In Honor of the Holy Cross | In honorem sanctae crucis

Copyright Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana. http://digi.vatlib.it/view/MSS_Reg.lat.124/0078
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Text Information

Author |
Rabanus Maurus
Language |
Latin
Period |
9th Century
Genre |
Devotional poetry
Keywords |
prayer, Didactic poetry--Latin (Medieval and modern), Concrete poetry
Collection
Prayer, Spirituality, and Life after Death: Global Medieval Perspectives

Introduction to the Text

This text is one of a series of figure poems by Rabanus Maurus (c.780-856 CE), a Benedictine monk and prolific writer who rose to become archbishop of Mainz (in what is now western Germany). The speaker in the poem is a Christian kneeling before the cross, praying to the crucified Christ, and this is mirrored by the shape of the poem on the page of the manuscript: words surrounding - and forming - the shape of a cross.

Introduction to the Source

The manuscript source is Vatican. Reg. Lat. 124. f.35v and is available to view here. All images of the text displayed on this site are copyright Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana.

Credits

Translation by May PetersonEncoded in TEI P5 XML by Jordan Rosen-Kaplan

Suggested citation: Rabanus Maurus. "In Honor of the Holy Cross." Trans. May Peterson. Global Medieval Sourcebook. http://sourcebook.stanford.edu/text/honor-holy-cross. Retrieved on April 16, 2024.