A few days ago, at the 22nd Colloquium of the Comité international de paléographie latine, some very nice people who use this website (thank you!) reminded me of this blog and I realised some others might have been wondering where was I since the last post was over a year ago (!). So, I thought about writing this post to remind you I am still here, still working and writing, BUT moved to the ERC-project“s blog (at http://visigothicpal.com/) since it felt silly to write in both places at the same time.

Here you can see what we (the project”s team) have been doing, continue reading our posts and share some of the many uncertainties on pragmatic literacy we are facing. Do let us know your suggestions!

• What do we mean when we say ‘lay charter’? (Nov“21)
• Ranildi and Itilo”s quarrel (Jan“22)
• The villa of Gomeán: a family matter (Feb”22)
• A house for a sow (Mar“22)
• The daily life in the world of writing (Apr”22)
• Family business (May“22)
• Places and People of Chamoso from 10th to 11th centuries (Sep”22)

Enjoy!

In the last #ERCproject update, I wrote about the project’s first output: a comprehensive database of medieval Galician charters. I discussed from where the idea to do it came from, how it began, is being developed, and the information you will eventually find on it once it goes open. I also shared some initial numbers about how many sources we’ve found (documents preserved as single sheet documents or copies in cartularies). After sharing some initial results for the diocese of Lugo, Tuy, Orense, and Mondoñedo it is time to finish this series with the remaining diocese: Santiago de Compostela. We will move forward to other exciting updates soon :)

[remainder: What is a “document”? A document is a text preserved as a single sheet of parchment (charter), as an original document or as a copy of it, or as a copy in a diplomatic codex. In our database, we consider “document” a manuscript of either category but only once. Meaning, if a document X is preserved as original charter, as a copy also in a charter and as a copy in one, two or more diplomatic codices, for us it’ll be just one item. Of course, we’ve added a note in each case with all the necessary references.]

If you are reading this, you know what Santiago de Compostela means in terms of written production. It was, and is, not only a see, but an archdiocese, nowadays that of Galicia although in mediaeval times it had an eye quite far beyond. Santiago’s central office was clearly ruled by bishops-archbishops who perfectly understood the importance of writing, of having written testimony of everything the see had (and wanted to absorb), and as a result manuscript production exploded quite since the beginning. It is and was a see focused on pilgrimage, on growing (as fast as possible), and with clear political interests linked to the consolidation and reinforcement of the monarchy in its area of influence further west of the peninsula. The history of Santiago is irremediably linked to bishop Xelmírez and to Alfonso Raimúndez, a history full of confrontations, political alliances, ambition, and many documents that record all this. Santiago’s very busy group of ecclesiastic-cathedral scribes worked untiringly in producing diplomatic codices, Tumbos A, B and C, and single-sheet copies of which very few have been preserved. Our total lists 253 documents from between 900 and 1199.

Santiago’s cathedral was, though, not alone in Santiago’s medieval city. As any other cathedral freshly built, it relied on those nearby monasteries which helped in ruling the see:

The monastery of San Paio de Antealtares is the oldest of the city, founded around 820-830 with the mission to guard and organise the cult of the apostolic relics, which it did until Xelmírez’s change of mind in the 12th c. It moved from place several times, but it still exists as the most relevant nunnery in Galicia. Extant medieval documents from this centre are quite few, only 8 in total.

The monastery of San Martín Pinario is, with San Paio de Antealtares, the Compostelan monastery linked to the beginning of the cult and custody of the tomb of Santiago el Mayor. It was also successively moved outside the walls of the basilica to allow its extension to its current place. Extant medieval documents from this centre are quite few, 16 (plus 4 of its dependant monastery of Montesacro), but it holds an impressive historical archive which is worth a visit.

Outside the city, there were also some monastic institutions who developed a significant written production:

First comes the monastery of Santa María de Sobrado dos Monxes, founded in the mid-10th c. and linked to the House of Traba, with 931 documents, single-sheet charters and Tumbos.

Second, and annexed by Sobrado in the 16th c., the 12th-c. monastery of San Xusto de Toxosoutos, with 380 documents kept in a Tumbo. Also linked to Sobrado, the 12th-c. monastery of Santa María de Monfero (36 documents, single-sheet charters).

Finally, the Benedictine monastery of San Lourenzo de Carboeiro, founded in the 10th c. and abandoned in the 19th, with 65 single-sheet documents.

There are also other smaller diplomatic collections of documents in our database, from monasteries such as San Antolín de Toques, San Ciprián de Calogo, San Cristovo de Dormeá, San Julián de Cumbraos, San Julián de Moraime, San Pedro de Ansemil, San Pedro de Burgallido, San Pedro de Camanzo, San Pedro de Foras, San Pedro de Soandes, San Salvador de Cines, bringing the total for the diocese to 1845 documents.

Surprisingly, and although almost all Galician tumbos have been edited, there are still around 200 documents unedited (single-sheet charters).

Most of the diplomatic sources from this see are preserved as copies, with a reduced number of original charters, grouped in the second half of the 12th century.

Following the same dynamics observed so far, most of the documents preserved are ecclesiastic, thus leaving their study outside the scope of the project. But there also around 77 lay charters (mostly 12th century) made for common people outside the elites that will be thoroughly studied in the project.

If we take a look at the type of document in relation to its legal action, it is significant to note that, above all, the type of document recorded are donations, followed by sales, in clear contrast to what we have seen so far. Inventories are common since the first half of the 11th century. The number of documents about conflicts registered is also significant in the diocese, and prior to the 12th century.

Since most documents were produced in the second half of the 12th century, the majority are in Gothic cursive scripts. Original documents in Visigothic and Caroline minuscule (only 10!) scripts are there, but they are a minority.

Thanks for reading!

[by A. Castro]

In the last #ERCproject update, I wrote about the project’s first output: a comprehensive database of medieval Galician charters. I discussed from where the idea to do it came from, how it began, developed, and the information you will eventually find on it once it goes open. I also shared some initial numbers about how many sources we’ve found (documents preserved as single sheet documents or copies in cartularies). After sharing some initial results for the diocese of Lugo, Tuy, and Orense, in this post I would like continue with some notes about Mondoñedo’s.

[brief note: What is a “document”? A document is a text preserved as a single sheet of parchment (charter), as an original document or as a copy of it, or as a copy in a diplomatic codex. In our database, we consider “document” a manuscript of either category but only once. Meaning, if a document X is preserved as original charter, as a copy also in a charter and as a copy in one, two or more diplomatic codices, for us it’ll be just one item. Of course, we’ve added a note in each case with all the references.]

North of Lugo, detached from it in the mid-9th century, the diocese of Mondoñedo is, to me, the oddest of all Galician dioceses in terms of its documentary production and conservation, albeit with a strong historical tradition, an important see, central monasteries (still largely unknown) and comings and goings that make us find a bit of everything.

Ecclesiastic and royal diplomas granted to the see, more likely produced in there, are kept in the cathedral archive and in the National Library in Madrid. After that, we need to focus on the monasteries.

First of all – I’m not being objective, I just love all about this monastery – we should talk about the monastery of San Xoán de Caaveiro; one of those extensively studied but about which there are still so many questions to answer it seems a new monastery every time I look into it… The diplomatic collection of this centre is mostly gathered in the institution’s Tumbo, now in Madrid. There is also a really amazing collection of cartularies from Caaveiro about which I will talk about in the future, extensively (sorry), and some single-sheet charters. In any case, the number of documents comes to a total of almost 200.

Following up, San Salvador de Villanueva de Lorenzana, a 10th-century family-founded monastery a few kilometres far from Mondoñedo and with 167 extant documents (tumbo) prior to 1200.

Finally, San Martín de Jubia, which, through its 134 documents also preserved in tumbos, offers an open window to the gruesome history of a family-founded monastery that, despite royal support and perhaps as a result of pressure from neighbouring monasteries, was known by a long history of breaches of religious compliance.

Those three plus some documents from minor centres bring the total for the diocese to 517 documents.

Almost all Galician tumbos have been edited. As a result, all but around 20 documents of this diocese are published.

As in Orense due to Celanova’s tumbo, most of the diplomatic sources from this diocese are preserved as copies, with only a small number of original charters, grouped in the second half of the 12th century.

Following the same dynamics observed so far, most of the documents preserved are ecclesiastic, thus leaving their study outside the scope of the project. But there also around 20 lay charters (mostly second half of the 12th century) made for common people outside the elites that will be thoroughly studied in the project.

If we take a look at the type of document in relation to its legal action, it is significant to note that, above all, the type of document recorded are donations, in clear contrast to what we have seen so far. Also significant are testaments, which were very few in the other cases. Inventories are common since the first half of the 11th century, more likely because all the institutions analysed have quite early foundations. The number of documents about conflicts registered is also significant in the diocese, increases in the second half of the 11th century, due to the fierce competition between monasteries bordering each other.

Since most documents were produced in the 12th century, the majority are in either Protogothic or Gothic cursive scripts. Original documents in Visigothic minuscule and Caroline minuscule scripts are there, but they are a minority.

Another (the last!) diocese next month. Thanks for reading!

[by A. Castro]

In the last #ERCproject update, I wrote about the project’s first output: a comprehensive database of medieval Galician charters. I discussed from where the idea to do it came from, how it began, developed, and the information you will eventually find on it once it goes open. I also shared some initial numbers about how many sources we’ve found (documents preserved as single sheet documents or copies in cartularies). After sharing some initial results for the diocese of Lugo and that of Tuy, in this post I would like continue with some notes about Orense’s.

[brief note: What is a “document”? A document is a text preserved as a single sheet of parchment (charter), as an original document or as a copy of it, or as a copy in a diplomatic codex. In our database, we consider “document” a manuscript of either category but only once. Meaning, if a document X is preserved as original charter, as a copy also in a charter and as a copy in one, two or more diplomatic codices, for us it’ll be just one item. Of course, we’ve added a note in each case with all the references.]

We are back to the model of written practices seen in Lugo with a small but quite significant variation: Orense is the diocese in which the monasteries, and quite old ones at that, played a central role in the production and also in the preservation of documents. Of course, we do have charters in the cathedral archive produced in the cathedral, but the vast majority of them were not so and are not related to the see but to the many small monasteries that populated Orense, came to be absorbed by major centres and, eventually, by the see itself. As it is, 161 charters are currently kept in the cathedral archive, 115 of them of diverse monastic origin (San Clodio do Ribeiro, San Esteban de Ribas de Sil, San Vicente de Pombeiro, Santa Cristina de Ribas de Sil, among others).

Written production in Orense is really about a single monastery: second to none, San Salvador de Celanova. Founded in 936 by none other than San Rosendo, bishop of Mondoñedo, abbot, nobleman, right-hand man of kings and THE VIP of 10th-century Galicia. We have 604 documents from Celanova in our database, some preserved as single-sheet copies in the National Archive in Madrid but most of them coming from the Tumbo, also in Madrid. It took us a while to list them all. This collection of documents from Celanova is not only important for its number but also for the exceptional richness of the contents related in the documents, which reconstruct the reality of rural Galicia in the first centuries of the Middle Ages with a extraordinary level of detail (and social plurality).

Celanova is complemented by some smaller institutions still with documentary record prior to the year 1200. Some 200 documents produced for/in the monasteries of San Esteban de Chouzán, San Pedro de Ramirás, San Pedro de Rocas, Santa María de Melón, Santa María de Montederramo, and Santa María de Oseira, among others, which brings the total for the diocese to 937 documents.

Due to Celanova’s extraordinary corpus, almost all documents from this diocese have been edited, with only some 97 from that total of 937 that remain unedited.

Since most of the extant documents for this diocese come from Celanova’s Tumbo, most of them as well are preserved as copies. Originals, some in need of further revision, have been preserved for the second half of the 12th century, since, as already noted, that is when written production greatly increased.

Following the same dynamics observed so far, most of the documents preserved are ecclesiastic in nature (coming as second the royal diplomas, in a higher number than in the diocese of Lugo), thus leaving their study outside the scope of the project. But there are also 110 lay charters made for common people outside the elites that will be thoroughly studied in the project.

If we take a look at the type of document in relation to its legal action, it is significant to note that the number of sales seems to be focused before the second half of the 11th century, changing the dynamics in favour of donations thereafter. Inventories concentrate on two specific periods: the first half of the 11th century, most likely as a way of strengthening the first stage of monastic growth, and the first half of the 12th, perhaps as a consolidation of the properties received once the distribution of land was more or less set. It is also striking the large number of documents that go beyond the traditional typologies, such as letters of freedom of serfs, establishment and resolution of agreements, payment of debts or payments in compensation for services rendered. It will be interesting to see what conclusions this information leads us to as we progress through the project.

Since most documents were produced in the second half of the 12th century, the majority are in either Protogothic or Gothic cursive scripts. Original documents in Visigothic minuscule and Caroline minuscule scripts are there, but they are a minority. If we compare the chart about types of scripts in Lugo and here, we can appreciate a lower percentage of preservation of Visigothic script originals and a higher variation in writing systems used in the second half of the 12th century, with a balance between Caroline minuscule and Gothic scripts.

Another diocese next month. Thanks for reading!

[by A. Castro]

In the last #ERCproject update, I wrote about the project’s first output: a comprehensive database of medieval Galician charters. I discussed from where the idea to do it came from, how it began, developed, and the information you will eventually find on it once it goes open. I also shared some initial numbers about how many sources we’ve found. After sharing some initial results for the diocese of Lugo, in this post I would like to continue with some notes about Tuy’s.

[brief note: What is a “document”? A document is a text preserved as a single sheet of parchment (charter), as an original document or as a copy of it, or as a copy in a diplomatic codex. In our database, we consider as “document” a manuscript of either category but only once. Meaning, if a document X is preserved as an original charter, as a copy also in a charter and as a copy in one, two or more diplomatic codices, for us it’ll be just one item. Of course, we’ve added a note in each case with all the references.]

In clear contrast to what we have seen in the diocese of Lugo, the vast majority of the documents preserved for this diocese do not belong to (or, in fact, are kept in) the Cathedral of Tuy but to the monasteries in the area due to the former’s late foundation. In the cathedral archive there are only 15 documents, all but two royal diplomas. The monasteries are therefore essential here to know what was going on in this area of Galicia, how many documents have been preserved, their content, context, and peculiarities.

The most important diplomatic collection in this sense is that of the Cistercian monastery of Sta María de Armenteira, founded in the late 12th century, with some 60 extant documents, all of them preserved as single-sheet copies in the National Archive of Madrid.

In second place comes the collection belonging to the monastery of Sta María de Oia, also from the 12th century and Cistercian, with 49 documents, again single-sheet copies now in Madrid. (There’s a Tumbo -diplomatic codex- from this institution that we haven’t revised yet for being a 18th-century manuscript)

Next, we have the monastery of San Pedro de Vilanova de Dozón with a total of 31 documents, all of them preserved as single-sheet items and mostly kept in the National Archive of Madrid but also scattered (Arquivo Histórico Universitario de Santiago de Compostela and Arquivo da Catedral de Ourense).

Finally, we have some smaller institutions still with a documentary record prior to the year 1200, such as the monastery of San Xoán de Poio, San Salvador de Lérez and the parish church of Santalla de Artoño, which brings the total for the diocese to 168 documents.

Surprisingly, 123 of the 168 documents of this diocese – original charters, and single-sheet copies of them – are still unedited!! (note: Armenteira’s collection has been studied in two undergraduate theses we haven’t been able to revise yet due to the pandemic).

Considering that all main production centres in this area come from the mid-12th century, it is no surprising that the sources focus in that period and that they are mostly originals; it was then when written production greatly increased due to the maximum need on the part of the institutions to welcome and order their goods.

Following the same dynamics observed in Lugo, most of the documents preserved are ecclesiastic in nature, their study then outside the scope of the project. But within that total of 168 items, there are also lay charters; 28 documents that, significantly, fall within the private and lay category, that is, made for common people outside the elites. We haven’t found any private document in this category, something we should revise and aim to place in context. Another aspect that results significant, comparing Lugo’s and Tuy’s collection, is the higher percentage of royal diplomas preserved for this latter diocese, which is undoubtedly explained by the strong support the reorganisation of the see had by the kings.

If we take a look at the type of document preserved by legal action, there are some aspects that deserve a deeper reflection. For example, there is a significant increase in donations over sales and of charters recording testaments (granting properties to monasteries), in contrast to the usual trend observed in Lugo. In addition, there is a significant lack of inventories, quite frequent in other areas. Both facts could be explained by the founding date of Tuy’s main ecclesiastic institutions and by the fact most were Cistercian, building their area of influence at a higher rate than in other more traditional areas, with the elites’ support and with no need for inventories as there was nothing to list yet. Although it is not seen in the graphic below, there is another aspect of interest. Within the group of “other” types of document, there is a significant number of agreements between institutions or between an institution and a lay agent in relation to the configuration of territories which could also be explained by the pace at which institutions grew and to their characteristics.

Since most documents were produced in the second half of the 12th century, the majority are in either Protogothic or Gothic cursive scripts. Original documents in Visigothic minuscule and Caroline minuscule scripts are there, but they are a minority. If we compare the chart about types of scripts in Lugo and here, we can appreciate the difference in the first half of the 12th century, with a higher percentage of Gothic scripts over Protogothic. However, the numbers for the second half of the same century are almost identical.

Another diocese next month. Thanks for reading!

[by A. Castro]

El próximo jueves 11 de marzo de 2021 tendrá lugar una conferencia de carácter divulgativo dentro del I Ciclo de conferencias de divulgación de la Asociación de Amigos del Archivo Histórico Nacional: Tinta, papel y pergamino: el pasado en sus documentos.

La charla lleva por título:

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Animáos!

Hi!

I will be teaching a full day course on Visigothic script at the London International Palaeography Summer School this June. Everyone welcome. Would you like to enroll?

See you,

Ainoa

Dear friends and colleagues,

Next Tuesday, 2 March 2021 around 5.30pm (UK time), I will be talking about my ERC project  “The Secret Life of Writing: People, Script and Ideas in the Iberian Peninsula (c. 900-1200)” at the Medieval Manuscripts Seminars organised by Professor Julia Crick (King“s College London) and Dr David Rundle (University of Kent) and I thought you might be interested in joining us to hear more about it. I will be delighted to see some of you joining us virtually :)

The seminar is entitled The Secret Life of Writing: A Holistic Palaeography Project

You can book your place here : https://www.ies.sas.ac.uk/events?event_name=Medieval%20Manuscripts Seminar

The project investigates the connection between people of rural communities and the written word in the medieval Iberian Peninsula as a key instrument in forging long-lasting personal identities while shaping the interactions within and among social groups. We aim to look at the lives and work of ordinary laypeople and construct their social profile in relation to written communication for the first time, analysing how the introduction of writing and writing-based social practices changed society. To this end, we propose the application of a holistic approach beyond the state-of-the-art to study an overlooked corpus of written material: the extant tenth- to twelfth-century manuscript sources from the north-western Iberian Peninsula.

Best wishes,

In the last #ERCproject update, I wrote about the project’s first output: a comprehensive database of medieval Galician charters. I discussed from where the idea to do it came from, how it began, developed, and the information you will eventually find on it once it goes live. I also shared some initial numbers about how many sources/documents we“ve found. In this post, I would like to delve a bit on these numbers, beginning with the diocese of Lugo and its 960 documents.

[brief note: What is a “document”? A document is a text preserved as single sheet of parchment (charter), as an original document or as a copy of it, or as a copy in a diplomatic codex. In our database, we consider “document” a manuscript of either category but only once. Meaning, if a document X is preserved as original charter, has a copy also in a charter and a copy in one, two or more diplomatic codices, for us it’ll be just one item. Of course, we’ve added a note in each case with all the references.]

It’ll come as no surprise to know that most of the documents on our list are linked to the see of Lugo (445). That does not mean, though, they were produced there, for the see absorbed monasteries and their archives at a quick pace from its early restoration in the 8th century. In the second stage of the project, we are to analyse each document to see in which type of centre it was produced; monastic, parochial or, indeed, at the cathedral. Medieval documents from the Cathedral of Sta María de Lugo are now scattered between its archive (charters) and the National Archive in Madrid (charters and the diplomatic codex known as Tumbo Viejo), although, since they preserved their old signature, it is possible to reconstruct the initial archival structure of the see organised by books.

The second institution that stands out is the monastery of San Julián de Samos (271 documents), funded already in Late Antiquity and restored in the 8th century. Samos is one of the oldest and most important monasteries of Galicia. Unfortunately, most of its documents are lost, only some preserved through its diplomatic codex - also lost until recently - now kept in the Archivo Histórico Universitario de Santiago de Compostela. There are some charters kept at the National Archive in Madrid.

In third position we find the monastery of Santa María de Meira (199 documents). Despite its late foundation in the mid-12th century, Meira accumulated territory quite fast thanks to patronage from nobility and kings and the impulse given by its addition to the Cistercians. Its medieval documents come from the 17th-c. diplomatic codex kept in Madrid with very few original charters. This is a good example of the rule; once an institution decided to build its diplomatic codex, single sheet charters were dismissed.

Finally, we have some small institutions that still have some early medieval documents, as the monastery of Sta María de Ferreira de Pallares, Sta María de Penamaior, San Vicente de Pombeiro and San Salvador de Asma, among others.

Surprisingly, 194 of the 960 documents of this diocese - original charters, and single-sheet copies of them - are still unedited!!

As any researcher working with medieval sources knows, around the mid-12th century there was an explosion of written culture. Rest to say, we are aware that not all documents made have been preserved, but even considering the loses, something clearly happened in that period. Cathedrals and monasteries decided to organise their archive as diplomatic codices and took greater care in leaving written proof of what was going on with their domain. It comes as no surprise then to verify most of the documents date form that period and that they are mostly originals.

Most of the documents preserved are ecclesiastic; the Church was the universal keeper of archives so that is no news. Since we aim to uncover the real impact of writing on common people, we are leaving all these sources behind to focus on private documents. We have 188 documents from the diocese of Lugo that were produced for lay common people, no nobility or elites, and we are to analyse them thoroughly.

A small note. Looking at the type of document by action you can see that in the 12th century, together with the burst of written production came a change in tendency; monasteries could no longer survive or increase their territories by tradition, they needed to buy stuff.

Since most documents have been preserved as copies, and they were mostly done in the late 11th or some time in the 12th c., the majority are in either Protogothic or Gothic cursive scripts. Original documents in any type of Visigothic script and Caroline minuscule are there, but they are a minority. One of the objectives of the project is to study the periodisation of scripts and their characteristics so we may have few testimonies but will try to get some significant data from them.

Another diocese next month. Thanks for reading!

[by A. Castro]

In one of the last #ERCproject updates, I wrote about how the global pandemic (still feels odd, right?) had affected the project. I mentioned that, since we couldn’t visit the archives, we were getting much more information we were initially looking for (digital reproductions of entire repositories). So, given that our “social agenda”, all those months in which we had planned to visit archives and monasteries and arranged open talks to spread the goods news (meaning, that there was someone looking at the written history of the medieval people), could no longer be, why not take the time in using all that data to build up something new and useful? A full database of all medieval Galician written records sounds nice, don’t you think? We do too.

Being very thorough. First, we searched the catalogues of all archives we thought would have manuscripts we were interested in, all Galician archives plus the Spanish national archive in Madrid. Second, we revised all publications we knew edited – or were more likely to edit – primary sources, on the one hand just to be sure we weren’t missing anything, on the other to know whether there was any unedited material. Third, and just in case, we went back to the institutions we were studying and looked for publications on their history to see what happened to their written material, if it had been destroyed or was already on our list. We have checked these steps so many times we are reasonably sure we are not leaving anything behind.

When I refer to manuscripts, I not only mean charters – single sheets of parchment – both originals or copies, but also cartularies and codices – full or fragmentary. Yes, we are that mad.

What did we do with all that data? All projects based on primary sources begin with a corpus. According to the first stage of the project, the compilation of such a corpus was indeed a necessity for us – gathering all documents that relate to lay people to, after analysing them, study the impact of writing on people’s lives – and, by following the steps above, we did well. However, what was intended as a mere list of references (both archival and bibliographic) has grown into something else since we haven“t only looked at the specific manuscripts we wanted, but at all manuscripts preserved.

What does this mean? It means that, while in the list we added the following fields for each document: date / institution or centre / archival reference / type of document (ecclesiastic, royal, private) / type of script, and highlighted the private-lay documents for further study, in the database you will find: date / estimated date for those documents that do not specify one / institution or centre / archive / archival reference / type of document (ecclesiastic, royal, private and specific types of each) / grantor / grantee / type of document (sale, donation, etc.) / type of script / documentary tradition (copy/original) / summary / reference to image / bibliographic reference plus some further notes on content or script.

In a recent post we discussed we have found many more documents than expected. We have now more than 3,000 listed. We decided to organise them by dioceses (sees and monasteries, satellite or not) as culturally homogeneous areas. And so, for the diocese of Lugo we have 960, for that of Mondoñedo 519, 168 for Tuy and 583 for Orense. We are finishing Santiago de Compostela, with 893 documents already and counting.

We are going to share it. How? Either as an Excel spreadsheet or through a searching engine integrated on the project’s website. We haven’t decided it yet; in all honesty, I prefer the spreadsheet version for it grants access to all the data allowing any type of search and not only that designed and easy reuse of the material for one”s personal purpose. What would you prefer? I launched a survey on Twitter.

Once we finish this database, we will further develop a smaller version for the project’s team personal use only with the lay documents, where we will add new editions of the sources plus their historical, graphic, textual, and diplomatic analysis. I expect we will make this open too. And, at the same time, we will move to VisigothicPal to do and share the graphic and diplomatic analysis while working.

It has been postponed but not cancelled. We hope we will eventually be able to do at least some of the talks planned soon. In the meantime, we are organising other events. More on them soon.

Thanks for reading. Be safe.

[by A. Castro]

My latest article on the graphic influence from the “escrituras visigodas” into Uncial and Half-Uncial scripts is out:

“Towards a Review of the “Visigothic Symptoms”: Formal Writing in Visigothic Hispania”:

In a set of essays (Visigothic Symposium 4) intended to present a review of literary production in Visigothic Hispania, from the perspective of historical contextualization, it is of course fundamental to be able to date the sources we have with some certainty. As is usual, to trace the outlines of this basic corpus we begin from two premises: on the one hand, there is the surviving production, which permits a direct approach to the subject treated in the source and to its context; on the other, there is what has not survived but which, since it is mentioned in other works or its subject is a constant of the period in question, we must assume to have existed. By addressing both cases together, we should be able to begin to understand what was produced in the peninsula, who produced it, and to which specific interests it responded – the point of departure that makes it possible to carry out a study of cultural contextualization. What is missing will be as revealing as what is available or what we can suppose once was, reflecting the interests of elites and institutions both secular and ecclesiastical who, after all, guided the production. Therefore, in this essay, after some brief notes on what could have been in this vast set of literary documents, preserved or lost, I focus on a survey of the criteria that have traditionally been used to identify codices produced in Hispanic centers. That is to say, I propose here a review of the so-called “Visigothic symptoms,” paleographic aspects that have served to categorize certain codices copied in book hand, Uncial, and Half-uncial scripts as Hispanic production in centers within the Visigothic kingdom.

Castro Correa, A. (2020) “Towards a Review of the “Visigothic Symptoms”: Formal Writing in Visigothic Hispania”, Visigothic Symposium 4, 2020-2021: Manuscripts and Editions, pp. 64-84.

This article is part of the Visigothic Symposium 4, 2020-2021. More here.

by Ainoa Castro

My latest article on the change from Visigothic script to Caroline minuscule and on polygraphic scribes is out:

“Leaving the Past behind, Adapting to the Future: Transitional and Polygraphic Visigothic-Caroline Minuscule Scribes”, published by the Anuario de Estudios Medievales (CISC):

This article is concerned with the scribes who, in the early decades of the 9th century in the east of the Iberian Peninsula and of the 12th century in the north and north-west, came under a greater or lesser degree of diplomatic pressure to change their graphic model from Visigothic script to Caroline minuscule. We will briefly discuss when and why each production centre, whether of longstanding or of new creation, adopted the new writing system that had come to dominate in Europe and how that change was implemented and perceived by their contemporaries. Special attention will be paid to scribes and copyists who reveal themselves to have been at the interface between the two cultural contexts by considering those very few extant examples of polygraphism in Latin writing in Iberia.

Castro Correa, A. (2020) “Leaving the Past behind, Adapting to the Future: Transitional and Polygraphic Visigothic-Caroline Minuscule Scribes”, Anuario de Estudios Medievales, 50(2), pp. 631–664. doi: 10.3989/aem.2020.50.2.01.

This article is part of the monograph I edited: “Special Issue: From Visigothic to Caroline to Gothic: Studies in the cultural history of Iberian scripts”. Available here.

by Ainoa Castro

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Last September I was invited to participate on a webinar organised by the Universidad de León, funded by the Society for the Medieval Mediterranean, untitled “Digital Humanities:New Approaches to Research and Teaching of the Medieval Mediterranean (5th to 15th centuries)”.

On this webinar, I presented the videogame Littera on its session on Digital Teaching. If you missed it, you can now take a look at the recorded session - I“m in minute 01:09 aprox :)

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¿Quién dijo que no se han conservado fuentes para el estudio de la Edad Media? Estamos acostumbrados a escuchar este planteamiento, especialmente en ambientes no académicos, aunque no exclusivamente, cuando el que habla se refiere a este fascinante período histórico. Un período que, en contra de lo que se piensa, ni fue oscuro ni fue una época de gente atrasada y analfabeta. De hecho, contamos con miles de fuentes que aún esperan a que las estudiemos para poder acabar con esa idea. Pero muchas de estas fuentes habitualmente pasan desapercibidas para una parte de los investigadores; e incluso en el ámbito de la Enseñanza Superior hispánica, es habitual que algunos profesores se centren en enseñar las fuentes escritas en letras góticas (ss. XIII-XVI), puesto que piensan que sus alumnos trabajarán preferentemente con estos modelos gráficos (que son mayoritarios) en sus futuras investigaciones. Esto provoca en muchas ocasiones que los estudiantes (entre los que yo mismo me incluyo) pasemos por alto las fuentes altomedievales (ss. VIII-XII), escritas fundamentalmente en letra visigótica y carolina, y como consecuencia, sean pocos los Trabajos de Fin de Grado y Fin de Máster centrados en estas fuentes, que año tras año ven la luz en las universidades.

El mes pasado comencé a trabajar para el proyecto People And Writing como técnico-investigador. Este proyecto se centra en el estudio de un corpus documental que nos ayudará a conocer cuál era el papel que jugaba la escritura en el día a día de las personas que vivían alejadas del mundo eclesiástico y aristocrático, esto es: las comunidades rurales de carácter laico formadas por la gente “del común”, que era el grupo mayoritario. Mi tarea consiste fundamentalmente en ayudar en la compilación de dicho corpus para su posterior estudio durante 5 años. A lo largo de este mes trabajando para el proyecto he colaborado en la recopilación e inventariado de alrededor de 3000 documentos altomedievales (años 900-1200) para la zona NO de la península. El caso portugués también merece una mención especial debido a la grata sorpresa que nos ha producido el comprobar que el conjunto documental conservado para el intervalo 900-1200 en territorio luso asciende unos 6000 documentos ¡Para que luego digan que no hay fuentes altomedievales!

Debo destacar que la euforia inicial de descubrir que se han conservado tantas fuentes para el estudio de la Alta Edad Media en el noroeste peninsular y Portugal, desaparece considerablemente cuando tienes que revisar uno a uno todos los documentos de la muestra para comprobar cuáles están accesibles en formato digital y cuáles no, y hay que solicitar al archivo histórico en el que se guardan –Archivo Histórico Nacional; y los archivos de las principales instituciones eclesiásticas gallegas, así como el Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo para el ámbito luso. Resulta más emocionante cuando debes comprobar cuáles de los documentos en cuestión aún permanecen inéditos. Este trabajo, aunque es fundamental, no parece a priori muy divertido ¡pero esto no importa! Ya que para los amantes de la historia y la paleografía en general, y para mí en particular, lo tedioso de este trabajo se compensa con la agradable sensación que produce el estar “cara a cara” con un documento escrito hace siglos, que permanece a la espera de poder contarnos las historias que se esconden entre sus líneas, y que esperamos que “compartan” con nosotros en fases más avanzadas de la investigación.

Para poder desarrollar el proyecto, estamos incluyendo en una base de datos diseñada para tal efecto aquellos documentos que nos informan de acciones de la vida cotidiana (compras, ventas, donaciones, etc) llevadas a cabo entre individuos pertenecientes al ámbito rural, o pequeños poseedores de tierras alejados de las élites. Pero no siempre resulta sencillo clasificar a estos individuos. A medida que vamos procesando información, nos encontramos con un grupo recurrente que nos plantea problemas para su clasificación. En concreto, los presbíteros, como Wendy Davies ha demostrado en su excelente artículo: “Local priests in northern Iberia”. Esto se debe a que, aunque estos individuos pertenecían al ámbito eclesiástico, normalmente vivían su día a día en el ámbito de las comunidades rurales, formando parte de ellas. Esto hace que ocasionalmente estos individuos aparezcan en los documentos realizando transacciones personales que no parecen estar relacionadas con el grupo eclesiástico. Por ello, a la espera de ser analizados en profundidad, hemos decidido incluir esos documentos dentro de aquellos que fueron escritos en un contexto rural y laico.

Hasta aquí, algunos de los principales aspectos e impresiones destacables de mi primera etapa trabajando para el proyecto People And Writing. Aún queda mucho por hacer, pero creo que es hora de que juntos reivindiquemos y reflexionemos acerca de la importancia de las fuentes altomedievales y del amplio campo de estudio que ofrecen. Quizá así, podamos romper de una vez con los viejos mitos sobre ellas y sobre la Edad Media. Y tú, ¿qué crees? ¿Fue realmente la Edad Media un período oscuro?

                                                                                                                       Javier Gómez Gómez

Last September I wrote a post to share the news I had been awarded an ERC StG grant. The project was due to start last February. That was a February from a different world than the one we all live in now. Our lives have changed in ways no one could have predicted; we are not the same people we were before, and our work has also changed, taking the place it deserves: if you are reading this you are an enthusiast of Manuscript Studies, like me, but more than ever that goes to a second place, far behind ourselves, our families and loved ones, and our colleagues. At the beginning of the pandemic I wrote many emails to people just to be reassured they were alive, not well and working as usual, just alive. The human component of our professional relationships changed, at least to me. I have met many colleagues from all over the world in the last ten years, and I came to realise I admire them from a professional point of view, but also care for them as they were a family member. I am that kind of person. I am happy to say that all my people are doing fine; all my mentors and colleagues from whom I learned and learn so many new and exciting things are doing well.

But things have changed. Last February I began an exciting new step in my career thanks to an ERC project that would allow me to do cutting-edge research, build a team, stress the importance of having Manuscript Studies at my university and, if things had worked out as planned, establish the pillars of a research institute that should already be operating. However, the agenda has been postposed without further notice; we are still a long way from getting rid of the pandemic and other problems come first. I do not know about you. To me, the first few months were hectic but productive, then came a depression of some sort, grief, then apathy, disbelief, anger, sadness, hope, productivity again, and more rage. All that said, I am not writing this post to share negativity but positivity:

As I suppose many of you, I have attended many more conferences, seminars, talks, workshops and courses in the last six months than in some of the previous years. There were no problems with mobility and costs. Thank you to all institutions, associations, and individual colleagues who had seized upon the pandemic and held wonderful meetings. It is not the same as having you around, but a good enough substitute. In fact, without Zoom or Google Meet, it would have taken some time to see many of you. I guess it is worse for those who are starting in the field and need to establish social relationships, but just realise these scholars, however eminent as many of them are, are opening their homes to all of us. The good things in people excel in bad situations. Send emails, send tweets, send thank you notes.

The European Commission has been and is extremely conscious and considerate of the situation and has acknowledged all the problems we, researchers, are facing even before we needed to rise our voice (or even realise about). My project is still underway, but with a six-month delay. PeopleAndWriting began, again, in September.

When the pandemic broke out, I was supposed to be in Portugal gathering the corpus of documents for the project. Needless to say, I could not do that, at least not in the traditional way. And it came with a pleasant surprise. Archivists are extraordinary people. They worked through the pandemic with such an efficiency I am still astonished. I ordered images, I got images. In fact, since I was not in the archive and could not select what I wanted to see, I got many more images (whole folders instead of just one or two documents). And I found things I had not expected to find: hundreds of documents written in a script I had not seen before – Yes, it is Visigothic script. I have been looking at Visigothic for some thirteen years now. I found a new kind of Visigothic. A different way to write it –, many with a structure that was odd, to say the least. This has been a great discovery that would not have been possible without the pandemic. My research project has slightly changed to accommodate these findings and the results will be more meaningful that I thought.

I had time to build a site for the project: http://peopleandwriting.wordpress.com/ I was not going to create one for I thought it was unnecessary, but now we need to emphasise communication and make all possible data available to everyone. In a way, we have become a great hub of people, more fluently interconnected. I have not been able to put together a team, it is not a good moment to move to Spain, and will not so until next September. But all the changes in schedule, the new discoveries, and the new chores on teaching I had to accept made me hire some help: I have a research technician working on the project who is doing wonders in setting the corpus up for the next stage. So, say hi to Javier, you will read from him soon.

Now more than ever, be safe, be happy, stay in touch. Best wishes to all.

By Ainoa Castro

Hace muchísimo tiempo, creo que desde que me enteré de que la paleografía existía como ciencia y en qué consistía, que he tenido la ilusión de desarrollar un videojuego sobre manuscritos medievales. No soy muy del tema, pero los de temática histórica sí que tienen un hueco en casa y continúo aprendiendo gracias a ellos (mi marido siempre tiene problemas conteniendo a los visigodos en la península y para mí es un placer ver como Boudica se carga a Roma). Siempre me ha parecido increíblemente bonita la escritura como tal, desde un punto de vista meramente estético, y más aún cuando empezamos a pensar que es el resultado de gente que, ya sea como individuos o como sociedad, también se veían reflejados en ella. Cuanto más capturada estaba por la escritura, los manuscritos y la paleografía en sí, más me sorprendía que no lo estuviera todo el mundo.

Cuando empecé a dar clase comencé a entender por qué. Y es que, aunque la carga estética sí es fácil de apreciar, las diferentes grafías y el idioma (véase el latín medieval apreciado por todos) hacían ya no solo prácticamente incomprensible, sino, y más importante, tedioso para los alumnos el acercarse a las fuentes manuscritas. Mi idea del videojuego cobró entonces más fuerza. Si conseguía meterles en la cabeza las abreviaturas, los diferentes tipos de alfabetos, como si fuera un juego, quizás verían los manuscritos con otros ojos. Pero, llevar a cabo algo así no es fácil. De hecho, ¡diseñar un videojuego es tremendamente difícil! A lo que me refiero es que ya no es solamente el tener la idea y saber cómo desarrollarla, sino tener el tiempo para hacerlo y, lo más importante de todo, desde mi punto de vista, no estar solo en la tarea; ya no por dividir la carga de trabajo entre varios, proponiendo, realizando y revisando entre todos los contenidos, sino el hecho de sentirse respaldado en lo que puede parecer, a priori, una locura absoluta. Pues bien, ahora que ya soy personal docente estable, ¡llegó el momento de secuestrar compañeros y volverse locos!

Como firme defensora de la escritura visigótica, me desilusionaba mucho que los recursos existentes online para practicar paleografía, incluso los centrados en contenido medieval, hiciesen caso omiso de este tipo de escritura. Por otro lado, soy muy quisquillosa con el aspecto gráfico de las cosas y, practicar transcripción, que ya es duro, en un entorno digital funcional pero aburrido (¡con excepciones!) me hace simpatizar con los estudiantes en su reticencia. Había (hay) mucho trabajo que hacer.

El año pasado empecé a desarrollar la idea del videojuego ya con la firme intención de llevarla a cabo porque realmente pensaba que los alumnos no solo necesitaban una herramienta de aprendizaje más dinámica, sino que la iban a agradecer. Desde el principio tuve claro que tenía que reunir un equipo de colaboradores interdisciplinar, porque la paleografía no lo es todo y no sirve de nada sin la historia y la filología (entre otras ciencias). Compañeros de la USAL se unieron: Iñaki Martín Viso, Fernando Luis Corral, Gregorio del Ser Quijano, Mª Adelaida Andrés Sanz, Juan Miguel Valero Moreno y David Paniagua Aguilar.

Nuestra primera tarea fue determinar los objetivos prácticos del juego y, partiendo de éstos, cómo presentarlos al jugador. ¿De qué va el juego? Pues bien, Littera, el juego, tiene como finalidad esencial introducir a los alumnos al trabajo directo con los alfabetos, sistema abreviativo, y textos de contexto peninsular de entre los siglos VI y XIII. Esto significa que tanto las escrituras uncial, semiuncial, carolina y gótica libraria, y no solamente la escritura visigótica, están representadas. Partiendo de esta base, necesitábamos hacer una selección de fuentes sobre las que trabajar cada aspecto. ¿Cómo? Tras darle muchas vueltas, decidimos seleccionar un códice representativo de cada uno de estos siglos, dejando para más adelante los diplomas. Había que empezar por algún sitio. Decidimos que, de cada ejemplo, añadiríamos una introducción explicativa de su contexto, añadiendo enlaces a libros, artículos, videos… cualquier recurso que sirviese para que el jugador entendiese qué estaba viendo más allá de aprender lo básico del trabajo con fuentes.

Cuando teníamos algo que enseñar, sobre papel, fue fundamental el apoyo excepcional que recibimos por parte de los archivos: Bibliothèque nationale de France, Real Biblioteca del Monasterio de San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Biblioteca Apostólica Vaticana, Real Academia de la Historia (Madrid), University of Manchester (John Rylands Library), The British Library y Biblioteca Nacional de España (Madrid). No solamente nos brindaron su ayuda (recursos gráficos) de forma gratuita, es más, recibieron la idea con entusiasmo.

Teníamos los manuscritos, los textos contextuales, la idea de los minijuegos que formarían cada etapa de Littera, uno para practicar el alfabeto, otro para las abreviaturas, otro para la transcripción… Faltaba el equipo de desarrollo técnico.

(by J. Peral ©)

Littera no habría sido posible, y no lo será en el futuro, sin la colaboración de Andrés de Pedro, que desde el principio acogió la idea con una energía tremenda y que, gracias a su experiencia profesional, ha madurado mucho más allá de lo que era inicialmente. Con Andrés vino Jorge Peral, que supo plasmar el diseño que tenía en mente con una rapidez y perfección impresionantes. Y, cuando ya la cosa empezaba a tomar forma, se sumó otro componente fundamental del equipo, Cristina Alís, que, desinteresadamente, ha proporcionado (y quiero decir ha grabado) toda la música ambiental de Littera. Si los alumnos/jugadores están más de 3 horas seguidas jugando (sus propios comentarios) es por su excelente trabajo.

Cuando ya tuvimos una versión beta de Littera, invité a los alumnos de paleografía del grado en historia de la USAL a que lo probasen y la experiencia ¡resultó ser todo un hito! Jugaron, superaron cada etapa, aprendieron, se picaron entre ellos, y completaron lo que para nosotros había sido el trabajo de meses en unos pocos días. Lo más importante, nos animaron a ampliarlo, desarrollarlo más, completarlo y, en fin, llevaron la idea inicial a la siguiente etapa. Por tener una segunda opinión, también se abrió Littera a un grupo selecto de beta testers externos a través de convocatoria en Twitter, que super rápidamente se vio sobrepasada con más de cien personas pidiendo jugar. Ambas experiencias han demostrado que este tipo de recursos resultan indispensables en nuestro marco docente. Todos los alumnos constataron una mejoría indiscutible en sus habilidades en el trabajo con fuentes. De hecho, la nota media del curso subió considerablemente. Y mejoraron jugando. En la cafetería, en casa, entre asignaturas, casi por casualidad.

Algo fundamental que nos dejó la primera ronda de testeo es darnos cuenta de que estábamos equivocados en una cosa; no habíamos caído en algo. Enfocamos el juego a nuestros alumnos, pero nos encontramos con alumnos de otras materias, de física, psicología, medicina, con gente de fuera del ámbito universitario, que también disfrutaban jugando. Tuvimos que darle una vuelta, y en ello estamos; este próximo año,

El hecho de desarrollar y usar Littera en clase, me ha llevado a ponderar dos aspectos que, a simple vista, no había considerado con tanta profundidad previamente.

En primer lugar, la metodología docente de cada uno de los profesores que enseñamos fuentes manuscritas, dejando a un lado por un momento la especialidad, es diferente. Para unos, lo fundamental es conseguir que los alumnos realicen una transcripción medianamente potable y, para ello, dedican toda su energía a practicar transcripciones incansablemente en las horas de clase. Para otros, como es mi caso, la intención última es que aprecien los manuscritos con una opinión lo suficientemente formada que les capacite para acercarse a su contexto, que entiendan qué es un sistema gráfico y qué implicaciones tiene dado un contexto histórico determinado. Desde mi punto de vista, hacer bien una transcripción no tiene mucho que ver, aunque, por supuesto, es deseable, con ser un buen paleógrafo.

En segundo lugar, es tremendamente aburrido tener que ceñirse a un programa docente. Separar la docencia de la investigación es erróneo y cansino, y nuestra falta de entusiasmo en clase se transmite con muchísima facilidad. Los alumnos han de saber en qué estamos trabajando, qué se está haciendo en el campo y por qué. Me parece fundamental mostrarles que la ciencia paleográfica, fuera de ser algo rígido, es cambiante y evoluciona constantemente.

En ambos sentidos, Littera ha resultado una buena herramienta para reflexionar sobre nuestra labor y cómo mejorarla. Partiendo de las clases presenciales, los alumnos han podido centrarse en la escritura en sí y en su contexto, en la transcripción de un texto específico, o en ambos. Pudiendo incorporar material casi automáticamente a la plataforma, incluso artículos recientes podían referenciarse con explicaciones específicas a las que el docente puede dirigir a los alumnos. Aún estamos dando los primeros pasos, pero, sin duda, está mereciendo la pena.

Por ahora, Littera es accesible solamente a nuestros alumnos. Queremos aprender cómo mejorar antes de abrir el juego a todos. Esperamos que, próximamente, podamos compartirlo y, espero, porque sigo teniendo más ideas locas, hacerlo aún más grande.

por A. Castro

In the late eleventh century, Abbot Fortunio decided to enlist the scribes living in the
monastery of Silos, near Burgos, in the time-consuming and costly task of copying for
the monastery one of the most significant peninsular best sellers of the Middle Ages:
a Beatus, a commentary on the book of Revelation. In doing so, he was continuing a
long-lasting Iberian tradition originating in the late eighth century, already popular and
yet far from over. Fortunio was taking advantage of the fruitful efforts of his predecessor,
Abbot Domingo, to restore the Benedictine community of Silos, left in ruins after
theMuslim raids of the late tenth century. But what was the process of copying this
book? How did it all start, and what did this work mean for the monastery of Silos?
The colophons and historical data held in this Beatus, now known as the Silos
Apocalypse (London, British Library, Additional MS 11695), inform the reader about
the commissioners under whom the copy was produced, the scribes who engaged in
that task, the illuminators who created one of the most significant extant examples
of Mozarabic or northern Christian art, and when and where it all happened. But,
is all the contextual information the codex provides accurate? In this article, the Silos
Apocalypse is thoroughly analyzed to unveil the identity of its scribes, what can be
known about their professional careers, their cultural context, and how this codex
fits within thewritten production of the monastery of Silos in the late eleventh and early
twelfth century.

Check it on the journal“s site.

More on the #Beatus on Littera.

It is quite comforting to know that, although Palaeography as a field is not going through its best moment in Spain – particularly Early Medieval Palaeography –, there are still students out there who care to know more about it. From my personal point of view, it is at the same time disheartening to hear them talk about their previous experience with Palaeography when we first meet.

First of all, (my) Visigothic script is usually not taught with the excuse there are very few manuscripts (sure, only some 400 codices and several thousand charters) and everything has been already studied (come on! Nothing is always completely studied, keep your enthusiasm alive). Dear colleagues, with all due respect, you have a responsibility towards your field and your students, please be consistent. I might not teach my students Merovingian script for them to master it, but at least I tell them it exists and show them how it looks like and why is it important framed on its historical and cultural context.

Second, students have no idea whatsoever of what does it mean “to do Palaeography”, or to be a specialist in Manuscript Studies for that matter. Every single one of the students I have had contact with had repeated like a creed “a palaeographer’s work is to put medieval documents in “”a normal typography”” for historians to read”. OMG. Please, ours is the responsibility to change that. I am for launching a global media campaign to all public…

Long story short, please do encourage students to learn about manuscripts. Palaeography needs you – by the way, this includes Codicology, Diplomatics, Semiology, History of writing… Manuscript Studies aka Historiographical Sciences and Techniques (in Spanish jargon).

“Along these lines, I will try to explain how was my first experience studying Visigothic script Palaeography.

A few months ago, I started learning Palaeography with Ainoa. I remember the first time I saw a document written in Visigothic script; I had never seen this type of writing before and I panicked. I had studied Palaeography during my degree in History at University three years ago, although just for a short period, and I had seen manuscripts written in Gothic script, but this was something different. When studying Medieval Palaeography at university, especially in the south of Spain, teachers do not usually teach Visigothic script saying that there are few manuscripts written in this script compared with plenty of documents in Gothic or other scripts. On the other hand, I have to say that, when I finished my degree, I thought the job of a medieval palaeographer consisted on transcribing documents, and also that the most important part of manuscripts was their content. But after studying Visigothic script Palaeography, I have learnt Palaeography offers many different possibilities to study the Middle Ages, especially from the 8th to the 12th centuries.

I have learnt many things which are essential. For example that, by looking at a manuscript, a trained palaeographer is able to know the type of monastery where it was written, the places where the manuscript had been through its life, or even if the scribe was able to read or, conversely, if he just knew to write and copy texts (among other things). In my opinion, this type of information is really important and useful to understand society or culture in the early Middle Ages.

I must recognise that the first time I saw an example of Visigothic script I thought I would never be able to read it, but, even slowly, I can now read and understand the documents.

To conclude, I have to say that I am still studying Visigothic and Caroline scripts, and I hope to keep learning because I think Palaeography is fascinating.”

by A. Castro and J. Gómez

El próximo 8 de enero tendrá lugar en la Universidad de Salamanca (Facultad de Geografía e Historia, sala de Grados) a partir de las 18.00 la cuarta jornada de debate sobre manuscritos medievales organizada gracias a la financiación obtenida por APICES (dotación J.M.M. Hermans) y por el Máster Universitario en Estudios Avanzados e Investigación en Historia (Sociedades, Poderes, Identidades) de la USAL.

En esta sesión centraremos el debate en la Biblia y su transmisión durante la Edad Media, contando con la ponencia invitada de Greti Dinkova-Bruun (Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, Toronto).

La participación en el acto es libre y todos, público en general, alumnos, profesores e investigadores, estáis invitados a asistir.

Since I am currently teaching at the Universidad de Salamanca, what I do is Spanish/Iberian Medieval Palaeography (I am planning to expand that to other European scripts, particularly Merovingian and Insular :) ) and, therefore, all the following resources are in Spanish. If you are reading this, you are either a Spanish scholar or someone interested in Spanish Palaeography and able to read it. If you need help with a translation, do let me know.

Be aware this is an undergraduate course and these materials are adapted to that level.

Presentation: This is the PowerPoint presentation that links all the materials included in my 3-week class on Medieval Palaeography and Diplomatics. Since it is a general summary, here you will find the most relevant topics and images to contextualise those most significant aspects developed in each lesson.

Lesson 1: Palaeography: A general approach to the field identifying its three methods/aims – reading, analysing and contextualising manuscripts – with a basic vocabulary/terminology at the end.

Lesson 2: Medieval abbreviations: Types of medieval abbreviations (with examples) and their origin.

Lesson 3: Roman and National scripts (with examples and a short introduction to graphic diversity in the Early Medieval period) and Visigothic script (everything you ever wanted to know on Visigothic script– on its genetic, chronological and geographic origin, its name, types and characteristics, evolution and regional variants – plus exercises).

Lesson 4: Graphic homogenisation and Caroline minuscule, including a short introduction on Charlemagne, the basic graphic characteristics of Caroline minuscule, its evolution and adaptation/transformation in Iberia, also with exercises.

Lesson 5: Graphic division and Gothic scripts, with a very short but clarifying list on types of scripts and their context.

Lesson 6: Medieval Diplomatics: A general approach and explanation of its four methods – documentary genesis, tradition, structure, and edition – with some examples, proposals, further references and resources.

I will gladly welcome advice to improve these resources, and please do let me know if you are to use them on class (measuring impact and all that…).

by A. Castro