Collectio Sandionysiana

Title	Collectio Sandionysiana
Key	NA
Size	Medium (500 to 1000 canons)
Terminus post quem	1000
Terminus ante quem	1065
Century	saec. XI
General region of origin	Northwestern Europe
Main author	Linda Fowler-Magerl

Title

The collection in Paris, BnF, nouv. acq. lat. 326 is variously known as a 74T copy, a "rearrangement of 74T" (Fowler-Magerl), or the Saint Denis Collection (Rolker). For the Wiki, I have used Sandionysiana as almost all collections have a short Latin title here.

Which 74T version does the Saint-Denis version belong to?

According to the criteria established by Gilchrist himself, the compiler of a rearrangement of the Diversorum patrum sententie in the Ms Paris, BN n. a. l. 326 (NA) must have had access to a better form of the collection than the scribes at Montecassino. This rearrangement was made for the monastery Saint-Denis outside Paris for presentation at Rome in 1065 in litigation with the bishop of Paris. The collection contains almost all of the canons in the Diversorum patrum sententie and almost nothing else. This rearrangement is closely related to another form of the collection in the Ms Paris, BnF, lat. 13658 (NB). The version of the Diversorum patrum sententie used by the compiler of the collection in the Ms Paris, BN n. a. l. 326 was also used by the compiler of the Collectio IV librorum and at Poitiers in the late 1070s and early 1080s by the compilers of the Collectio Burdegalensis and the first version of the Collectio Tarraconensis. It was also apparently used by the compiler of the third book of the Collectio Farfensis, see p. 123. Theo Kölzer, who analysed the Farfensis points to the fact that the collection in the Ms Paris, BN n. a. l. 326 and the Farfensis have in common that both are transmitted in conjunction with the chartularies of their respective monasteries. [115]

On fol. 1r of the Ms Paris, BN n. a. l. 326 is, in a 16th century hand, a note saying that the manuscript comes from the monastery „Sancte Fidei in Slezestadio“ (Schlettstadt). A 14th century note describes the contents of the manuscript: „Privilegia ecclesie Beati Dyonisii in Francia“. The first 23 folios contain privileges for the monastery of Saint-Denis. Folios 24 and 25 are a doublet between the chartulary and the collection. Folio 25 contains three letters attributed to pope Alexander II (1061–1073). The first is adressed to present and future kings, dukes, princes and other lords, ordering them to respect the privileges of Saint-Denis (JL 4565, Migne PL 146.1306– 1309). It is dated in the 4th year of his pontificate, 1065. It refers to the venerabilis abba Raynerius et monachi monasterii beati Dyonisii martyris. The second letter in the doublet is adressed to king Philipp I (1060–1108) and a comes B. ordering them to defend monasteries. The third is adressed to Gervasius, archbishop of Reims (d. 1067).

There is something peculiar about the name of the abbot, however. It was clearly entered in a space not intended for it. „Ray“ is at the end of a line. The next line begins with enough free space to accomodate several letters (but is not the result of an erasure) followed by „nerius“. This is not a correction. The space for the name of the abbot was apparently originally left free.

The canon law collection begins on fol. 26r. Folios 73–74, again a doublet, contain a privilege for Saint-Denis from king Philipp I dated 1068. The abbot named is Vuaszo: fidelissimus noster Vuaszo abba et monachi ter beati Dyonisii martyris. Following this privilege is an excerpt from the vision of Eucharius in which the tomb of Charles Martel at Saint Denis was opened and his son Pippin witnessed how the tomb had been scorched by hell fire. This text, meant to fortify the privilege, relates how Pippin resolved to return to the church as much of the property that his father had distributed to followers as possible. The original of this privilege, now in the Archives nationales, and a copy of that original (K 20 no 4 and no 4 bis) refer to the fidelissimus noster Raynerius abba et monachi monasterii ter beati Dyonisii martyris. In both the original and the copy Raynerius is written over an erasure. Léon Levillain deciphered under the erasure the name Vuaszo. Using the Wood lamp Ghislain Brunel of the Archives Nationales has recently confirmed for me that reading.

Léon Levillain argues that Rainerius sought the privilege from Philipp, died and was replaced by Vuaszo. The scribe responsible for the privilege copied the name of the new abbot and then noticed his [116] mistake. The collection must have been completed before the correction was made. Rolf Grosse is inclined to agree with him. The last mention of Rainerius was in 1065. There are other possible explanations, but none of them can be proven. In any case, the inserted doublets cannot be used for a precise dating of the collection.