, by nationahty a Sardinian,^ son of Fortunatus,
occupied the see 15 years, 7 months and 27 days.
He was bishop in the time of Theodoric,

the heretic, ^ I the king,

and Anastasius Augustus,

the Eutychian, 1

from November 22 to July 19.

that Acacius' name be allowed'to drop and assured the emperor that the baptisms and
ordinations performed by Acacius and his followers would be accepted as valid at Rome.
Jaffe, Regcsla, vol. I, p. 95, 744. These overtures produced an effect at least upon the
bishop of Thessalonica, who thereupon had the letter of Gelasius denouncing Acacius
read publicly in the churches of his diocese and who dispatched a deacon, Photinus, to
renew in his behalf communion with the Roman see. Jaffe, ibid., 746. Unfortunately
a zealot party at Rome disapproved of the pope's conciliatory attitude and ascribed to
him, as in the text, a design to abandon the principles and to rescind the acts of Felix III
and Gelasius. Thus arose a schism within the Roman church itself which was to
break out violently after Anastasius' death. The fact that Anastasius died soon after
his resumption of relations with the church at Thessalonica was looked upon by his
opponents as a clear proof of divine displeasure. Duchesne, op. cit., pp. xliii and
258, n. 3.

1 List of ordinations.

2 Duchesne gives his epitaph. Op. cit., p. 259, n. 5.

3 Symmachus said of himself that he came out of paganism and learned the catholic
faith at Rome. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 263, n. i.

* Mommsen argues that if the Lib. Pont, had been composed early in the sixth
century under Ostrogothic rule, as Duchesne maintains that it was, the derogatory
epithet of "heretic" could not have been applied to Theodoric. Mommsen, Lib.
Pont., p. xvii. On Theodoric's relations with the Roman Church see Gregorovius,
History of Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 3ii~333-

ii6 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

He loved the clergy and the
poor ; he was a good man and
sagacious, kindly and courteous,
and at the time of his ordination
Laurentius also was ordained be-
cause of a dissension in the
bishopric,^

Symmachus in the basilica of Constantine and Laurentius in the
basihca of the blessed Mary.
Wherefore

He was ordained on the same
day with Laurentius because
there was a dissension.

one party of the clergy and also
of the senators was divided from
the rest

the clergy was separated into
parties and the senate also was
divided

and some supported Symmachus and others Laurentius. And
after the dissension had arisen

they all alike | the parties

decided that both factions should betake themselves to Ravenna
for the judgment of Theodoric.- And

when they had come

when they had both arrived at
Ravenna

they received this righteous judgment, that he who had been first
ordained or who

was supported by | was known to have

the largest party should occupy the apostoHc see. Thus through
justice and perception of the truth Symmachus was selected and
made bishop. At that time Pope Symmachus assembled a synod
and appointed Laurentius bishop of the town of Nuceria out of
compassion.^

1 There is no mention here of the theological and political reasons underlying the
split in the Roman church but the situation may be better appreciated if the reader
recalls the beginning of discord under Anastasius II. Supra, p. 1 1 4 and n. 3. Lauren-
tius seems to have been the candidate of the party that desired more compromise with
the Eastern church.

2 Other versions of the story say that the contending parties were forced to accept
the arbitration of Theodoric. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 263, n. 4.

' The acts of the synod of Italian bishops, held under the presidency of Symmachus
in 499, have been preserved. They consist chiefly of measures to prevent confusion in

SYMMACHUS 117

But after 4 years ^ some of the clergy and some of the senate,
in particular Festus and Probinus, full of zeal

and craft, |

brought charges against Symmachus and suborned false witnesses

whom they sent to King Theodoric,

the heretic, I

at Ravenna to accuse the blessed Symmachus ; and they recalled

Laurentius stealthily

to Rome, I

after the accusation had been drawn up at Rome ; and they created

a schism and

the clergy was divided again and
some communicated with Sym-
machus and some with Lauren-
tius.

a party withdrew itself from
communion with Symmachus. -

and asked King Theodoric to
send Peter of Altinum ^ as an
inspector to the apostolic see.

Then the senators Festus and Probinus sent a report to the king

and began to negotiate with the
king to send an inspector to the
apostohc see. Then the king
sent Peter, bishop of the town
of Altinum, although the canons
forbade it.

future papal elections. During the synod Laurentius was appointed bishop of Nocera.
Jaffe, Rcgesta, vol. I, p. 96. Hefele, op. cit., vol. II, p. 958.

1 In fact early in 501.

2 The first accusation brought by the malcontents against Symmachus concerned
the date of Easter. Symmachus had celebrated that festival in 501 on March 25,
following the old Roman calendar. Jaffe, Regesta, p. 97, 754. His adversaries com-
plained that he should have adopted the Greek reckoning, which brought the date to
April 22. Symmachus went to Rimini to lay his case before Theodoric and while there
learned of other and graver charges which were being preferred against him : viz.,
violation of chastity and misuse of church property. Thereupon, without waiting to
face Theodoric, he fled back to Rome by night and entrenched himself in the buildings of
the Vatican. The hostile party took advantage of his flight to prevail upon Theodoric
to send a "visitor" or inspector to Rome in order to celebrate Easter at the proper
season, as the emperor Honorius had done at the time of the dissension between Boni-
face I and Eulalius. Supra, p. 89, n. 4 ; p. 90. The act, however, was tantamount to a
declaration that the see of Rome was vacant or contested. Symmachus was bound to
resent it as a negation of all his rights. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 264, n. 8. Jaffe, ibid., p. 97.

^ The modern Altino near Venice.

ii8

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Then the blessed Symmachus assembled 115 bishops and in the
synod was acquitted of the false accusation and Peter of Altinum,
the intruder upon the apostohc see, and Laurentius of Nuceria were
condemned, because during the hfetime of the bishop Symmachus
they had invaded his see.^ Then the blessed Symmachus was
reinstated with glory in the apostohc see by all the bishops, priests
and deacons and all the clergy and the people, to sit as bishop in
the church of the blessed Peter.

Then Festus, the patrician,
began to slaughter in the city
the clergy who were communi-
cating with the blessed Symma-
chus ^ and he expelled conse-
crated women from their dwell-

At that time Festus, the ex-
consul and leader of the senate,-
and Probinus, the exconsul, be-
gan to fight in the city of Rome
with other senators, in particu-
lar with Faustus, the exconsul,

1 The Roman synod of 501 was convened to pass on the whole situation by order
of Theodoric and with the consent of Symmachus. It held three sessions, the first
during the spring or early summer at the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere. At this
session Symmachus agreed to appear, waiving the claim of his see not to be judged
by inferiors and overlooking the fact that Theodoric had seized the lands and buildings
of the church, leaving him only St. Peter's. The second session met in September at
the basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme on the farther side of the city. Symma-
chus set out to cross from the Vatican but was attacked by a band of enemies on the
way and many of the priests accompanying him were killed. Thereafter Symmachus
remained shut up in the Vatican and refused to attend another session of the synod.
Nevertheless in October the assembled bishops declared that they could find no reason
why he should not continue in full enjoyment of his office and left the accusations
against him to the judgment of God. They solemnly condemned both Laurentius and
Peter of Altino, Theodoric's "visitor." In November, 502, Symmachus on his own
initiative called another synod of bishops, which proceeded to annul an irregular decree
forbidding the pope to alienate church property, that seems to have been employed by
Symmachus' opponents as a basis for their charges against him. Supra, p. no, n. 3.
The synod indeed passed other ordinances prohibiting the pope to dispose of rural
property but allowing him to sell city houses which cost too much to maintain. In 505
Symmachus petitioned Theodoric to compel the patrician Festus, the instigator of the
violence which continued to harass the city, to abstain from further opposition and to
order Laurentius to leave Rome. Dioscorus, a young deacon from Alexandria,
was able to persuade Theodoric to take this step and Symmachus resumed possession
of all the churches and ecclesiastical estates. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 264, n. 10. Jaffe,
Rcgesta, pp. 97-98. Hefele, he. cit. Dioscorus' powers of eloquence served the
Roman church even more conspicuously later. Infra, pp. 127-130.

2 Festus was consul in 472, Probinus in 489 and Faustus in 490. They are all
three mentioned as persons of high reputation in a contemporary work by Ennodius.
Opusc. VI. Quoted by Duchesne, op. cit., p. 265, n. 12.

3 This passage is not probably descriptive of any one occasion but of the general

SYMMACHUS

119

ings, and stripped women of
their clothing and beat them
with clubs and he killed many
priests there,

and. in their hatred, to commit
slaughter and murder upon the
clergy who rightfully commu-
nicated with the blessed Sym-
machus and they killed with the
sword publicly those who were
found within the city. Also
they expelled consecrated women
and virgins from their convents
and their dwellings and they
stripped women of their clothing
and wounded them with blows
and stripes ; and daily they
waged war against the church
in the midst of the city. Like-
wise they slew many priests,

among them Dignissimus and Gordianus,^ priests of Saint - Peter,
the apostle, "ad Vincula," and of Saints John and Paul, whom they
did to death with cudgels and sword ; also many other Christians,
so that it was unsafe for one of the clergy to walk abroad in the city
by day or by night. Only Faustus, the exconsul, fought for the
church.

After all this the blessed Symmachus found Manicheans in the
city of Rome and burned with fire all their images and books before

state of lawlessness and tumult which lasted during the years before Symmachus was
finally and decisively reinstated. The people as a whole seem to have supported
Symmachus but a party of the clergy and a majority of the Senate were bitter against
him.

1 The name of Dignissimus does not appear on the list of parish priests who took
part in the synod of 499, perhaps because the basilica which he served was not counted
among the parish churches. Gordianus is registered as priest of Santi Giovanni e
Paolo. He was the father of Pope Agapitus. /»/rd, p. 143 and n. 6. Both undoubtedly
perished early in the disturbances, for neither was among the priests loyal to Sym-
machus who attended the synod of November, 502. Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 265, n. 13-

2 From the sixth century onward the word "sanctus" was an official title, applied
only to the distinguished dead who were publicly venerated in the churches, no longer
a general epithet for all bishops or even, as in primitive times, for all believers, living
or dead. Hereafter, therefore, in our text the word will usually be translated "saint,"
instead of the vaguer "holy."

3 The church of San Pietro in Vincoli was built during the fifth century by the
empress Eudoxia to receive the relic of the chains of Peter.

I20 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the doors of the basilica of Constantine and condemned them to
exile.^

He was bishop from the consulship of Paulinus (a.d. 498) to
the consulship of Senator (a.d. 514).^

He built the basilica of Saint Andrew, the apostle, near the
basilica of the blessed Peter.^

*|C *(• •!* ^* *i* *p ^1* ^j* 4

Also he adorned with marbles the basilica of blessed Peter.

The fountain of blessed Peter with the square portico around it
he beautified with marble work and with lambs and crosses and
palms of mosaic. Likewise he enclosed the whole atrium ; and
he widened the steps before the doors of the basilica of Saint Peter,
the apostle, and he made other steps of wood on the right and on
the left. Also he built palaces in the same place on the right and
on the left. Also, below the steps into the atrium, outside in the

^ This event must have taken place after the emperor Anastasius accused Sym-
machus himself of being a Manichean, probably during the latter half of his pontificate.
Symmachus wrote an A pologeticus in his own defence. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 265, n. 14.
Jaffe, Rcgesla, p. 99, 761.

2 This is the first consular synchronism since the close of the Libcrian Catalogue.
Synchronisms are given for the three following popes as well. Duchesne regards their
appearance here as another proof that the Lib. Pont, was first compiled between 514
and 530. Op. cit., p. xlv.

3 Symmachus was peculiarly concerned to enlarge and beautify the basilica of St.
Peter, perhaps out of gratitude for the shelter it afforded him during his years of
struggle, 501-506. The basilica of St. Andrew was a rotonda which stood beside the
church of St. Peter until it was demolished by Pius VI to make room for the present
sacristy. It seems to have been built originally during the fifth century, together with
a second circular structure which stood behind it and was connected with it and with
St. Peter's by a gallery. The two were apparently intended as mausoleums for the
family of Theodosius and the rear building actually contained some imperial tombs. It
was called in the Middle Ages the chapel of Santa Petronilla. The rotonda which
Symmachus now converted into a church and dedicated to St. Andrew had presumably
never been used as a mausoleum and was empty until he furnished it. Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 265, n. 16.

^ List of gifts to the shrine of St. Andrew and of four oratories constructed within
the rotonda ; also of three oratories built about the baptistery of St. Peter, which stood
at the end of the north transept of the basilica. These last three oratories were dedi-
cated to the Holy Cross, St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist respec-
tively, as were the oratories attached to the baptistery of the Lateran. Supra, p. 103.
Symmachus may have equipped the Vatican baptistery to serve instead of the Lateran
during his e.xclusion from the latter.

SYMMACHUS

121

square, he set another fountain and an accommodation for human
necessity.^

And he built other steps for ascent into the church of blessed
Andrew and set up a fountain.

He built the basihca of the holy martyr Agatha on the Via
Aureha on the estate Lardarium ; - from the foundation he built it
and offered there 2 silver coffers.^

At that time he built the basihca of Saint Pancratius,^ where
also he set a silver coffer, weighing 15 lbs. ; he built hkewise in the
same place a bath.

Also in the church of blessed Paul, the apostle, he rebuilt the
apse of the basihca, which was falling into ruin, and he embellished
it with a picture behind the confession and he made a vaulting and
a transept ; and over the confession he erected a silver image of the
Savior and the 12 apostles, which weighed 120 lbs. ; and before the
doors of the basilica he built steps into the atrium and a fountain ;
and behind the apse he brought down water and built there a bath
from the foundation.^

^ This account of the completion and adornment of the atrium before St. Peter's
is not altogether clear. One gathers that Symmachus finished and decorated the fa-
mous fountain of the bronze pine cone and the walls of the atrium, widened the stairway
leading up to the atrium and built a palace or papal residence on either side. It is
not plain what was the purpose of the steps that went to right and left, unless they
were approaches to the palaces. The second fountain was shaped like a shell and
stood apparently before the entrance to the atrium. Of course there is now no trace
of these arrangements. Only the bronze pine cone is preserved in a courtyard of the
Vatican palace.

2 It is uncertain where this basilica stood.

^ Boxes or coffers of hammered silver were used as reliquaries. Some few exam-
ples from this period are still preserved. See for illustration Lowrie, Christian Art and
Archaology, pp. 360-361 ; Dalton, Byzantine Art and ArchcBology, pp. 563-564.

^ San Pancrazio on the Via Aurelia over the martyr's tomb. The modern church
has been much restored. After the Gothic wars the city gate which led to this basilica
was called Porta San Pancrazio instead of Porta Aurelia. The last years of Symmachus
were passed in the comparative peace and order of Theodoric's reign. The civil
government took up vigorously the work of repairing public buildings, palaces, theatres,
aqueducts, etc., and furnished bricks and other materials to the church for its restora-
tions and new enterprises. Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 69-71. Gregorovius,
History of Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 290-308.

^ San Paolo has passed through so many vicissitudes that it is impossible now to
identify any handiwork of Symmachus. Behind the apse of the basilica is the public
street and beyond that on the hUl the cemetery of Lucina. An inscription of the sixth
or seventh century, however, speaks of a bath built in a cemetery and of water brought

122 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Within the city of Rome he built the basiHca of Saints Silvester
and Martin from its foundation, near

the baths I

of Trajan ^ and there also he set a silver ciborium above the altar,
which weighed 120 lbs.; 12 silver coffers, which weighed each 10
lbs. ; a silver confession, which weighed 15 lbs.

For the blessed John and Paul he built steps behind the apse.^

Also he enlarged the basihca of the archangel Michael and
built steps and brought in water. ^

Also he erected from its foundation an oratory of Saints Cosma
and Damian beside Saint Mary.'^

Also on the Via Trivana, 27 miles from the city of Rome, on the
estate Pacinianum, he dedicated a basiHca to blessed Peter at the
request of Albinus and Glaphyra, the illustrious praetorian pre-
fects, who built it from the foundation at their own expense.^

Also near blessed Peter and blessed Paul,

the apostles,

and near Saint Lawrence,

the martyr,

he erected lodging houses for the poor.^

in by means of wheels and pulleys. The reference may be to the bath of Symmachus.
Duchesne, op. cil., p. 267, n. 34.

1 A church had been built on this site two hundred years before by Pope Sylvester.
Supra, p. 42, n. I. It seems likely that Symmachus restored or enriched the earlier
structure and added another close beside it, dedicated to St. Martin of Tours. The two
basilicas were later spoken of as one under the title Sts. Sylvester and Martin. In
course of time the name of St. Martin predominated and the modern church is known
as San Martino ai Monti. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 267, n. 35.

2 The flight of steps down the hill behind the apse is a feature of Santi Giovanni e
Paolo to-day.

' The tomb of Hadrian was not consecrated to the archangel until the seventh
century. It is not known what basilica to St. Michael existed as early as the age of
Symmachus, although three are said to have stood within the city at the beginning
of the ninth century. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 268, n. 36.

* Now disappeared.

^ The site is unknown. Via Trivana may be a corruption for Via Tiberina, the
road which branches off from the Via Flaminia at Saxa Rubra. Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. 268, n. 37.

^ Whether these lodgings were for impoverished citizens of Rome or for impecunious
pilgrims from a distance, they testify to the increasing scope of church activity.

SYMMACHUS 123

:|c * * * * 1

He appointed that on every Lord's day and anniversary of the
martyrs the hymn, "Gloria in excelsis," should be repeated.^

He set in order the cemetery of the Jordani for the sake of the
body of Saint Alexander.^

He every year sent rehef of money and garments to the bishops
who had been driven into exile throughout Africa and Sardinia.^

He redeemed with money captives in Liguria and Milan and
divers provinces and bestowed gifts upon them and let them go
free.^

:f: 6

in the basilica of blessed Peter,
the apostle.

He also was buried

in the church of the blessed
Peter,^ July 19,
in peace.

And the bishopric was empty 7 days. And he slept in peace as

a confessor.^

He was buried the 19th day
of the month of July.

^ List of gifts to St. Peter and of repairs to the basilicas of St. Felicitas and St.
Agnes, both of which are said to have been falling into ruin.

2 Before the time of Symmachus the angelic hymn was chanted only at the papal
mass on Christmas night. Supra, p. 13 and n. 2.

3 This cemetery is on the Via Salaria Nova, not far from the church of St. Agnes.
It contained the tomb of the martyr Alexander, one of the sons of St. Felicitas, and
sepulchres of other saints. The discovery of this cemetery in 1578 led to the opening
up of the other catacombs of Rome. Lanciani, Pagan and Christian Rome, ch. VII.

* Trasamond, king of the Vandals, about 508 drove the African bishops into exile in
Sardinia. For a letter of Symmachus to these refugees see Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 99,

762.

s We possess no other information regarding the captives said to have been ran-
somed by Symmachus in Northern Italy but the country was overrun by Gothic bands
and life and liberty must have been precarious.

* List of ordinations.

"> John the Deacon in the ninth century mentions the tombs of Leo I, Simplicius
and Symmachus which he had seen in the portico of the Vatican. Vita Saudi Gregorii,
IV, 68; Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 75. Both tombs and epitaphs have disappeared.

8 Duchesne remarks that this epithet, like the other laudatory terms applied to
Symmachus, show that our author felt a particular sympathy for and interest in this
pope as one with whose difficulties he had been himself acquainted. Op. cit., p. 268,
n. 46. Mommsen is of the opinion that the author was merely following a good
source which has since been lost. Lib. Pont., p. xvii.

124

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

LIV. HORMISDAS (514-523)

Hormisdas, by nationality a Campanian, son of Justus, from
the town of Frisino/ occupied the see 9 years and 17 days. He
was bishop in the time of Theodoric, the king, and Anastasius Au-
gustus,- from the consulship of Senator (a.d. 514) to the consulship
of Symmachus and Boethius (a.d. 522). He set the clergy in order ^
and taught them from the Psalms. He built a basilica in the
Alban district on the estate Mefontis.'^

By authority of his bishop-
ric and by decree of a synod
and in accordance with the clem-
ency of the apostohc see he sent
to Greece and reconciled the
Greeks who had been in bond-
age of the anathema, because of
Peter of Alexandria and Aca-
cius of Constantinople.^

This pope sent to King

At that time by a decree of a
synod he sent to Greece and dis-
played the clemency of the
apostolic see,

for the Greeks had been bound
by the chain of the anathema,
because of Peter of Alexandria
and Acacius, bishop of Con-
stantinople, under John, bishop
of Constantinople.^

By advice of King Theo-

' A town in ancient Latium, the modern Frosinone. The name Campania is here
applied in the medieval sense to the region around Rome.

2 To be quite exact the author should have added the name of Justin, who was
emperor from 518 to 523.

^ This may mean that Hormisdas did his utmost to efface the vestiges of the schism
which had rent the church under his predecessor. His epitaph says that he restored
"the members torn from their wonted places." Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 272, n. 4.

* The spot is now unknown.

^ The following account of the negotiations of Hormisdas with the Eastern emperor
and the final reconciliation of the Eastern church is substantially correct, the version
in the first column from the Felician Epitome being in the main more accurate than
that in the second. The insurrection of Vitalian in 514 forced the emperor to propitiate
orthodo.x opinion and to propose the settlement of differences at a general council to
be held at Heraclea under the presidency of the pope. Hormisdas agreed to partici-
pate in the council, provided that the Eutychian heresy should be expressly anathema-
tised during the proceedings and the acts of the Council of Chalcedon should be ratified.
Supra, p. 106, n. 2. In the summer of 515 he sent the legates mentioned in the
text to discuss with the emperor the conditions of church reunion. Jaffe, Regesta,
vol. I, p. loi, 771, 773, 777.

* John was not bishop at Constantinople until 518, toward the close of the events
about to be narrated. Timotheus was his predecessor. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 272, n. 6.

HORMISDAS

125

Theodoric at Ravenna and by
advice of the king he dispatched
Ennodius, bishop of Ticinum/
and Fortunatus, bishop of Ca-
thena,^ and Evantius, a priest of
the city, and VitaHs, a deacon of
the city.

They went to Anastasius Au-
gustus and proposed that the
Greeks should do penance ac-
cording to the code and be rein-
stated but they effected nothing.^

Likewise a second time ■*
Hormisdas sent Ennodius and
Peregrinus, the bishops, and
Pollio, a subdeacon of the city,
and they carried with them
secret letters and arguments for
the faith, 19 in number, and the
code of penance, by means of
which the Greeks might be

doric he dispatched Ennodius,
bishop of Ticinum, and Fortu-
natus, bishop of Catina, and
Venantius, a priest of the city of
Rome, and VitaHs, a deacon of
the apostolic see, and Hilary, a
notary of the aforesaid see.

They went to Anastasius
Augustus

but effected nothing.

Likewise a second time he
sent the same Ennodius and
Peregrinus, bishop of Mesena,^
carrying secret letters and argu-
ments in support of the faith, 19
in number, and the text of the
code of penance.

1 The modern Pavia.

^ A corruption for Catina, the modern Catania in Sicily.

' By 516 Anastasius was no longer afraid of Vitalian and accordingly sent the pope's
embassy home with a letter declining his proposal.

^ Anastasius, not wishing to appear to discourage altogether the agitation for
ecclesiastical reunion, next sent an embassy of his own to the pope and the Roman
senate with counter propositions. In February, 517, Hormisdas was writing in an irri-
tated and despondent tone about the hoUowness of the Greek professions. In April of
that same year, however, he had been himself persuaded to send a second deputation
to Constantinople. It carried with it letters to the emperor, to Timotheus, bishop of
Constantinople, to Possessor, an African bishop sojourning at the capital, to the
orthodox clergy, monks and populace of the city, to the orthodox bishops of the Orient
and finally to all Eastern bishops without distinction of party. The orthodox were
approved and urged to remain constant ; the rest reminded that they must return to
the rock on which the church was built. Jaffe, Regesta, pp. 102-103, 784, 789-794.
The Lih. Pont, also speaks of an argument in nineteen headings and a code of penance.
No copy of the argument is known to exist. The copies distributed in the East were
destroyed, as our text relates. Felix III had already offered the penitential code to
the erring Greeks. Supra, p. loS and n. 3 ; p. 109.

^ Messina.

126

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

restored ; and if the Greeks re-
fused to receive the arguments
of the letters, the bishops were
to distribute them among the
cities.

And Anastasius Augustus re-
fused to accept their offer, be-
cause he beheved in the heresy
of Euthices.^ Therefore he tried
to corrupt the bishops with a
bribe but they despised the
prince and would not take the
money.

The emperor, hot with anger,
sent them forth by a dangerous
place and embarked them on a
ship in peril of death with a cap-
tain and a prefect, Heliodorus
and Demetrius. And the em-
peror gave command that they
should not enter any city.

Nevertheless the bishops se-
cretly dispatched the above men-
tioned 19 letters on the faith
through all the cities by the
hands of cathoUc monks.

But these letters were re-
ceived by bishops of the cities
who agreed with Anastasius
Augustus, the heretic, and in
fear they forwarded them all to

And Anastasius Augustus re-
fused to accept the code of pen-
ance, because he himself shared
in the Euthycian heresy.
Therefore he tried to corrupt the
legates with a bribe but the
legates of the apostolic see de-
spised Anastasius Augustus and
would not take the money, unless
he would render satisfaction to
the apostolic see. Then the em-
peror, full of wrath, sent them
forth by a back way and em-
barked them on a dangerous
ship with soldiers and captains
and prefects, HeHodorus and
Demetrius.

And the emperor Anastasius
gave command that they should
not enter any city.

Nevertheless the legates of the
apostolic see secretly dispatched
the above mentioned 19 letters
on the faith through all the cities
by the hands of orthodox monks.

But these letters were re-
ceived by bishops of the cities
who were of the party of Anas-
tasius Augustus and in fear for-
warded all the letters on the

1 The details of the failure of the second mission to Anastasius are recorded only
in the Lib. Pont.

HORMISDAS

127

Constantinople to the hands of
Anastasius.

Anastasius in rage wrote to
Pope Hormisdas and said among
other impious things : "We wish
to command you not to lay com-
mands upon us." ^ Then, struck
by a blow from the divine thun-
derbolt, Anastasius perished.^

So Justin, the orthodox, suc-
ceeded to the empire and he sent
to the apostolic see, to Pope
Hormisdas, Gratus, a man of
illustrious name, and asked that
legates might be commissioned
by the apostolic see.^

Then, by advice of King
Theodoric, Hormisdas sent Ger-
manus, bishop of Capua, and
John, the bishop, and Blandus,
a priest, and Felix, a deacon of
the apostolic see, and Dioscorus,
a deacon of the aforesaid see,"*
and he fortified them on every

faith as criminal to Constan-
tinople.

Full of rage Anastasius wrote
against Pope Hormisdas and
among other impious things said
this : " We wish to command you
not to lay commands upon us."
At that time by the will of
God Anastasius was struck
by the divine thunderbolt and
died.

So Justin, the orthodox, suc-
ceeded to the empire and he sent
with his authority to Pope
Hormisdas and the apostohc see
Gratus, a man of illustrious
name, to request of the apostohc
see that the peace of the churches
might be restored.

Then Hormisdas, the bishop,
by advice of King Theodoric,
sent from the apostolic see Ger-
manus, bishop of Capua, and
John and Blandus, a priest, and
Felix and Dioscorus, deacons of
the apostolic see, and Peter, a
notary, and he instructed them

^ The text of the imperial letter is printed in Thiel, EpistolcB Romanorum Pontificum,
vol. I, p. 813. It is dated July 11,517, and ends with the words, "We can endure to be
insulted and to be made of no effect ; we cannot endure to be commanded." Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 273, n. 12.

- Several writers of the time mention a great storm on the day of the death of
Anastasius. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 273, n. 13.

^ August I, 518, Justin wrote to Hormisdas to announce his accession, and in Septem-
ber of the same year he sent Gratus, " vir clarissimus," to reopen the question of reunit-
ing the divided church. The emperor's letter is in Thiel, Epistola, vol. I, p. 831.
Hormisdas' answers are summarized in Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 104, 801, 802.

^ This Dioscorus had already proved his talents of eloquence and persuasion.
Supra, p. 118, n. I. Being an Alexandrian he, of course, was famihar with the Greek
language and point of view and was especially qualified for a part in the mission.

:28

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

point of faith and gave them the
code of penance, by means of
which the Greeks might return
to communion with the apos-
tolic see.^

And when they drew near to
Constantinople

there came out to meet them a
multitude of monks and a host
of distinguished men, among
whom were the emperor Justin
and VitaUanus, master of the
soldiery, and they escorted
them from the so-called Round
Castle into the city of Con-
stantinople.^

With glory and praise they
entered the city together with
the illustrious Gratus.

So after their entrance into
the city they were gloriously re-
ceived by Justin Augustus, the
orthodox.

Then all the clergy of Con-
stantinople and John, the bishop,
knowing that these men had
been joyfully received,

on every point of faith and gave
them the text of the code of
penance.

And when they drew near to
Constantinople they were so
radiant with the grace of faith
that a multitude of orthodox
monks and a vast host of dis-
tinguished men, among whom
were the emperor Justin and the
consul Vitalianus, came to meet
them and escorted them from
the so-called Round Castle into
the city of Constantinople.

With glory and praise they
entered the city together with
the illustrious Gratus.

And they were gloriously re-
ceived by Justin Augustus, the
orthodox.

Then all the clergy and John,
the bishop of Constantinople,
knowing that these men had
been joyously received, also they

1 The instructions given by Hormisdas to the legates have been preserved and may
be found in Mansi, Amplissima CollecHo, vol. VIII, p. 441, and in Migne, Pa^. Lat., vol.
63, P- 433- Jaffe, Regesta, p. 104, 805.

2 An ofl&cial report from the envoys to the pope, describing their enthusiastic recep-
tion at Constantinople, and a special report from the deacon Dioscorus on the same
topic are printed in Thiel, op. cit., vol. I, pp. 857-859. They mention among the gran-
dees who met them and escorted them to the gates the count Justinian, then an influ-
ential minister of the emperor Justin. The author of the Lib. Pont, has taken the name
for that of the emperor and has therefore mistakenly represented Justin himself as
being among the escorts. A sentence or two later he explicitly says that Justin re-
ceived the Romans after their arrival in the city.

HORMISDAS

129

shut themselves up in the great
church which is called Santa
Sophia and held a council and
sent word unto the emperor, say-
ing, ''Unless the reason be ex-
pounded to us why Acacius, the
bishop of our city, was con-
demned, we make no agreement
with the apostolic see."

And a council was held be-
fore Justin Augustus, in the
presence of all the nobility, and
the legates of the apostolic see
chose Dioscorus, the deacon,
from among themselves to ex-
pound the reason. And he set
forth to them the guilt of Aca-
cius so clearly that they all, even
Justin Augustus, cried out to-
gether, saying, "Damnation to
Acacius here and in eternity ! "
At that time Justin Augustus
accepted the truth and gave
command that every bishop
within the realm of Justin should
satisfy the code of penance with-
out delay and return to com-
munion with the apostolic see.
And this came to pass and there
was harmony from the East
unto the West and the peace of
the church prevailed. And the
text of the code of penance is
kept laid up in the archives of
the church unto this day.^

who had been associated with
Anastasius, | Acacius,
shut themselves up in the great
church which is called Santa
Sophia and held a council and
sent word unto the emperor,
saying, "Unless the reason be
expounded to us why our bishop
Acacius was condemned, we
make no agreement with the
apostohc see."

An extract from Dioscorus' account of the hearing given to the envoys before

I30

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

This pope Hormisdas sent to
King Theodoric at Ravenna ^
and by his advice dehvered
authority to Justin and restored
him to unity with the apostolic
see through the seal of his auto-
graph and the code of penance
and condemned Peter and
Acacius and all heresies.

He found Manicheans and shattered them

with a multitude of | and tried them by

blows and sent them into exile ; and

he destroyed | he burned

their books with fire before the doors of the basilica of Constantine.^
In his days the bishopric

of Africa, which had been abol-
ished by the heretics in the time
of persecution, was reestablished
after 74 years.^

At that time there came
a golden crown,

in Africa, which had been abol-
ished by the heretics, was re-
stored after 74 years.

a diadem,

the emperor, the Byzantine senate and the leaders of the church is quoted by Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 273-274, n. 19. Dioscorus says that the reading of the pope's letters and the
code of penance produced conviction at once and modestly makes nothing of his own
part in bringing about the happy termination. A letter from Hormisdas, however,
written to Dioscorus in December of the same year, expresses his thankfulness for
what God had done through him and his own intention of asking the emperor to bestow
on Dioscorus the bishopric of Alexandria as a reward for his labors. Jaffe, Regesta,
p. 107, 842. A "libellus pasnitentiae " or penitential code of the year 517 is printed in
Thiel, Epistolce, vol. I, p. 755.

1 The author of this second text places the expedition of Hormisdas to Ravenna
during the reign of Justin and connects it with the successful negotiations of 519. The
author of the first text places it under Anastasius as a part of the fruitless ventures of

515-517-

2 This episode is mentioned only in the Lib. Pont.

^ The reestablishment of the orthodox church in the Vandal kingdom of Africa
took place immediately on the death of Trasamond, May, 523. News of the event
must have reached Rome shortly before the death of Hormisdas in August of the same
year. The figure 74, given here for the duration of the term of Catholic persecution,

HORMISDAS, JOHN I

131

set with precious stones, from the king of the Franks, Cloduveus,
for a gift to blessed Peter, the apostle. ^

During his episcopate many gold and silver vessels came from
Greece, and the gospels with golden covers and precious stones,
which weighed 15 lbs. ; ^

* * * * * * * *3

These all were sent as a thank offering by Justin Augustus, the
orthodox.

* * * * * * * *4

He also was buried

in the church of blessed Peter,^

in the basilica of blessed Peter,
the apostle,

August 6, in the consulship of Maximus,
the younger (a.d. 523). |

And the bishopric was empty 6 days.

LV. John I (523-526)

John, by nationaHty a Tus-
can, son of Constantius, occu-
pied the see 2 years, 9 months

John, by nationality a Tus-
can, son of Constantius, occu-
pied the see 2 years, 9 months

should probably be 84. The latter would carry one back to 439> the year when Car-
thage was captured by Genseric and the clergy of the city were driven into exile. Du-
chesne, op. cit., p. 274, n. 22.

1 Clovis died in 5 1 1 , three years before the accession of Hormisdas. It is possible,
however, that there had been a delay in the transportation of his votive crown to Rome.

2 A letter has been preserved, sent in 521 by Hormisdas to Epiphanius, bishop of
Constantinople, to which is added a note in the pope's own handwriting. "We have
received the golden, jewelled chalice, the silver paten and a second silver chalice and
two curtains sent by your charity to serve in the ministry of the basilica of blessed
Peter." Jaffe, Regesta, p. 108, 858.

3 List of rich vessels and other objects.

* Lists of gifts from Theodoric and Hormisdas to the great basilicas. List of

ordinations.

5 His epitaph, written by his son Silverius, who himself became pope in 536, is
given by Duchesne ; op. cit., p. 274, n. 25. It ascribes to Hormisdas the credit not only
for the healing of the schisms at home and abroad but also for the restoration of the
Catholic church in Africa.

13^

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

and 15 days, from the consul-
ship of Maximus (a.d. 523) to
the consulship of Olybrius, the
younger (a.d. 526).

He was summoned by King
Theodoric to Ravenna and the
king commissioned him and sent
him on an embassy to Constan-
tinople to Justin, the emperor.
For Justin was a devout man and
in his great love for the Christian
religion he tried to root out
heretics.

With great fervor he dedi-
cated the churches of the Arians
to the catholic faith. ^

Therefore Theodoric, the
Arian, was angered and threat-
ened to put all Italy to the
sword.

Then John, the venerable
pope, set forth and journeyed
with weeping and lamentation
and certain devout men, ex-

and 16 days. He was bishop
from the consulship of Maximus
(a.d. 523) to the consulship of
Olybrius (a.d. 526), in the days
of Theodoric and of Justin
Augustus, the Christian. He was
summoned by King Theodoric
to Ravenna and the same king
commissioned him and sent him
on an embassy to Constanti-
nople to Justin, the orthodox
emperor. For at that time Jus-
tin, the emperor, a devout man,
in his ardent love for the Chris-
tian religion was trying to root
out the heretics.

With great fervor for Chris-
tianity he adopted a plan to
consecrate the churches of the
Arians as catholic. Hence the
heretic king, Theodoric, was
incensed, when he heard of it,
and threatened to destroy all
Italy with the sword.

Then John, the pope, ill with
infirmity, journeyed weeping,
and certain senators and ex-
consuls with him, namely The-

1 The Anonymous Chronicle of Valois, compiled apparently after the death of
Theodoric, tells practically the same story; viz. that Theodoric believed that "Justin
was afraid of him" and therefore he charged John to tell him "among other things not
to readmit to the catholic religion the heretics who had been reconciled." "And when
he came (to Constantinople) the emperor Justin met him as if he had been the blessed
Peter ; and when he had delivered his message the emperor promised to do everything,
except that he could never restore to the Arians those who had been reconciled and had
adopted the catholic faith." Ch. 88-93. Quoted by Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I,
p. 277, n. 2. The proscription of the Arians by Justin took place in 523. Theodoric
may have felt that this action was a menace to the safety of the Gothic tribes in Italy
and jeopardised the policy of general peace and toleration which he himself had labored
to enforce. On the Anon. Valesianus, see Mommsen, Chronica Minora, I.

JOHN I

'^33

consuls and patricians, went with
him, Theodorus, Importunus,
Agapitus and another Agapitus.

And they took this for the
message of their embassy, that
the churches of the heretics in the
dominions of Greece should be
returned to them and that if it
were not done

Justin Angus- King Theodoric
tus
would put all Italy to the sword.

When all the aforesaid en-
voys had arrived at Constanti-
nople with John, the pope, the
people came to meet them at the
1 2th milestone in honor of the
apostles, for from the days of the
blessed Silvester, the pope, in the
time of Constantine, they had
desired to be accounted worthy
to receive in Greece the vicar of
Saint Peter,

and Justin Augustus adored the
blessed John,

odorus, Importunus, Agapitus,
the exconsuls,^ and another
Agapitus, a patrician.

And they took this for their
message as ambassadors, that
the churches should be returned
to the heretics in the dominions
of the East and that otherwise
Theodoric would put all Italy
to the sword.

When they had journeyed
with John, the pope, the whole
city with candles and crosses
came to meet them at the 15 th
milestone in honor of the blessed
apostles, Peter and Paul, and
the ancients among the Greeks
bore witness, saying that in the
time of Constantine Greece had
been accounted worthy to re-
ceive the blessed Silvester,
bishop of the apostolic see, and
again in the time of Justin
Augustus it had received the
vicar of blessed Peter, the apos-
tle, with glory. 2 Then Justin
Augustus gave honor to God
and bowed himself to the ground

1 Flavius Theodorus was consul in 505, Importunus in 509, Agapitus in 517.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 277, n. 3.

2 As a matter of fact John I was the first pope to visit Constantinople. The refer-
ence to Sylvester in the first column of our text, taken from the Felician Epitome,
probably means that since the time of Sylvester, i.e. since the official recognition of
Christianity and the establishment of the state church at Constantinople, no such honor
had been paid to the Eastern capital. The author of the later version in the second
column has misunderstood the passage and interpreted it as a statement that Sylvester
himself had once been in Greece. The contemporary chronicle of Marcellinus says,

134

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Then the
emperor
granted the
requests

and he was crowned by his
hands.

Likewise
the emperor
granted all the
request of the
pope and the
noble senators,
exconsuls and
patricians of
the city of
Rome, Flavius
Theodorus,
who excelled
the other digni-

of the illus-
trious Theodo-
rus and of the
other nobles

and adored John, the most
blessed pope. At that time
blessed John, the pope, and the
aforesaid senators with many
tears besought of Justin Augus-
tus that their embassy might be
favored in his sight. And Pope
John and the senators, devout
men, obtained all their requests
and Italy was dehvered from
King Theodoric, the heretic.^
Moreover Justin, the emperor,
was filled with joy because he
had been accounted worthy to
behold the vicar of blessed Peter,
the apostle, during his hfetime
within his realm and Justin Au-
gustus was crowned gloriously
by the pope's hands.

At that time, when the afore-
said envoys, that is Pope John
and the senators,

Theodorus, the exconsul,

"He (John) was received with extraordinary honor ; he sat upon a throne on the right
side of the church and he celebrated the day of our Lord's resurrection with Roman
prayers in a loud voice." Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 51, p. 94i-

1 The Lib. Pont, does not mention the demand of Theodoric already cited, that
Justin should compel the converted Arians to return to their old faith. Supra, p. 132,
n. I. Justin did apparently consent to restore the confiscated Arian churches.

JOHN I

135

taries in splen-
dor and distinc-
tion, the illus-
trious Importu-
nus, also an
exconsul, the il-
lustrious Aga-
pitus, an excon-
sul, and the
other Agapitus,
the patrician,
and to save the
blood of the
Romans he re-
turned the
churches to the
heretics.

But while
this was taking
place in the
dominion of
Greece, in ac-
cordance with
the will of King
Theodoric, the
heretic, many
priests and

Christians were
being put to the
sword. Even
while King

Theodoric kept
the blessed
bishop John and
the other illus-
trious men so-
journing in

who came with
the blessed
pope John,

and to save the
blood of the
Romans he re-
turned the
churches of the
heretics to
them.

But while
King Theodoric
kept the bishop
John and the
other illustri-
ous men so-
journing at

Importunus, the exconsul,

Agapitus, the exconsul,

and Agapitus, the patrician, who
died at Thessalonica,

were kept sojourning at Constan-
tinople by King Theodoric, the
heretic.

136

LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Constantinople
he slew two
senators, ex-
consuls and pa-
tricians, Boe-
thius and Sym-
machus, with
the sword and
commanded
that their
bodies should
be concealed.'

Then when
everything had
been accom-
plished in due
order and Aga-
pitus, the patri-
cian, was dead
in Greece, the
aforesaid illus-
trious men with
John, the bish-
op, returned
and

were received by King Theodoric
craftily ; in great hatred he re-
ceived John, the bishop, and the
illustrious and devout senators
and in the heaviness of his wrath
he would have punished them
with the sword but he feared the

Constantinople
he slew two
senators, Boe-
thius and Sym-
machus, the
patrician, with
the sword and
commanded
that their
bodies should
be concealed.

Then Pope
John and the
aforesaid illus-
trious men
their return

he put to death two illustrious
senators and exconsuls, Sym-
machus and Boethius, slaying
them with the sword.

At that time the venerable
pope John and the senators re-
turned with glory, having ob-
tained all their requests of Justin
Augustus,

but King Theodoric, the heretic,
received them, that is Pope
John and the senators, with
craft and hatred and would
even have slain them with the
sword but he feared the indig-
nation of Justin Augustus.

1 The Anonymous Chronicle of Valois says that Boethius was strangled by Theod-
oric before the pope was sent to Constantinople but that Symmachus was put to death
in John's absence. "For the king feared that his grief for his father-in-law (Boethius)
might cause him to plot against the government and he accused him of crime and
ordered him to be executed." Ch. 92. A third chronicle of the time, Chronkon Cus-
pinianeum, arranges these events still differently. "In that year Theodoric slew
Symmachus and Boethius and died himself eighteen days later." Quoted by Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 277, n. 7.

JOHN I

137

indignation of Justin Augustus,
the orthodox, and did it not.

However, he confined them
all cruelly in prison, so that the
blessed pope John, worn by ill-
ness, gave up the ghost and died
in prison.^ He died at Ravenna
gloriously. May 18, in the prison
of King Theodoric. On the 98th
day after Bishop John had
died in prison, by the will of
omnipotent God, King Theodo-
ric suddenly

was struck
down by divine
power and
perished.^

was struck by a
thunderbolt
and perished.

However, he confined them
all miserably in prison, so that
the blessed John, bishop and
pope of the chief of sees, sick-
ened in prison and gave up the
ghost and died. He died a
martyr at Ravenna in prison.
May 18.^ Then it came to pass,
by the will of omnipotent God,
that on the 98th day after blessed
John died in prison King The-
odoric, the heretic, suddenly
perished.

This pope John rebuilt the cemetery of the blessed martyrs,
Nereus and Achilleus, on the Via Ardeatina ; * he likewise restored
the cemetery of Saints Felix and Adauctus ; ^ he likewise restored
the cemetery of Priscilla.^

1 The events here related all followed each other in rapid succession. At the end
of 525 or the opening of 526 Pope John was in Rome, conferring with Dionysius the
Less, over the celebration of the approaching Easter. Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 67, p. 517.
When that Easter came, April 19, he was in Constantinople. Supra, p. 133, n. 2. On
May 18 he died in confinement under Theodoric's displeasure. The king was in a
frame of mind that brooked no delays.

2 The author of the text in the second column calls John a martyr. The Anonymous
Chronicle of Valois tells how a man possessed by a devil was healed as the pope's
bier passed him in the street and how the senators and the populace thereupon tore
off fragments of the dead man's vestments to preserve as relics. Ch. 93. Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 277, n. 9.

^ Theodoric died on August 30, one hundred and four days after the pope.

* John restored the basilica of Santi Nereo ed Achilleo in the cemetery of Domitilla.
It is possible still to distinguish between the remains of the original basilica, built about
390 under Pope Siricius, and the renovations of John.

^ This cemetery was also known as the cemetery of Commodilla. It stood a little
to the east of the basilica of St. Paul, near the Via Ostiensis. Frothingham thinks that
John decorated with frescos the subterranean chapel recently unearthed there. Monu-
ments, pp. 73, 74, 279-281.

^ He probably restored the basilica of St. Sylvester, which stood over the catacomb
of Priscilla. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 277, n. 13.

138 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

:|c * * * * * * *1

His body was brought from Ravenna and buried in the basilica
of the blessed Peter, May 27, in the consulship of Olybrius (a.d.

526).^

And the bishopric was empty 58 days.

LVI. Felix IV (526-530)

Felix, by nationality a Samnite, son of Castorius, occupied the
see 4 years, 2 months and 13 days. He was bishop in the time of
King Theodoric and Justin Augustus, from the consulship of Ma-
burtius (a.d. 527) to the consulship of Lampadius and Horestes
(a.d. 530), from July 12 to October 12.^

He built the basihca of Saints Cosma and Damian in the city
of Rome, in the region which is called the Via Sacra, near the
temple of the city of Rome.^

1 Short list of gifts to Roman basilicas, contributed principally by Emperor Justin.
List of ordinations.

2 An epitaph copied from the ancient atrium of St. Peter, which perhaps marked
the tomb of John I, is given by Duchesne. Op. ciL, p. 278, n. 15. The seventh line

runs,

"Priest of the Lord, thou art fallen a victim for Christ."

3 The dates recorded here for the pontificate of Felix IV are not quite exact. The-
odoric died seven weeks after his installation and Justin a year later. Accordingly the
greater part of his term of office was passed under Athalaric and Justinian. Boniface
II was ordained September 22, 530, so that Felix must have died during the same month.
A calculation based upon the length of the pontificate as given in the first sentence of
our biography brings one to September 21 as the date of Felix' death. The Latin text
for this passage is " a die IV id. Jul. usque in IV id. Octub." It is possible that a copyist
may have repeated the "IV id." by mistake in the second phrase and that it originally
read "in X kal. Octub." Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 279, nn. i, 2. Mommsen
suggests that the inaccuracy in date, which is noticeable from time to time through this
part of the narrative and is explained by Duchesne as copyist's error or later inter-
polation, is due to the fact that the author is not a contemporary of the events he is
describing but is introducing dates at his own discretion into a narrative of an earlier
age. Mommsen, Lib. Pont., p. xvii.

* This is, of course, the church now known as Santi Cosma e Damiano. It was
originally a pagan hall, dedicated by Vespasian, restored by Severus and Caracalla
and employed as a storehouse for census reports and survey records. On its eastern
wall was set up the marble plan of Rome, of which fragments are now preserved in
the Capitoline Museum. Felix constructed an apse on this eastern end and adorned
it with a mosaic of Christ among the clouds, attended by saints and apostles, and in-
scribed the dedicatory verses which may be still read beneath it. The hall itself stood

FELIX IV

139

In his time the basihca of the holy martyr Saturninus on the
Via Salaria was burned with fire and he rebuilt it from its foun-
dation.^

He was ordained by order of
King Theodoric - and he died in
the time of King Athalacic, Octo-
ber 12.

He was ordained peaceably
and he lived to the time of
Athalaric.

* 3

He also was buried in the basilica of blessed Peter, the apostle,
October 15.^

And the bishopric was empty 3 days.

a little back from the Via Sacra, from which it was separated by a small, circular temple,
erected by Maxentius in honor of his son Romulus. Either Felix or some later builder
threw the new church and the round temple together, so that the latter served as a
vestibule for the former and gave it an entrance upon the Via Sacra. There is consider-
able uncertainty as to the edifice referred to here as the "temple of the city of Rome."
The Lib. Pont, relates of Pope Honorius that he covered the whole basilica of St. Peter
with bronze tiles taken by permission of the emperor Heraclius from the " temple which
is called the temple of Rome." Duchesne opines that the building thus denoted was
the civil basilica of Constantine, which stood near Felix' church. Frothingham and
others think it rather the temple of Venus and Rome. The cult of the Cilician martyrs,
Cosma and Damian, was especially popular at Rome at this period. Symmachus had
already built an oratory in their honor. Supra, p. 122. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 279,
n. 3. Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 73-74, 89-90. Gregorovius, History of Rome, tr.
Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 339-346.

1 A cemeterial basilica over the catacomb of Thrason on the Via Salaria. It has
long since disappeared. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 280, n. 4.

^ A letter has survived, written by Athalaric to the Roman senate, in which he
expresses his pleasure that they had so obediently elected the pope chosen for them
by his predecessor, Theodoric. He assures them that Theodoric, " although of a differ-
ent faith," had taken pains to select a pontiff who would be satisfactory to any upright
man. Cassiodorus, Varim, VIII, 15 ; tr. Hodgkin, Letters of Cassiodorus, pp. 360-361.

' List of ordinations.

* Duchesne {op. cit., p. 280, n. 7) gives his epitaph. The last four lines may be
translated as follows :

" For his humble piety he was preferred to many of the proud
And by singleness of heart he won a lofty place ;
He was bountiful to the poor, he comforted the wretched,
He increased the wealth of the apostolic see."

I40 LIBER PONTIFICALIS.

LVII. Boniface II (530-532)

Boniface, by nationality a Roman, son of Sigibuld,^ occupied
the see 2 years and 26 days. He was bishop in the time of King
Athalaric, the heretic, and of Justin ^ Augustus,

the cathohc.

He was ordained by one faction at the same time as Dioscorus.^
Dioscorus was ordained in the basiHca of Constantine and Boniface
in the basiHca of Juhus ; ^ and there was strife among the clergy
and in the senate for 28 days.^ At that time Dioscorus died, Octo-

1 The first Germanic name to appear in the lists of the popes or their forbears. A
consul of the year 437 was called Sigisbuld. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 282, n. 2.

^ This name should, of course, be Justinian.

3 For the previous career of Dioscorus see supra, p. 118, n. i and p. 127 etseq. The
history of this brief schism in the church has been recently illuminated by the discovery
in the chapter library at Novara of three documents now published by Duchesne. Op.
cit., p. 282, nn. 4 and 8. The first is a mandate addressed by Felix IV on his deathbed
to the bishops and clergy, the senate and people of Rome, announcing the selection
and ordination by himself of Boniface, the archdeacon, to succeed him in the govern-
ment of the church and bidding them all accept Boniface and avoid dissension on pain
of suspension from the communion of the Lord's body. FelLx, we may recollect, had
been an appointee of Theodoric and apparently wished to ensure the succession of a
pope who would continue to favor the Goths. Dioscorus, on the other hand, had more
connection with the Greek party in church and state. The second document is a general
order from the Roman senate to the clergy to refrain during the lifetime of a pope from
planning for the ordination of his successor. The edict is impartial in its phraseology
and applies equally to the partisans of Boniface and those of Dioscorus. The third
document is entitled, "The Paper Which the 60 Priests Presented to Pope Boniface
after the Death of Dioscorus." It is a formula of repudiation and anathematization
of Dioscorus, " who in opposition to the decree of your (Boniface's) predecessor. Pope
FelLx, of blessed memory, aspired to the bishopric of the Roman church." It contains
a confession of error in having espoused the cause of Dioscorus and a promise never
again to be guilty of such wickedness. It closes with a declaration that it is signed by
the offender's own hand. The copies of this instrument deposited by Boniface in the
Roman church were burned five or six years later by Pope Agapitus. Infra, p. 144.
It is interesting to observe that the emperor Justinian in 551 used the condemnation
of Dioscorus as a precedent to prove that it was lawful to anathematize the dead.

* The basilica of Constantine is, of course, San Giovanni in Laterano. Duchesne
thinks that the basilica of Julius is not Santa Maria in Trastevere, often known under
this title, but a hall in the Lateran palace which also bore the designation. Op. cit.,
p. 282, n. 5.

^ The number of the priests who adhered to Dioscorus was at least sixty, as may be
inferred from the title of the formula of repudiation described above. Supra,

BONIFACE II 141

ber 14. Then Boniface, full of ambition and guile, commanded
with much bitterness the clergy to return to him under bond of an
anathema in their own handwriting and the anathema in their
own hand he deposited in the archives of the church, as if for con-
demn? tion of Dioscorus ; and he gathered the clergy together.
Nevertheless no one subscribed to his episcopate,^ for the great
majority had been with Dioscorus.^

He gave the priests, deacons, subdeacons and notaries plates of
metal which were bequeathed to him ^ and succored the clergy with
lavish alms when in danger of famine. He held a synod in the
basilica of blessed Peter, the apostle,^ and made a decree that he
should ordain his own successor. This decree he ratified by the
signatures of the priests and an oath before the confession of the
apostle Peter and he appointed the deacon Vigihus. Then a second
synod of all the priests was held out of reverence for the holy see,
because the decree had been contrary to the canons and because
Boniface repented of his sin in that he wished to appoint his suc-
cessor ; and Pope Boniface confessed that he had been guilty of
sacrilege and

had confirmed |

the decree with his own signature in behalf of the deacon Vigilius
and before the confession of blessed Peter, the apostle, in the
presence of all the priests and clergy and senators he burned the
decree with fire.

At that time a communication came from the bishops of Africa

n. 3. At the synod of 499, which all the Roman priests would naturally have attended,
there were only sixty-seven present. It therefore seems clear that Dioscorus was the
favorite candidate with the great majority of the clergy, who disliked the domination
of the Goths. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 282, n. 6.

' This probably means that Boniface did not require the followers of Dioscorus to
sign the decree attesting his election, but satisfied himself with the form of recanta-
tion already described.

^ In 553 one of the members of the fifth ecumenical council at Constantinople alluded
to Dioscorus as pope and cleclared that the officials in Constantinople had been in com-
munion with him up to the time of his death. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 283, n. 10.

^ A letter of Gregory the Great mentions a silver plate or platter (scutella), which
had been bequeathed to a monastery. Gregory I, Epistolce II, 32 ; Migne, Pal. Lat.,
vol. 77, col. 569.

* The Lib. Pont, is the only source for the following events.

142 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

regarding their government, saying also that the bishop of Carthage
would in every act take counsel of the apostolic see.^

He (Boniface) also was buried in the basilica of blessed Peter,
the apostle,^

October i8, in the I October 17, in the
consulship of Lampa- consulship of Lampa-

dius and Orestes.^

dius.

on the 17 th day of
the month of October,
in the consulship of
Lampadius.

And the bishopric was empty 2 months and 15 days^

in the eleventh indiction. |

LVIII. John II (533-535)
John,
the younger, |

who was also called

Mercurius, | Martyrius,

by nationality a Roman, son of Projectus, from the Caelian Hill,"

1 The orthodox church of Africa had been given its freedom by the Vandal king Hil-
deric in 523. Supra, p. 130 and n. 3. For some years thereafter it was divided over
certain problems of reorganisation, two in particular, viz. : the character and extent
of the primacy of the see of Carthage and the relation of that see to the bishopric of
Rome. Duchesne, op. cit., pp. xli, 283, n. 13.

2 His epitaph is given by Duchesne. Its tone is different from that of our text.

. . . "The gentle shepherd reunited his divided flock,

Folding again his distressed sheep as the enemy fell ;
With meek heart he abated his anger against the suppliants
And overcame all wiles by the simplicity of his spirit."

It also records his aid to the city in a year of famine. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 283, n. 14.

^ Lampadius and Orestes were consuls in 530, the year of the death of Felix IV.
Supra, p. 13S. Through an error their names have been inserted in the text again here.

* The unusual length of this interregnum was apparently due to a series of scandal-
ous party intrigues and efforts to purchase the see by simony. A letter of King
Athalaric to John II speaks of these deplorable machinations and says that during their
course some of the sacred vessels were offered for public sale. The Roman senate
about this time issued a decree to the effect that any one who attempted to buy the
papacy by any kind of bribery should be considered guilty of sacrilege. Cassiodorus,
VaricE, IX, 15; tr. Hodgkin, Letters of Cassiodorus, pp. 398-400. Duchesne, op. cit.,
pp. 283-284, n. 16.

^ John was a priest of San Clemente on the Caelian Hill before his elevation to the
pontificate. A votive inscription still existing in the church of San Pietro in VincoH

JOHN II, AGAPITUS 143

occupied the see 2 years, 4 months and 6 days. He was bishop in
the time of King Athalaric ^ and Justinian Augustus,

the cathohc. |

In his time the emperor, a devout man and ardent lover of the
Christian rehgion, sent a statement of his faith, written in his own
hand, to the apostohc see by the bishops Epatius and Demetrius.^

-!• "I* *T? 'I* V •!* *(• ^ 3

He also was buried in the basilica of blessed Peter, the apostle,*
May 27, in the second consulship of Lampadius.^
And the bishopric was empty 6 days.

LIX. Agapitus (535-536)

Agapitus, by nationality a Roman, son of the priest Gordianus,
one of the clerg}^ of the church of Saints John and Paul,^ occupied
the see

gives the name of the reigning pope as John, surnamed Mercurius, "promoted from the
parish church of San Clemente to the pontifical glory." The present choir screen and
ambones at San Clemente, with their decorations in low relief, two columns and a
fragment of the epistyle of the ciborium are relics of the gifts of John to the basilica.
His monogram may be seen on the screen. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 285, n. i ;
Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 74-75.

1 Athalaric died in 534 and was succeeded by Theodatus or Theodahad, of whom
v/e shall hear more under the ensuing pontificates.

2 The disturbing problem of the dual nature of Christ had been raised again in the
East by a monkish party who inclined to the Nestorian view. Supra, p. 97, n. 5.
Justinian sent H>'patius and Demetrius, bishops of Ephesus and Philippi respectively,
with a letter to the pope setting forth his own position and asking to have it approved.
That letter, with the answer of the pope endorsing it, was published in the first chapter
of the first book of the Code of Justinian, issued in November 534. Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. 285, n. 3. Jaffe, Regesta, p. 113, 884, 8S5. For an account of Justinian's relations
with the church and the papacy see Cambridge Med. Hist., vol. II, pp. 43-49.

^ List of gifts from Justinian. List of ordinations.

* His epitaph is given by Duchesne, op. cit., p. 286, n. 4.

* These dates are both wrong. John II died May 8. May 27 was the date of the
burial of John I. The second consulship of Lampadius fell in 532. Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. 286, n. 5.

^ Gordianus signed his name to the proceedings of the Roman synod of 499 as
priest of Santi Giovanni e Paolo and lost his life in 501 during the disturbances of the
pontificate of Symmachus. His house stood near the church which he served and his
son Agapitus founded there a library of Greek and Latin theology. A dedicatory
inscription was painted upon the wall above the bookcases and the frescoed portraits

144 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

II months and i8 days. [ 8 months and lo days.

He, at the opening of his episcopate, assembled everyone into
a church and burned with fire the book of the anathema which
Boniface in anger and guile had extorted from the priests and
bishops contrary to the canons and in condemnation of Dioscorus,
and he absolved the whole church from the guilt of perfidy.^

He was sent by Theodatus, king of the Goths, on an embassy
to the lord emperor Justinian,^ because at that time the lord em-
peror Justinian was wroth against King Theodatus for killing
Queen Amalasuenta, daughter of King Theodoric, who had been
put under the protection of Justinian and who had made Theodatus
king.=^ Therefore Agapitus journeyed to Constantinople ; on April
22^ Agapitus, the bishop, entered Constantinople and was received
with glory.*^ And first he began a discussion with the most pious

of the church fathers. The inscription was copied in after years and may be found in
Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 288, n. i. Gregory I converted the house into a monas-
tery.

1 Supra, p. 140, n. 3 ; p. 141 . This episode is recorded only in the Lib. Pont.

2 Procopius does not mention the embassy of the pope to Constantinople but other
chroniclers of the period refer to it. In the Varia^ of Cassiodorus we hear that the pope,
whose revenues were scanty at this hard time, was forced to pawn sacred vessels in
order to raise the money for the expedition. Letters of Cassiodorus, tr. Hodgkin, pp.

510-511-

3 Amalasuntha was the mother of Athalaric and Theodahad was her consort. He

resented his wife's activity and energy and shut her up on an island in the lake of
Bolsena. When she appealed to Justinian he had her strangled.

* Another instance of the transference of dates, which occurs so frequently in this
part of the Lib. Pont. This date is given again below as the date of the death of Agapi-
tus. The latter passage is where it rightfully belongs.

5 "At this time Theodatus, king of the Goths, wrote to the pope and to the senate
at Rome and threatened to put not only the senators but also their wives and sons and
daughters to the sword, unless they should prevail with the emperor to recall from
Italy the army which he was sending against him ; and the pope for this reason under-
took the embassy and journeyed to Constantinople. First of all he received honorably
the men whom the emperor sent to him but refused to see Anthemius and would not
accept his salutation ; then he appeared before the prince and pled the cause of the
embassy which he had undertaken. But on account of the great expense to the treas-
ury ifisc) the emperor would not withdraw from Italy the army which he was sending
and he refused to heed the supplications of the pope." Liberatus, Breviarium, 21;
Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 68, col. 1039. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 114. Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. 288, n. 6. Liberatus describes the deposition of Anthemius by Agapitus on the
ground not only of unorthodoxy but also of irregular transference from another see.
Our own author passes over Agapitus' failure to deter the emperor from sending

AGAPITUS 145

prince and emperor, Lord Justinian Augustus, concerning the faith.
And the blessed bishop Agapitus set forth most steadfastly the
apostolic doctrine of the Lord Jesus Christ, God and man, that is
of two natures in one Christ. Then a contention arose but the Lord
aided Agapitus and he found the bishop of Constantinople, Anthe-
mius by name, to be a heretic.

And when the contention arose between Augustus and Agapitus,

the pope.

the emperor Justinian said to him : ''Either you agree with us or I
dispatch you into exile." Then the most blessed pope Agapitus
answered joyfully and said to the emperor : "I indeed am a sinner,
yet I have desired to come unto the most Christian emperor, Jus-
tinian ; now, however, I have found Diocletian ; nevertheless, I
fear not your threats." And Agapitus, the venerable pope, said
to him a second time: "Notwithstanding, that you may know
you are unworthy of the Christian faith, bid your bishop confess the
two natures in Christ." Then, by order of Augustus, the bishop of
Constantinople, Anthemius by name, was summoned and the argu-
ment was begun but in response to the questions of the blessed pope
Agapitus he refused to confess the catholic dogma of two natures
in one Lord Jesus Christ. And the holy pope Agapitus convicted
him of error and was glorified by all the Christians. Then the
most pious emperor Justinian rejoiced and prostrated himself
before the apostoHc see and adored the most blessed pope Agapitus.
And straightway he expelled Anthemius from the communion and
sent him into exile. Then the most pious emperor Justinian asked
of the most blessed pope Agapitus that he would consecrate in place
of Anthemius a catholic bishop, by name Menas.^

Furthermore Pope Agapitus obtained all that he had been sent
to request.^ But after some days he fell ill and died at Constanti-

Belisarius to Italy but makes much of his achievement in upholding orthodoxy and
ecclesiastical discipline in the Eastern capital.

1 The Vatican manuscript 4961 contains a copy of a "Book of Menas, priest and
head of the hospice, who was created bishop of Constantinople, March 13, after the
second consulship of the distinguished Paulinus, the younger (536)." Duchesne, op.
cit., p. 289, n. 8.

2 As we have already remarked, Agapitus failed entirely to secure what Theodahad
and the Romans expected of him.

146 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

nople, April 22.^ And his body was carried in a leaden coffin
to Rome, I

to the basihca of blessed Peter, the apostle, where it was buried,
September 20.^

* * * * * * * *s

And the bishopric was empty i month and 28 days.

LX. SiLVERIUS (536-537)

Silverius, by nationality a Campanian, son of Hormisdas, bishop
of Rome,^ occupied the see i year, 5 months and 11 days. He was
appointed bishop by the tyrant Theodatus without discussion of
the appointment. For Theodatus had been corrupted by bribes
and he terrified the clergy so that they beHeved that whoever did
not support the ordination of Silverius would suffer by the sword.
Accordingly the priests did not accept him in the ancient way and
confirm his appointment before his ordination; but after he had
been ordained by force of fear, then for the sake of the unity of the
church and of the faith, when the ordination was ended, the priests
accepted Silverius.^

But after 2 months the tyrant Theodatus perished by the will
of God and King Witiges reigned.^ Then Witiges journeyed to

1 Before Agapitus' death he appointed Pelagius, his deacon, as legate to represent
the Roman church at the imperial court. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 289, n. 10. This
Pelagius figures again later. Injra, p. 159 ct scq.

2 His epitaph has been lost.
^ List of ordinations.

* Supra, p. 131, n. 5.

5 These details as to the manner of Silverius' elevation are found only in the Lib.
Pont. Liberatus in his Brcvarium (ch. 22) tells us merely that the city of Rome chose
Silverius, a subdeacon and son of the former pope Hormisdas, to be ordained in Agapi-
tus' stead. It is curious, however, that the choice should have fallen upon one so
low in rank as a subdeacon if there were no pressure from outside in favor of Silverius,
and it is not unlikely that Theodahad, who determined the fate of Pope Agapitus,
insisted now on placing his own candidate in the papal chair, as Theodoric had done in
the case of FelLx IV after the death of John I. Supra, p. 1 39. The tone of our narrative,
together with the imputation of simony, indicates some resentment on the part of the
Roman clergy against the Gothic interference. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 293, n. 2.

« Silverius was ordained June 8, 536. The revolt of the Gothic armies, which set
Vitiges upon the throne, took place probably early in August.

SILVERIUS 147

Ravenna and by violence took the daughter of Queen Amalasuenta
to be his wife. But thereupon the lord emperor, Justinian Augustus,
being angry because Theodatus had murdered the queen who had
been put under his protection, sent Vilisarius,^ the patrician, with
an arm.y to free all Italy from the bondage of the Goths. And the
aforesaid patrician came into Sicily and abode
there

some time.

Then he heard that the Goths had chosen them a king contrary
to the will of Lord Justinian Augustus and he marched into Cam-
pania toward the city of Naples and began to besiege the city with
his army, because the citizens of Naples refused to open to him.^
At that time the patrician fought against the city and entered it ;
and in his fury he slew both the Goths and all the inhabitants of
Naples and sacked it and spared not even the churches from the
sack. He killed husbands with the sword in the presence of their
wives and he put to death the captive sons and wives of the nobles ;
he spared none, neither priests nor servants of God nor consecrated

virgins.^

Then there was a terrible war, for Witiges marched against the
patrician Vihsarius and against the city of Rome. For the patri-
cian Vilisarius entered the city of Rome, December 10, and he sur-
rounded the city with guards and fortifications and walls and
repaired the trenches and strengthened it. The very night when
the patrician Vilisarius entered, the Goths who were in the city or
outside the walls fled and left all the gates open and escaped to
Ravenna.^ Then King Witiges collected a vast army of the Goths

1 A form, of course, of the well-known name Belisarius. It is also spelt Velisarius,
Bisilarius, etc., in the manuscripts. For Justinian's determination to avenge the death
of Amalasuntha see supra, p. 144. On Belisarius' relations with the Romans see
Gregorovius, History of Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 363-450.

2 The order of events here is uncertain. Procopius and the continuator of the
Chronicle of MarceUiniis describe the siege of Naples before the accession of Vitiges.
Jordanes does the same in the Romana but in the Gctica he keeps the order of the Lib.
Pont. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 293, n. 5.

^ Procopius says that the Massagetae, who fought in the army of Belisarius, were
chiefly guilty of the loot and sacrilege, that they cut down even the inhabitants who
fled to the churches for shelter and that Belisarius went up and down the city restrain-
ing them. De Bella Gothico, I, 11 ; ed. Haury, vol. II, pp. 58-62.

^ Procopius says that Belisarius entered Rome by the gate called Asinaria on the

148 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

and marched back against Rome, February 21, and pitched his
camp by the Molbian bridge ^ and began to besiege the city of
Rome. And the patrician ViHsarius, who defended the Roman
name, shut himself up within the city

and kept the city. |

In those days the city was besieged so that no man might go
out or come in. And all the buildings, private and imperial and
ecclesiastic, were consumed by fire and men died by the sword ;
some perished by the sword, some by famine and some by pesti-
lence.^ Likewise the churches and the bodies of the holy martyrs
were destroyed by the Goths.^ Within the city there was a great
famine, so that water would have been sold for a price if the springs
had not furnished deliverance.^ And the battles were fierce about
the city. In those days the patrician Vihsarius fought against King
Witiges and the host of the Goths and defended the Romans and
with his army saved the city and the Roman name. Then the city
and the harbor of Rome were besieged one year by the Goths.''
But the patrician Vilisarius fought and conquered the Goths and
at last, after one year, the Goths fled to Ravenna.

same day that the Goths marched out by the Flaminian Gate. De Bella Gothico, I,
14; p. 77.

1 The Mulvian bridge.

2 Rome had suffered in the fifth century from barbarian invasions but without losing
much of the outer semblance of her grandeur. With this terrible siege begins the real
destruction of her orderliness and beauty, the transformation of the splendid capital
of the ancient world into the scarred, crumbling, poverty-stricken, medieval city of the
popes. Lanciani, Destruction of Ancient Rome, pp. 70-71, 79-87. Frothingham,
Monuments, pp. 76-85. Gregorovius, History of Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. II, passim.

' Duchesne prints selections from inscriptions taken from martyrs' tombs and
cemeteries along the Via Salaria, where the Gothic assaults were heaviest, recording
the restoration of sacred monuments wrecked or damaged by the enemy. In one or
two cases remains have been found both of the original epitaphs shattered by the Gothic
soldiers and of the sixth century reproductions of the originals erected to fill the empty
places. Op. cit., pp. 293-294, n. 11.

* Procopius tells us that the aqueducts, which ordinarily gave the city its abundant
supply of water, were cut by the invaders but that the springs within the walls together
with the stream of the Tiber furnished enough for the reduced population. De Bello
Gothico, I, 19, ed. Haury, vol. II, pp. 96-100. Lanciani, Destruction of Ancient Rome,
pp. 79-82.

^ According to Procopius the siege lasted one year and nine days and ended just
before the vernal equinox of 538. De Bello Gothico, II, 10, ed. Haury, vol. II, p. 192.

SILVERIUS 149

At that time there was a heavy famine throughout the whole
world, as Datius, bishop of the city of Milan, has related fully in
his report, so that in Liguria women ate their own children for
hunger and want ; some of them, he has said, were of the family
of his own church.^

At that time the patrician Vilisarius went to Naples and set it in
order and afterwards came to Rome.^ And he was received gra-
ciously by Lord Silverius ; ^ and the patrician Vilisarius removed
to the Pincian palace. May 11,^ in the 15th indiction. At that
time Vigilius, the deacon, was delegate to Constantinople. And

1 Procopius speaks of the desolating famine that fell upon Italy in 538 and of
instances of cannibalism due to starvation. De Bella Gothico, II, 20, ed. Haury, vol. II,
pp. 236-239. He also says that Datius, bishop of Milan, and some of the leading citi-
zens of the city came to Rome during that year to ask of Belisarius a small force of
soldiers, with whose aid they proposed to reestablish the imperial government in the
province of Liguria and to drive out the Goths. During his stay at Rome Datius may
have reported on the famine in his diocese. Belisarius furnished the desired support,
but in spite of it the Goths took and sacked Milan the following year. Datius es-
caped and fled to Constantinople, where he died in 552. The Varice of Cassiodorus
contain a letter, written by himself as pretorian prefect to Datius between 534 and 539,
regarding the opening of granaries for the relief of famine sufferers. Procopius, ibid.,
II, 7; pp. 180-185. Letters of Cassiodorus, tr. Hodgkin, pp. 521-522.

2 With this sentence, in the judgment of Duchesne, begins a later account by a new
writer of the deposition of Pope Silverius, which took place in 537, before the Gothic
siege was over. Up to this point, in his opinion, the narrative has been that of a con-
temporary, as were the lives of the popes inmiediately preceding. It is vivid and, on
the whole, accurate, mentioning often details which are given by no other history
and showing intense party spirit in the references to the conflicts between the Gothic
and imperial parties. It is hostile to Silverius as the creature of Theodahad and is
interested less in strictly ecclesiastical questions than in the military and pohtical
situation. This narrative now ceases abruptly and the history of the pope is continued
by another and more sympathetic biographer to whom the recital of his cruel mis-
fortunes seems more important than that of the fall of cities. The first sentence in this
second narrative merely recounts again the events already more fully described, the
capture of Naples and the coming of Belisarius to Rome. Duchesne, op. cit., pp.
xxxix-xl, 294, n. 15. Mommsen, of course, is convinced that our seventh century
author has simply been making use of two different sources and pieces the two to-
gether here. Lib. Pont., p. xvii.

3 Procopius tells us that Silverius persuaded the Romans to open their gates to
Belisarius. De Bella Gothico, I, 14; pp. 75-76.

* Another instance of an interpolated date. Belisarius fixed his headquarters at
the Pincian palace immediately on his entry into Rome toward the close of 536. Possi-
bly the name of the month here has been changed by a clerical error from March to
May and the date is really that of Silverius' deposition. Vigilius was ordained March
29, 537. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 294, n. 17.

ISO LIBER PONTIFIC.^IS

the empress was vexed for the patriarch Anthemius, because he had
been deposed by the most holy pope Agapitus, who had found him
to be a heretic and had appointed Menas, the servant of God, in
his stead. ^ So Augustus took counsel with Vigilius, the deacon,
and sent a letter to Rome to Pope Silverius with the request :
"Be not slow to come to us or else fail not to restore Anthemius
to his place." ^ And when the blessed Silverius read the letter he
groaned and said : "Now I know that this affair has put an end to
my life." But the most blessed Silverius had trust in God and in
blessed Peter, the apostle, and he wrote to the empress: "Lady
Augusta, I will never do this thing, to recall a heretic condemned
in his iniquity."

Then Augusta was wroth and she sent instructions to Vilisarius,
the patrician, by Vigilius, the deacon,

as follows : |

"Find some occasion to accuse Pope Silverius and depose him
from the bishopric or else send him surely and speedily to us.
See, you have with you Vigilius, the archdeacon and legate, our
well beloved, who has promised us to restore the patriarch Anthe-
mius." And Vilisarius, the patrician, received the instructions
and said: "I forsooth will perform these instructions; but as for
him who brings about the overthrow of Pope Silverius he shall

' The intrigue of Theodora, by means of which Silverius was deposed, is described
by Liberatus even more minutely than it is here. Liberatus says : "Augusta summoned
Vigilius, deacon of Agapitus, and asked him secretly to promise her that if he were
made pope he would annul the synod of Chalcedon, where the dual nature of Christ
had been maintained, and would write to Theodosius, Anthemius and Severus and in
his letters approve their faith, and she offered to give him an order to Belisarius to make
him pope and to bestow on him seven hundred thousand sesterces. So Vigilius gladly
gave his promise, desiring the bishopric and the gold, and after making his pledge he
went to Rome ; but when he arrived there he found that Silverius had been ordained
pope. Also he found Belisarius at Ravenna (this should be Naples), besieging and
capturing the city, and he delivered to him the command of Augusta and promised
to give him two hundred thousand sesterces of gold if he would remove Silverius and
ordain him (Vigilius) instead." Breviariiim, 22; Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 68, col. 1039.
Quoted by Duchesne, op. cit., p. 294, n. 18.

^ Liberatus says nothing of any correspondence between Byzantium and Silverius.
He rather gives the impression that Theodora ignored Silverius and his ordination
altogether but adds that Belisarius and his wife tried to persuade Silverius to do what
the empress demanded, implying that she cared little who was pope so long as Anthe-
mius was reinstated. Breviariiim, 22; Migne, ibid., col. 1040.

SILVERIUS 151

render an accotint of his deeds to our Lord Jesus Christ." ^ And
certain false witnesses, encouraged by these instructions, came
forward and said: "We have found Pope Silverius sending letters
to the king of the Goths, saying : ' Come to the gate which is
called the Asinaria, near the Lateran, and I will deliver to you the
city and Vilisarius, the patrician.'" And Vilisarius, the patrician,
heard this and did not believe it ; for he knew that it was spoken out
of malice. Nevertheless, since many persisted in that same accu-
sation, he was afraid.

Then he bade Pope Silverius come to him in the Pincian palace
and he had all the clergy wait at the first and second portals.^
And Silverius went alone with Vigilius into the mausoleum and
Antonina, the patrician, was lying upon a couch and Vilisarius, the
patrician, was sitting at her feet. And when Antonina,

the patrician, ]

saw him she said to him: "Tell us, Lord Pope Silverius, what we
have done to you and to the Romans that you should wish to be-
tray us into the hands of the Goths." While she was yet speaking
John, the subdeacon of the first district, took the pallium from his
neck and carried it into an inner chamber and stripped him of his
vestments and put on him a monk's robe and led him into hiding.
Then Xystus, the subdeacon of the sixth district, when he saw him
as a monk, went outside and proclaimed to the clergy that the lord
pope had been deposed and had become a monk. And when
they heard it they all fled. But Vigihus, the archdeacon, took

1 The Lib. Pont, represents Belisarius as feeling more compunction than Liberatus
ascribes to him. The latter says: "Belisarius returned to Rome and summoned
Silverius to the palace and accused him calumniously on the ground that he had written
to the Goths that they might enter Rome. And it was reported that one Marcus, a
clerk, and one Julianus, a pretorian, had composed fraudulent letters under the name of
Silverius and addressed them to the king of the Goths, by means of which Silverius was
convicted of the intention to betray the city of Rome." Brcviarium, 22; Migne, ibid.
Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 116.

^ Liberatus says that Silverius first took refuge in the basilica of Santa Sabina
but that Photius, son of Antonina, prevailed upon him to come to the palace, pledging
his safety by an oath. Silverius' companions urged him "not to believe the oaths of
the Greeks" but he went and returned safely that day. Again Belisarius commanded
him to appear and he prayed and committed his cause to the Lord and went and was
never seen again by his friends. The scene inside the palace is described only in the
Lib. Pont. Breviarium, 22; Isilignt, ibid.

152 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Silverius as if in his own charge, and sent him into exile to Pontias
and fed him with the bread of tribulation and the water of bitter-
ness. And he fell ill and died a confessor.^ And he was buried
in that place, June 20, and a multitude of those who were diseased
came to his sepulchre and were healed.^

*j5 ?|* *|» *|* ?|* *^ *^ ^^ ^

And the bishopric was empty .^

^ The Lib. Pont, omits here some interesting details of Silverius' latter days. He
was sent first into exile not to Ponza, where he was in the power of Vigilius, but to
Patara, a city of Lycia. The bishop of Patara took up his cause and went himself to
the emperor, declaring that it was wrong to expel the bishop of the mighty Roman see,
" that there were many kings in the world but not one who was unique like the pope,
who ruled the church of all the world and had been driven from his see." The emperor
was moved by this argument and ordered a fresh trial and a reexamination of the forged
letters. Silverius was brought back to Italy, but before the trial could be held Vigilius,
in dread of losing his position, sent word to Belisarius : "Deliver Silverius to me;
otherwise I cannot perform what you expect of me." So Silverius was turned over to
the guards of Vigilius, who transported him to the island of "Palmaria," where he
died of starvation. Thus Liberatus. Breviarium, 22; Migne, ibid. Procopius in his
Secret History says that Antonina, wife of Belisarius, the pliant tool of Theodora, was
instrumental in bringing about Silverius' death before he could be tried a second time.
Ch. I; ed. Dindorf, pp. 13-16. The guilt seems to rest partly upon her and partly
upon Vigilius. The islands of Pontiae, now called Ponza, are in the Tuscan Sea. One
of the group is named Palmaria. Duchesne, o/>. c//., p. 295, nn. 21, 22.

^ The remains of Silverius were never moved from Palmaria. No other notice of
veneration paid to him at Rome is known to exist earlier than the martyrology of
Peter de Natalibus, which was drawn up in 1371. For the reference cf. Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 29s, n. 23.

^ List of ordinations.

* There was perhaps some doubt in the mind of our author as to the time when
Silverius' pontificate ended, whether with his deposition or with his death. Therefore
he does not give, as is usually the case, the exact duration of the vacancy in the papal
see.

It may be urged by some historians that, if the translation of the Liber Pontifi-
calis is to be broken at all, the break should occur here. See first note on the
following page. Since, however, the question of the sources for the following
pontificates is at best obscure, it seems better for practical purposes to carry the text
through to the pontificate of Gregory I, as that important date in papal history is sa
close at hand. [Ed.]

VIGILIUS 153

LXI. ViGiLius (537-555)

Vigilius,^ by nationality a Roman, son of John, the consul,^
occupied the see 17 years, 6 months and 26 days. At that time
Vilisarius, the patrician, made war on Witiges, king of the Goths.
And the king fled by night and John, the master of the soldiery,
who was surnamed the Bloody, pursued after him and he seized
him and brought him to Vilisarius and to Vigilius at Rome.^ Then
they pledged him their oaths in the basihca of Julius that they
would conduct him safely to the emperor Justinian.'* And when
they had brought him to Constantinople the emperor rejoiced and
created him patrician and count and sent him into the borders of

* Duchesne believes that with the biography of Silverius we come to the end of the
first recension of the Lib. Pont., and that with Vigihus we begin the first continuation.
At a casual glance the account of Vigilius seems as likely to be contemporary work as
that of Silverius. On examination, however, it is found to be full of inaccuracies and
mistakes. For example, the two occupations of Rome by Totila in 546 and 549 are
treated as one. The defeat of the Vandals by Belisarius in 533-534 is confused with
the suppression of the revolt of Guntarith in 547. Other errors are pointed out in the
notes. The lives of Pelagius I and John III contain further slips. In the latter the two
Prankish expeditions of 552 and 562 are combined into one. Duchesne argues that the
author of the four biographies after Silverius did not write earlier than the time of
Pelagius II. Lib. Pont., vol. I, pp. ccxxxi-ccxxxii. Mommsen rejoins that the style
of all the sixth century lives is too barbarous to have been employed by a church
official of the age of Theodoric and that the inaccuracies in the first portion, while not
so numerous as those in the second, are frequent enough to make it improbable that
they were the work of a contemporary. Lib. Pont., p. xvii.

2 The father of Vigilius may have been an honorary or codicillary consul. There
are no consuls for the West listed in the Fasti by the name of John during this period.
Vigilius' brother, Reparatus, was among the Roman hostages sent to Ravenna by
Vitiges in 536 and barely escaped death when in the following year Vitiges dispatched
orders to Ravenna to have the hostages massacred. Procopius, Liberatus and Mar-
cellinus all state that Vigilius was ordained pope through the influence of Belisarius.
Duchesne, op. cit., p. 299, n. i. Jaffe, Regesta, p. 117.

3 The text is faulty in the part it assigns to John, "magister militum." He had
been fighting in the North and was pushing down at this time toward Ravenna.
His advance forced Vitiges to withdraw his army from the attack on Rome and
fall back to protect Ravenna. He surrendered there in 539 to Belisarius, not to
John.

* There is no other record of this interview. It is possible that Belisarius brought
Vitiges to Rome and took ship at Porto for the East. The basilica of Julia is un-
doubtedly the great hall of the Lateran palace, used for state receptions and other
ceremonies. Supra, p. 140 and n. 4. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 300, n. 3.

154 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Persia, where he died.^ The emperor also asked Vilisarius how he
himself fared with the Romans and how he had set Vigihus in the
place of Silverius. Then the emperor and Augusta thanked
Vilisarius and conferred authority upon him and sent him back
into Africa

against Gundarit, king of the
Vandals, that he might do in
Africa what he had done in
Italy.2

And Vihsarius went into Africa under pretext of peace and
slew Guintarit, king of the Vandals, and brought Africa into sub-
mission to the empire. Then Vilisarius, the patrician, came to
Rome and offered to blessed Peter, the apostle, by the hand of
Pope Vigihus out of the spoils of the Vandals a golden cross, set
with jewels, weighing loo lbs.,

inscribed with | on which he inscribed

his victories,^ and 2 large, gilded,
silver |

candelabra, which stand to this day before the body of blessed Peter,
the apostle. He gave likewise many other gifts and alms to the
poor. For Vihsarius, the patrician, built a hospice on the Via
Lata * and on the Via Flaminia, near the town of Hortas, he estab-
lished a monastery of Saint Juvenal, which he endowed with lands
and many gifts.^

1 Procopius does not say that Vitiges was sent to Persia but that Belisarius was
commissioned to carry on the Persian war. De Bello Gothico, III, i ; ed. Haury, vol.
II, p. 297.

2 Our author here confuses Belisarius' expedition against the Vandals in 533 with
the suppression of the revolt of Guntarith by Artabanes in 547. Belisarius at this time
was in Italy, defending Rome against the assault of Totila. Guntarith was assassi-
nated by order of Artabanes.

3 Belisarius' cross is mentioned again in the life of Stephen V. It was saved from
the sack of the papal residence in 885. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 300, n. 6.

* The church of Santa Maria di Trevi, near the fountain of Trevi, was known in the
Middle Ages as Santa Maria in Xenodochio, because it adjoined the hospice of Belisa-
rius. A tablet, bearing an early inscription referring to the hospice, may still be seen
embedded in the outer wall of the church. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 300, n. 7.

5 St. Juvenal was the first bishop of Narni, a town eight miles from Hortse or Orta.
There was a church of St. Juvenal in Orta as late as the sixteenth century. Duchesne,
op. cit., p. 300, n. 8.

VIGILIUS 155

Then Theodora Augusta wrote to Pope Vigilius : "Come, ful-
fill for us what you promised of your

own

freewill concerning our father Anthemius and restore him to his

office." '

But Vigilius replied: "Far be this from me, Lady Augusta.
I spoke beforetime wrongly and foohshly; now I do assuredly
refuse to restore a man who is a heretic and under the anathema.
Although unworthy, I am the vicar of blessed Peter, the apostle,
as were my predecessors, the most holy Agapitus and Silverius,
who condemned him."

Then the Romans brought

an accusation I their accusations

against Vigihus, because he had advised the deposition of the blessed
pope Silverius : "We accuse him to your Hohness for he has done
ill to your servants, the Romans, and to their people. We declare
him to be a murderer, for he abandoned himself to rage and struck
his notary a blow which felled him straightway to his feet where he
died. Also he gave his niece, Vigiha, to the consul Asterius, son
of a widow woman; then, making an occasion, he had Asterius

1 Our author has probably misrepresented the demand made upon Vigilius by the
Monophysite party at the imperial court. It is true that through their influence
Vigilius had secured his office and that they undoubtedly expected of him some return
in the way of endorsement of their peculiar views of the nature of Christ and of dis-
paragement, if not denunciation, of the Council of Chalcedon and the Tome of Leo.
Supra, p. 98, n. I ; p. 106, n. 2. That they required the reinstatement of Anthemius
seems unlikely. His condemnation by Agapitus had been ratified by a synod held at
Constantinople in 536 and by an edict of Justinian. Menas, who held the bishopric,
was in high favor with the emperor. Supra, p. 145- Jaffe gives a letter purporting to
have been written by Vigilius to Anthemius and other bishops of the heterodox party,
professing his secret agreement with them but asserting the necessity of keeping the
fact hidden, "so that I may more readily perform and achieve the things which I
have undertaken." A declaration of faith, however, drawn up at about the same
time, perhaps to satisfy suspicion at Rome, and letters to Justinian and Menas all
explicitly and solemnly protest the pope's orthodoxy and loyalty to the acts of his
predecessors and the Council of Chalcedon. Regesta, p. 118, 908, 909, 910, 911.
Unless Vigilius be regarded as an absolutely unscrupulous doubledealer, the letter to
Anthemius must be classed as a forgery. It might easily have been concocted by some
of his opponents who desired to avenge his treatment of Silverius. Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. 300, n. 9.

156 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

seized by night and beaten until he died." ^ And when Augusta
heard this she sent Anthemius, the scribe, with orders and great
authority to Rome, saying: "If you find him in the basiHca of
Saint Peter, let him go. But if you find VigiHus in the Lateran or
in the palace or in any other church, set him immediately upon a
ship and bring him to us. Else, by Him who Kveth forever, I will
have you flayed." ^ And Anthemius, the scribe, came to Rome and
found Vigihus in the church of Saint CeciHa, November 22; for
it was her birthday ; ^ and Anthemius took him while he was dis-
tributing gifts to the people and brought him down to the Tiber
and set him on a ship. The people and the multitude followed him,
calHng out that they would have a prayer from him. And when
he had spoken a prayer, all the people

said: | answered:

"Amen"; and the ship began to move. The Romans saw that
the ship in which Vigilius was seated had begun to move and
then the people commenced to throw stones after him and sticks
and dirty vessels and to cry out: "Your hunger go with you!
Your pestilence go with you ! ^ You have done evil to the Romans ;
may you find evil where you go !" Yet some who loved him fol-
lowed him from the church.

And when he reached Sicily and the city of Catania, he was
allowed to hold an ordination of priests and deacons in the month
of December. Of these he sent back to Rome Amphatus, the
priest and his vicar, and Valentinus, bishop of Saints Rufina and
Secunda, to guard the Lateran and preside over the clergy.^ Then

1 There is no other account of the accusation i^ainst Vigilius and we know nothing
of the incidents herein mentioned.

2 The circumstances of Vigilius' departure from Rome are described nowhere else.
Other historians say simply that he was summoned by the emperor and forcibly com-
pelled to go. Only one adds that all Rome drove him out by public acclamation.
Facundus, Defensio Trium Capitum, IV, 3 ; Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 67, col. 624.

3 November 22 is the day of the festival of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. The
gifts, "munera," here noted Duchesne understands to be the eucharistic wafers. Op.
cit., p. 300, nn. 12 and 13.

* Vigilius left Rome in 544 or 545. At that time Totila had already begun to
reduce the city by cutting off supplies. In 543 a severe pestilence had swept over the
disordered country. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 300, n. 14. Jaffe, Regesta, p. 119.

5 The word here translated vicar is " vicedominus" or " vidame," later a feudal title.
Ducange, Glossarium, Vicedominus. The basilica of Sante Rufina e Seconda stood

VIGILIUS 157

he bade them all farewell and arrived at Constantinople on the
vigils of our Lord Jesus Christ. The emperor came to meet him
and they kissed each other and began to weep. And the people
sang psalm.s before him to the church of Saint Sophia: "Lo he
Cometh, the Lord, the Lord," etc. Then for two years there were
dissensions over Anthemius, the patriarch, how Vigilius had
promised and had pledged with his hand to restore him to his place.^
But Vigilius would not yield to them but preferred to die virtu-
ously than to live. And Pope Vigilius said: "I perceive that it
was not the devout princes, Justinian and Theodora, who sum-
moned me to them ; rather I know to-day that I have met Dio-
cletian and Eleutheria.^ Do with me as you will ; I am receiving

formerly on the Via Cornelia, not far from the Vatican. The foundation was laid by
Pope Julius I and the building was completed, if tradition be correct, by Pope Damasus.
Procopius gives us further information regarding the journey of Vigilius' envoys back
to Rome. They embarked with a convoy of vessels filled with food for the relief of the
suffering population of the city but at the entrance to the Tiber the fleet was captured
by the Goths and the bishop Valentinus was brought before Totila for examination.
The king for some reason suspected that the bishop was answering his questions falsely
and cut off both his hands. De Bello Gothico, III, 15 ; ed. Haury, vol. II, pp. 360-361.
In 554, when Vigilius left Constantinople, the archdeacon Pelagius seems to have been
performing the functions of the head of the church. Infra, p. 159.

'As has been said before {supra, p. 155, n. i), the struggle was not to induce
Vigilius to restore Anthemius but to effect a compromise with the Monophysite party
in general. Justinian had already yielded to them and to the empress so far as to issue
an edict denouncing three Nestorian writers, Theodore of Mopsuestia, Theodoret and
Ibas, who the Monophysites claimed had received the tacit approval of the Council of
Chalcedon. Justinian took the step in the hope of thereby prevailing upon the party
to accept the decrees of the council and of restoring harmony to the church. The edict
was accepted, though reluctantly, by most of the orthodox Eastern bishops but met
with determined resistance in the West, where any concession to Eutychianism was
regarded as direct heresy. Vigilius was commanded in Constantinople to give the edict
his approval. He resisted stubbornly for a while, knowing that such an act would
ruin his position at Rome. But at length, in 548, he issued a document, commonly
called the Judicatum, anathematizing the three Nestorians but stoutly maintaining his
adherence to the Council of Chalcedon. Jaffe, Regesta, p. 121, 922. He was not
allowed to return home but was detained in the East until the meeting of the council
convened at his suggestion by Justinian in 533. Jaffe, Regesta, p. 121. The council
supported the emperor and found Vigilius' position unsatisfactory. His banishment
apparently was the result of his appearance before it. Jaffe, ibid., p. 123, 935. The
controversy over the condemnation of the three Nestorian writers is known as that
of the Three Chapters. It brought about a new schism between East and West, which
lasted seventy years.

2 The words are copied from the biography of Pope Agapitus. Supra, p. 145. It is
not known that Diocletian had a wife Eleutheria.

158 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

the reward of my deeds." Thereupon one struck him in the face,
saying : "Murderer, do you not know to whom you speak? do you
not know that you slew Pope Silverius and killed the son of a widow
woman with kicks and blows?" Then he fled to the basilica of
Saint Euphemia and laid hold of

a column I a horn

of the altar.^ But he was dragged away from it and cast outside
the church and a rope was put about his neck and they haled him
through all the city until evening and then thrust him into prison
and gave him a Httle bread and water. And the Roman clergy
who were with him were sent into exile to work in different
mines.

At that time the Goths chose for their king Badua, who was
called Totila.^ He descended upon Rome and besieged it; and
there was a famine in the city of Rome so that the people ate their
own children. And one day he made an entrance into Rome by
the gate of St. Paul, in the 13th indiction.^ All night long he had
the trumpet blown until every inhabitant fled or concealed himself
in the churches, for fear that the Romans would perish by the
sword. But the king dwelt with the Romans as a father with his
sons. Then some of the senators, Citheus, Albinus and Basilius,
patricians and exconsuls, went to Constantinople and appeared
before the emperor in their distress and desolation.^ And the

1 This account of the maltreatment of Vigilius is partly legendary. The actual
facts are given in some detail in an encyclical letter written by himself in 552 relating
his sufferings. Mansi, Amplissima CollecHo, vol. IX, p. 50. Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 69,
col. 53. It is true that Vigilius was dragged from an altar but the incident occurred in
the church of St. Peter in Hormisda in Constantinople. Later he fled for refuge to the
church of St. Euphemia in Chalcedon.

2 Totila had become king before the departure of Vigilius. He is called Badua
and Baduila in other chronicles. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 301, n. 24.

' Our author here confounds the two sieges of Rome by Totila in 546 and in 549.
The date given, the 13th indiction (549-550), and the entering by the gate of San Paolo
belong to the second siege but the severe famine and the flight of the patricians were
features of the first. On these events see Gregorovius, History of Roftie, tr. Hamilton,
vol. I, pp. 451-476.

* Procopius says that on the night that Totila entered Rome in 546 the patricians
Decius, Basilius and others escaped from the city in the train of Bessas, the commander
of the Byzantine garrison. Cethegus, the leader of the senate, had retired to Centum-
cellae earlier under suspicion of favoring the Gothic party. De Bella Gothico, III, 13
and 20 ; ed. Haury, pp. 349, 384.

VIGILIUS 159

emperor comforted them and enriched them as befitted Roman
consuls.

Thereupon the emperor Justinian sent Narses, the eunuch and
his chamberlain, into Italy. And he gave battle to the Goths and

God awarded him the victory
and the king was slain

won the victory and Totila,
king of the Goths, was killed

and a multitude of the Goths were killed also.^ Then
the assembled clergy I the Romans

asked Narses that with his consent they might request the prince
that, if Pope Vigilius still lived and the priests and deacons and
clergy who had been sent into exile with Vigilius, they might
return home. And when the emperor received the report of
Narses and of the whole Roman clergy, he rejoiced and all his
senate because God had given rest to the Romans.^ And imme-
diately the emperor sent instructions to the divers places whither
the exiles had been transported, to Gypsum and Proconisius,^ and
he summoned them before him and said : "Are you willing to ac-
cept Vigilius, who was your pope? I thank you. If not, you have
here your archdeacon Pelagius and my hand will be with you."
They all replied: "May God direct your Holiness! Restore to
us now Vigilius and when God wills that he shall pass from this
world then let Pelagius, our archdeacon, be given to us according
to your command." Then he sent them all away.

1 Totila was defeated and killed in the battle of Tegina or Tadini in Tuscany in 552
and Rome was reoccupied finally by the imperial forces. The following year, 553,
Teias, successor of Totila, was slain in the battle of Vesuvius and the long contest of
Ostrogoths and Byzantines for the possession of Italy was ended.

2 The story of the restoration of Vigilius savors somewhat of the legendary. It is
possible that the Roman church appealed to Justinian on behalf of the banished pope
and his attendant clergy and that they were assisted by Narses. It is certain, however,
that Vigilius' final release was the result of his ultimate, unqualified condemnation of
the three Nestorians and of all their supporters and his recantation of anything he had
previously said in their defence. Jaffe, Regcsta, pp. 123-124, 936, 937. Pelagius,
who had also been exiled or imprisoned by the emperor, refused to concur in the con-
demnation and persisted in his resistance for some time after Vigilius had yielded.
It is, therefore, extremely unlikely that Justinian should have suggested him at this
time for Vigilius' place. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 301, n. 28.

^ Proconnesus, an island in the Propontis, now called Marmora, famous for its
quarries.

i6o LIBER PONTIFICALIS

They came with Vigihus to Sicily, to the city of Syracuse. And
he suffered from the malady of the stone and died.^ And his body
was carried to Rome and buried in the church of Saint Marcellus
on the Via Salaria.

* * * * * * * *2

And the bishopric was empty 3 months and 5 days.^

LXII. Pelagius I (556-561)

Pelagius/ by nationality a Roman, son of John, the vicar,^
occupied the see 4 years, 10 months and 18 days. And there was
no bishop to ordain him but two bishops were found, John of
Perusia and Bonus of Ferentinum, and Andrew, priest of Ostia,
and they ordained him pontiff.^ At that time there was no one

' A contemporary record says of Vigilius' death : "He died in Syracuse, the second
day of the week, at night, the seventh day before the Ides of June in the third indiction
(June 7, 555)." Duchesne, op. ciL, p. 302, n. 33.

2 List of ordinations.

' The vacancy was longer, for Pelagius was not ordained until April 16, 556.

* We know more of Pelagius' career previous to his accession than we do of that of
most popes at this early period. Under Silverius he had been sent with Vigilius to
Constantinople as apocrisarius and while there had intrigued in favor of the appoint-
ment of Vigilius and the deposition of Silverius. Supra, p. 146, n. i ; pp. 149-150. On
Vigilius' ordination he had been sent by Justinian to Antioch on ecclesiastical business
and had been active in other church affairs. Returning to Rome he had distributed
his wealth among the poor of the city and after the departure of Vigilius had played
the part of the leading citizen, negotiating with Totila in 546 and obtaining from him a
promise to refrain from murder and outrage when he captured Rome. Procopius says
that he was at this time the most illustrious man in Italy. Later he returned to
Constantinople and was punished along with Vigilius for refusing to anathematize the
Three Chapters in obedience to the decision of the ecumenical council just held. Supra,
pp. 157, n. I and 159, n. 2. He did not continue obstinate, however, for a year later
after the death of Vigilius he accepted the decrees of the council and was designated
by the emperor as VigUius' successor. De Bcllo Gothico, III, 16-21 ; ed. Haury, vol. II,
pp. 362-393-

*The word is "vicarianus." Pelagius came apparently of aristocratic family.
His father may have held the office of vicar in one of the two Italian dioceses. Duchesne,
Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 303, n. i.

^ The regular conduct of ordinations in the suburban diocese must necessarily have
been much interfered with during the ten years absence of Vigilius and the disorder of
the Gothic wars. That conditions were little better in the metropolitan diocese of
Milan is proved by a letter written by the clergy of that city in 551. Datius, their
bishop, had then been absent in the East twelve or thirteen years and they complain
that most of the bishops whom he had ordained were dead and that a vast number of

PELAGIUS I i6i

among the clergy who could be promoted. The monasteries and
the multitude of wise and noble devout withdrew from communion
with Pelagius, saying that he had had a part in the death of Pope
Vigilius and therefore was punished with such troubles.^ Then
Narses and Pope Pelagius took counsel and when the litany had
been said at Saint Pancratius they proceeded with hymns and
spiritual songs to Saint Peter, the apostle.^ And Pelagius, holding
the Gospels and the cross of the Lord above his head, mounted the
pulpit and thus he satisfied all the people

and the populace |

that he had done no harm to Vigilius. Likewise Pope Pelagius
continued and said : ''I beg of you to grant my request, that who-
ever deserves promotion in the holy church

and is worthy of it, |

people were dying without baptism. Stipra, p. 149 and n. i. Migne, Pat. Lat., vol.
69, col. 118. A few episcopal ordinations had, nevertheless, taken place without the
pope, in the suburban district, as is proved by the fact that Pelagius was ordained by a
bishop from Perugia. Herculanus, bishop of that city, had been massacred by the
soldiers of Totila, when they sacked Perugia in 549. John must have been ordained
since that date. It is probable that the scarcity of bishops was not the only reason
why Pelagius had but three at his ordination. Our text speaks of the widespread
hostility to him in all ranks of the church.

1 Duchesne is of the opinion that our author is mistaken in assigning this reason for
the prejudice against Pelagius. It is certainly difficult to see how he could have been
blamed in any way for Vigilius' death, when he was left by Vigilius in confinement in
the East and had been for so long a fellow sufferer with him. Op. cit., p. 304, n. 3.

2 The ceremonies at San Pancrazio and the Vatican are described here in more
detail than anywhere else. That, however, the charges of which Pelagius cleared him-
self were heresy and betrayal of the faith of the fathers rather than complicity in Vigilius'
death is established by the encyclical which he issued at the same time. It is addressed
to all the people of God and sets forth his position, "in order to remove suspicion."
He declares solemnly that he accepts the statutes of the "four councils" {i.e. the four
first councils, excluding the one called by Justinian) and the apostolic canons and that
"he holds in condemnation all those whom they (his predecessors) condemned and
reverences as orthodox all whom they approved, in particular the venerable bishops
Theodoret and Ibas." Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 125, 938. Mansi, Amplissima CollecHo,
vol. IX, p. 717. By this purgation Pelagius seems to have won toleration from his
own diocese but the other Western bishops for the most part still refused their fellow-
ship. Pelagius vainly endeavored to prevail upon Narses and upon Childebert, king
of the Franks, to interfere and end the schism by force. We have a letter by him
addressed to Valerianus, a patrician, arguing that the decrees of the synod of Chalcedon
and the writings of the blessed Augustine prove that schismatics should be suppressed
by secular authority. Jaffe, ibid., pp. 126, 946; 133, 1019; 135, 1038.

i62 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

from a doorkeeper even to a bishop, should accept advancement,
though not for gold nor any promises ; you all know that that is
simony. But whoever is taught in the works of God and leads a
good life we bid him, not by bribes but by honest conversation, to
rise unto the first rank."

At that time Pelagius appointed Valentinus, who feared God,
as his notary and had all the gold and silver vessels and the vest-
ments restored in all the churches.^ Then he began to build the
basilica of the apostles PhiUp and James ; ^ but when the building
was begun he died and was buried in the basilica of blessed Peter,
the apostle,^

March 2.

'I^ 7|« 9|C ?|% 7|S Sfi 3|% #|« A

And the bishopric was empty 2 months and 25 days.

^ Pelagius' correspondence is full of allusions to the impoverished state of the Roman
church and of directions for collecting the rents and other revenues which had long
been unpaid. In one instance he orders that a slave, the son of a slave woman be-
longing to the church, who was attempting to escape from servitude by calling himself
a curial, should be returned to the ecclesiastical estates. He writes to the bishop of
Aries, commending to his protection various Romans who had fled from their homes
for fear of the enemy and asking that the garments bought with the dues paid by the
local church should be sent by ship to Rome, " because there is such poverty and destitu-
tion in this city that we cannot look without grief and anguish of heart upon men whom
we know to be meritorious and born to honorable position." Jaffe, Regesta, pp. 126-
134, 943, 947, 949, 950, 951, 953, 956, 963, 1022, 1023. There is no mention of church
furniture in the letters now extant but Pelagius may probably have tried to replace
what had been lost and destroyed.

2 The basilica of the Santi Apostoli. The first church on the site was erected by
Julius I. Supra, p. 73, n. 4. A new one was now begun by Pelagius with the aid of
Narses and finished by John III. It contained two metrical inscriptions set up by
John, who claimed to have contributed the larger share of the edifice. The apsidal
inscription began as follows :

"Here the priest before me has left his slight traces;
Pope John has completed the work which he began.
Standing the more erect in a season of cramping distress,
The bishop scorns to be depressed by a failing world."

Duchesne, op. cit., p. 306, n. 2. The basilica was rebuilt in the fifteenth and again in
the eighteenth century and shows now no remains of sixth century work. See Gre-
gorovius. History oj Rome, tr. Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 489-495.

3 Duchesne prints Pelagius' epitaph, taken like others from the portico of the old
basilica. Op. cit., p. 304, n. 7. It is unusually long and makes much of his virtues
and his title to blessedness in heaven. We give an extract :

JOHN III 163

LXIII. John III (561-574)

John, by nationality a Roman, son of the illustrious Anastasius,
occupied the see 12 years, 11 months and 26 days. He loved and
restored the cemeteries of the holy martyrs.^ He ordered that
consecrated bread and flagons of wine should be suppHed and lights
should be lit in those cemeteries on every Lord's day by the priests
of the Lateran. He finished the church of the apostles Philip and
James and dedicated it.^

At that time the Heruli revolted and chose for their king Sin-
duald and oppressed all Italy. And Narses went out against him
and slew the king and subdued the whole tribe of the Heruh.^

"As guardian of the apostolic faith he preserved the venerable dogmas

Which were set forth by our illustrious fathers.
By eloquence he recovered those who had fallen into the errors of schism,

That with hearts reconciled they might hold the true faith.
He consecrated many ministers of the divine law,

Staining not his immaculate hands with gold.
He redeemed captives, he was quick to succor the afBicted,

He never refused to share his goods with the poor."

* List of ordinations.

1 During the eighteen years of the Gothic wars the suburban cemeteries had suffered
from both pillage and neglect. They had ceased to be used as places of burial, new
cemeteries having been opened within the city walls. The dwindling population no
longer crowded the enclosed area, the old sanitary regulations were not enforced and
graves outside the walls were exposed to desecration. The catacombs were, therefore
hardly visited, except for the purpose of honoring the saints whose bodies were there
interred. They were coming to be regarded not as ordinary burying grounds but as
"the cemeteries of the martyrs," as they are called here, i.e. as shrines or holy places,
objects of pilgrimage. Parish priests found it increasingly difficult to provide for
services in those ancient sites, to which their common duties no longer brought them.
John attempted to prevent their complete abandonment by laying upon the Lateran
church, the centre of ecclesiastical administration, the responsibility of supplying
materials for the mass. Some of the earlier Byzantine frescoes in the catacombs may
have been executed by workmen in his employ. Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 306,
n. I. Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 86-87.

^ Supra, p. 162 and n. 2.

' The events here noted belong to the obscure period between the Gothic wars and
the Lombard invasion. Sinduald or Sindbal had been one of the chiefs enrolled by
Narses to serve as heads of the barbarian auxiliaries. Two letters are extant addressed
to Sindula, "magister militum," by Pelagius I. From them one may gather that the
military leader acted as judge to settle civil cases involving questions of liability for
damage and rights of inheritance and that he applied to the pope for instruction in a

1 64 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

Then came Ammingus, leader of the Franks, and Buccillinus;
they also in like manner wasted Italy. But with the help of the
Lord they too were destroyed by Narses.^ And all Italy was
joyful.^

Then the Romans, inspired by malice, sent an accusation to
Justinian and Sophia, saying: "It were better for the Romans to
serve the Goths than the Greeks, for Narses, the eunuch, governs
us and reduces us to slavery ; and our most devout prince is igno-
rant of it. Either free us from his hand or we and the city of Rome
will serve the Gentiles."^ When Narses heard this he said: "If
I have done evil to the Romans may evil fall on me ! " Then Narses
departed from Rome and went to Campania and wrote to the tribe
of the Lombards that they might come and possess Italy .^ But

knotty suit. Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, pp. 130 and 135, 990, 1031. Paul the Deacon, who
probably had access to sources now lost, gives the best account of Sinduald's revolt.
" Nevertheless Narses waged war against Sinduald, king of the Brenti, who came of the
stock of the Heruli, whom Odoacer brought with him when he descended into Italy.
He at first was faithful to Narses and received many benefits from him, but at last he
rebelled arrogantly and endeavored to make himself king and Narses conquered him
and took him prisoner and hung him from a high beam." History of the Lombards,
tr. Foulke, pp. 55-56.

1 The history of the struggle against the Frankish inroads at this period is far from
clear. Bucelinus or Buccelin was apparently one of two brothers who led a host of
Frankish marauders across the Alps in 553 and were repulsed and overwhelmed the
following year by the imperial army. It is an error to couple his name here with that
of Amingus. The latter seems to have figured in the Gothic raids of 561-563, which
resulted in the temporary occupation of the province of Aquileia and of the cities of
Verona and Brescia. Narses recaptured Verona and drove the Franks once more
out of Italy. There is no satisfactory account of these years in any of the surviving
sources. Duchesne, op. cit., pp. 306-307, n. 4; Gregorovius, History of Rome, tr.
Hamilton, vol. I, pp. 476-485.

2 "Narses, the patrician, . . . gave Italy back to the Roman empire, rebuilt the
ruined cities and by expelling the Goths restored the people throughout Italy to their
ancient happiness." Prosperi Aqidt. Continuator Havniensis, in Mon. Ger. Hist.,
Auctorum Antiquiss., Chronica Minora, vol. I, p. 337. Quoted by Duchesne, op. cit.,
p. 307, n. 5.

3 No other record gives us more than the bare statement that Narses was recalled
from Italy in 568 by the emperor Justin II. The name of Justinian in our text is, of
course, an error. It is impossible to verify or to disprove our narrative at this point.

^ All historians from the seventh century onward unite in .ascribing to Narses an
invitation to the Lombards to enter Italy. Agathias and Marius, however, who were
contemporaries of Narses, do not allude to it. The Origo Gentis Langobardorum,
which Mommsen pronounces an extract from the lost history of Secundus of Trent,
written about 612, says expressly that Alboin led his Lombards into Italy upon in vita-

JOHN III 165

when Pope John learned that the Romans had sent an accusation
against Narses to the emperor he went hastily to Naples. And
Pope John began to entreat Narses to return to Rome. Then
Narses said : "Tell me, most holy Father, what evil have I done to
the Romans ? I shall go back to the feet of him that sent me and
all Italy shall know how I have toiled for her with all my strength."
Pope John answered and said: "I myself shall go to him sooner
than you shall leave this land." And Narses returned to Rome
with the most holy pope John.^

Then the most holy pope withdrew to the cemetery of Saints
Tiburtius and Valerian and abode there a long time, so that he
even consecrated bishops there.^ But Narses entered Rome and
after a long time he died. And his body was laid in a leaden cofHn
and was carried with all his riches to Constantinople.^

Then Pope John Hkewise died and was buried in the basilica of
blessed Peter, the apostle,^

July 13- I

"I* •!• •!• ■!■ ^ ^ H" ^ 5

And the bishopric was empty 10 months and 3 days
on the 13 th day of July. |

tion from Narses. Isidore of Seville (560-636) hints at a disagreement between Narses
and the empress. The chronicle that passes under the name of Fredegarius, composed
probably about 640, is the first to relate the famous story of the golden distaff sent by
Sophia to Narses to show her scorn for his effeminacy. Duchesne, op. cit., p. 307, n. 7 ;
Hodgkin, Italy and her Invaders, vol. V, passim. The Lombard invasion occurred in 568.

1 The return of Narses to Rome was in 571. There is no other account of the
intercession of the pope.

2 The little church of SS. Tiburtius and Valerian stood over the catacomb of Pre-
textatus on the Via Appia, about two mUes from the city. The retirement of the pope
to this secluded spot seems to have had some connection with the situation at Rome
at the time of the disgrace and return of Narses but we lack the information to deter-
mine what the connection was.

^Narses died in 572 or 573. He is said to have been in his ninety-fifth year.
There are various references in the chronicles to his great wealth. The imperial system
of taxation seemed cruel to the impoverished Italians, and there appears to have been a
widespread feeling that Narses had enriched himself by his relentless exactions. Ideas
of the kind may have prompted the complaint to the emperor. Later there arose
legends of the hidden treasure of Narses.

^ His epitaph has been lost.

^ List of ordinations.

i66 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

LXIV. Benedict I (575-579)

Benedict, by nationality a Roman, son of Boniface, occupied
the see 4 years, i month and 28 days.

At that time the tribe of the Lombards invaded all Italy and
there was also a great famine, so that many fortified towns sur-
rendered to the Lombards in order that they might be spared the
rigor of the famine.^ And when Justinian, the

most devout |

emperor, heard that Rome was endangered by the famine

and by the pestilence |

he sent to Egypt and dispatched ships laden with corn to Rome ; ^
and thus God had compassion on the land of Italy.

In the midst of these hardships and afiiictions the most holy
pope Benedict died. And he was buried in the basilica of blessed
Peter, the apostle, in the vestry,^

July 31- I

* * * * * * * *4

And the bishopric was empty 3 months and 10 days
on the 30th day of July. |

1 Paul the Deacon, who bases his account partly upon the Lib. Pont, and partly
upon the lost history of Secundus of Trent, gives the following description of the misery
at this time. "In these days many Roman nobles were killed through avarice (Lom-
bard avarice). And the rest were distributed among the invaders to pay a third part
of their produce to the Lombards and were made tributary. In the seventh year after
the arrival of Alboin and all his nation the churches had been despoiled by the Lombard
dukes, the priests slaughtered, the cities ravaged and the people exterminated who lived
by the cultivation of crops, except in those regions which Alboin had conquered, and
Italy for the most part was taken and subdued by the sword." History of the Lom-
bards, tr. Foulke, f . 68.

2 The emperor's name should be Justin, not Justinian. Justin II died in 578.
Other sources say nothing of grain ships sent by him to Italy, but the records are all so
scanty that the omission casts no doubt upon the statement of the Lib. Pont.

3 The word translated vestry is "secretarium." The name was applied to a small
chamber opening to the left of the portico of old St. Peter's, originally used by the popes
as a robing room. Later it was converted into a chapel and the tomb of Benedict
was beneath the altar. His epitaph is lost.

* List of ordinations.

>PELAGIUS II 167

LXV. Pelagius II (579-590)

Pelagius, by nationality a Roman, son of Unigild, occupied the
see 10 years, 2 months and 10 days. He was ordained without
commission from the emperor, because the Lombards were be-
sieging the city of Rome and were working much havoc in Italy.^

At that time there were such heavy rains that every one said that
the waters of the flood had overflowed ; - and such fearful carnage
that no one remembered that its like had ever been in the world.

At that time Pelagius enclosed the body of blessed Peter, the
apostle, in plates of gilded silver.^ He made of his own house

* The siege of Rome in 579 is not mentioned by any other contemporary historian.
We have, however, a letter written by Pelagius in 580 to Aunarius, bishop of Auxerre,
in which he laments the shedding of innocent blood, the violation of the holy altars and
the insults offered to the catholic faith by "the idolaters." Already he turns his eyes
toward the Franks as possible deliverers, "the divinely appointed neighbors and helpers
of this city and all Italy," and bids Aunarius warn them to refrain from alliance with
the Lombards. He sends Aunarius certain sacred relics, and adds : "We urge you to
hasten, so far as you are able, to free from the pollution of the Gentiles the shrines of the
saints whose merits you seek." Jaffe, Regesta, vol. I, p. 138, 580. Migne, Pat. Lat.,
vol. 72, col. 705. In 584 Pelagius writes that he has sent envoys to Constantinople to
beseech the aid of the emperor before the Lombards seize the few places that are left
to the imperial government. "The district about Rome is," he says, "in the main
destitute of any defenders and the exarch writes that he can provide no remedy." In
585 he sends several letters to the bishops of Aquileia and Istria, who were at odds with
him over the question of the Three Chapters. Supra, p. 157, n. i; p. 161, n. 2. He says
that he has been prevented from writing before by the stress of events and the pressure
of the enemy but that at last through the efforts of the exarch Smaragdus they are en-
joying an interval of peace and quiet. Jaffe, ibid., pp. 138 and 139, 1052, 1054-1056.

^ The great flood of the Tiber occurred in the autumn of 589 and was followed by a
pestilence which brought about Pelagius' death. Gregory I, writing five years later,
says that the waters flowed in over the walls of the city and flooded most of it. Dialogi,
HI, 19; Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 77, cols. 268, 269. Gregory of Tours also relates the
story. "Now in the fifteenth year of King Childebert (590), our deacon came from the
city of Rome with relics of the saints and reported that in the ninth month (November)
of the previous year the waters of the Tiber had overspread Rome in such a flood that
the ancient buildings had been destroyed and the storehouses of the church wrecked,
within which some thousands of measures of wheat had been lost. . . . Thereupon
followed a pestilence, which they call ' inguinaria ' ; it broke out in the middle of the
eleventh month (January, 590) and first of all . . . it attacked Pelagius, the pope,
and speedily he died ; and after his death there was great mortality among the people
by reason of this plague." History of the Franks, X, i ; ed. Poupardin, p. 409. An
English translation of Gregory's History by Brehaut will be found in another volume
of the Records of Civilization.

^ The sarcophagus of the apostle had been interred by Constantine too deep to be

1 68 LIBER PONTIFICALIS

an almshouse | a hostelry

for aged poor. He constructed the cemetery of blessed Hermes,
the martyr.^ He built from its foundations a basilica over the body
of blessed Lawrence, the martyr, and beautified his sepulchre with
silver plates.^ And he died and was buried in the church of blessed
Peter, the apostle,^
February 7. |

disturbed or to need protection. Supra, p. 53 and n. 3. Our author may be describ-
ing rather inaccurately some new reliefs for the decoration of the confession. Gregory
I says in one of his letters : "When my predecessor of blessed memory thought to change
the silver which was over the most sacred body of blessed Peter, the apostle, though it
was distant about fifteen feet from the body, a sign of great terror appeared to him."
Epistolcc, IV, 30 ; Migne, Pat. LaL, vol. 77, col. 701. That Pelagius actually made some
innovations in the furniture of the basilica is evidenced by two sets of inscriptions, both
of which were visible in the ninth century, one on the altar, the other on an ambone.
The last lines of the former may be translated as follows :

" For which (the Roman state) the priest offers these gifts and prays
That a season of rest be granted to the princes.

That the enemy be conquered throughout the world by the power of Peter
And peace and our faith be with the Gentiles and the people."
Duchesne, Lib. Pont., vol. I, p. 310, n. 3.

1 The basilica at the cemetery of St. Hermes on the Via Salaria Vetus, of which
vestiges may still be seen.

^ The repairs which Pelagius executed in the smaller and older basilica of San
Lorenzo remain for the most part to this day. Supra, p. 61, n. 2. The Goths had
apparently done considerable damage to the building and a hill or bank close by threat-
ened to crush it. Pelagius rebuilt it, using original materials as far as he could, but en-
larging its capacity and improving the lighting by raising the roof, adding the galleries
and piercing the upper walls with numerous windows. The columns of the galleries
and the architraves on which they rest were taken from ancient buildings in the vicinity.
They are of all sizes and styles and are pieced together with no attempt at artistic
unity or workmanlike effect. A little original carving in the Byzantine manner was
done by stone-cutters, brought perhaps from Ravenna. Pelagius also dug away and
removed the hill which overhung the basilica and adorned the apse with the mosaic,
the upper portion of which may still be seen over the triumphal arch. The portrait
of Pelagius himself is on the extreme left and the face has not been altered since his
day. Duchesne prints the metrical inscription which enumerates these various im-
provements. Op. cit., p. 310, n. 5. Frothingham, Monuments, pp. 87-88, 281-282.
The silver plates or reliefs of the confession have, of course, disappeared. Gregory I
has another anecdote to show how unsafe Pelagius found it to approach too near a holy
tomb, even with the zeal of the restorer. "My predecessor of holy memory likewise
wished to make some restorations about the body of Saint Lawrence, the martyr.
But since it was not known where the venerable body lay, he searched for it by digging
and of a sudden in their ignorance the sepulchre was laid open. Those who were
present and took part in the work, monks and attendants, who saw the body of the
martyr, although they did not presume to touch it, all died within ten days." Epistola,
IV, 30; Migne, Pat. Lat., vol. 77, col. 701.

' His epitaph has not been preserved.

PELAGIUS II

169

•!• •!* 'r "I* *!• •!• ^

And the bishopric was empty 3 months and 25 days

on the 7 th day of February in
the 5th indiction.

From the death of Saint Sil-
vester to the first Gregory was
246 years.

* 1

^ List of ordinations.

DATE DUE

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