di Antonella Bazzoli – translated by  Lynn Della Torre – aprile 2012

That’s why, especially in agro-pastoral environments, February was the time when people turned to the therapeutic virtues of waters that were considered to be miraculous. It is not by chance that the medieval cult of Our Lady of Milk, as well as that of the galactophorous saints (literally “ milk carriers” ), is testified in various parts of Italy and Europe, especially near grottos and therapeutic springs. These places, that were rich in healthy waters, were believed to be sacred and were visited mainly by puerperae and young women who wanted to assure themselves that they would have enough milk to appease the hunger of their children.
St. Brigid of Ireland and St. Agatha of Sicily are among the most well known galactophorous saints in Europe.  However, there are many other female cults connected with virgins, saints and blessed women, such as St. Scholastica in Umbria (St. Benedict’s sister) and the virgin, Romana, who, according to tradition, lived as a hermit in a sacred grotto on Mount Soratte.
It is not by chance that all these saints, protectors of  mother’s milk, are venerated in February, the month that coincides with the lamb suckling time.
The hagiographic events of some galactophorous saints are particularly rich in details and enable us to understand the great diffusion of their cults that, in some cases, have persisted from the Middle Ages to our times.

St. Brigid, in particular, is still celebrated all over Europe on the 1 February.
Brigid of Kildare, who is most popular in northern countries, was an abbess who lived in Ireland and pursued St. Patrick’s evangelizing activity.
A curious account about her relates that one day many bishops visited her in the convent she had founded.  She decided to milk her only cow in the hope of being able to offer her important guests a proper welcome; miraculously the cow gave three times more milk than the animal could have normally produced. Hence she became the protector of milkmen, puerperae and livestock.
She died on the first day of February, 525, a significant and non-fortuitous date because it marks  the median point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. On this magic day, that coincides with the peak of winter, the ancient Celts used to celebrate Imbolc and the goddess Brigit.
It is evident that later those pre-christian cults were absorbed by the new cult of St. Brigid. It was not even necessary to change the goddess name: Brigit became St. Brigid and a syncretistic  process transformed the pagan cult definitively  into the one of the venerated Irish abbess.
Even the archaic rituals associated with the springs sacred to the goddess survived the transformation: Brigid continued to assure milk in abundance to puerperae and to shepherds who led their flocks to her sacred springs. After washing their hands and feet in the magic waters of her springs, women devoted to the Irish saint continued to tear pieces of cloth from their clothes and tie them to the nearest tree which they danced around, as prescribed in the archaic ritual, believing that by doing so they kept away every disease from the body and from the spirit.

medieval fresco representing a galactophorous saint

Agatha, the Sicilian martyr celebrated on 5 February, is the most venerated galactophorous saint in Italy. Also this saint, the protector of livestock and the patron saint of wet-nurses and nursing mothers, is believed to have had thaumaturgic virtues.
She died in Catania on 5 February 251 and henceforth her cult spread all over Europe.
We know that when Agatha was twenty, she already possessed a vast culture that enabled her to become a deaconess. This occurred in the first centuries of Christianity, when women were still allowed to hold important positions in the religious sphere, from which they would be excluded later on.  In particular, Agatha was concerned with catechesis and prepared new followers for the sacrament of baptism. Her sacerdotal career ended abruptly due to a proconsul, named Quintian, who became infatuated with her and ordered her to reject her christian faith.  Since she refused resolutely, Quintian sent her to Aphrodisia, a courtesan devoted to sacred prostitution who tried in vain to corrupt the young deaconess. Having lost all hope, Quintian had her arrested and tortured. After having her breasts cut off, she was subjected to the torment of burning coals.
That’s why many paintings representing St. Agatha show the cut off breasts, offered by the martyr on a paten, as her attribute.

Antonella Bazzoli - August 26th 2011, updated February 1st 2012

Translation by Patrick Raymer and Esterina Cestelli

For further information:

“Agenda Medievale 2010. Il tempo delle donne” di A. Antonelli e A. Bazzoli. Edimond 2009

Originally the festival was celebrated on only one day: the fourteenth day before the Kalends of January (December 19), but during the imperial age the festival lasted seven days, from December 17 to 23. It was an occasion for celebration, visiting friends and presenting gifts, particularly wax candles and small earthenware figurines named “sigillaria” (Macrobius, Saturnali I, I, 10.24).
The Saturnalia consisted of banquets, dances, orgies and excesses of all kinds. Even gambling, banned in the rest of the year, was tolerated during the holiday.
Pliny the Younger wrote that during the festival he withdrew to a secluded house to study in peace (Epistles, II, 17, 24). Restrictions were relaxed and the social order inverted, so that the slaves were treated as equals. They were allowed to wear their masters’ clothing, and were waited on at meal time in remembrance of the legendary “golden age”, when people could live peacefully, without discrimination between freemen and slaves.
We know that the term Saturnalia derives from Saturn, the italic god identified with the greek Kronos. Inside his temple in Rome, the woollen bonds that fettered the feet of the ivory cult statue were loosened during the Saturnalia to symbolize the liberation of the god and the return to the mythical Golden Age. As Seneca mentions (Apocol. 8.2), on the first day of celebration a “Saturnalicius princeps” was appointed who reigned for the entire week. He may have represented Saturn. Apparently, at the end of the festivities the “saturnaliorum rex” was put to death, probably just symbolically.

This ancient tradition reminds to another one which occurs still today in many Italian regions at the end of the year, or during Carnival, culminating in burning  a burlesque figure, symbol of the past year.

The Saturnalia continued to be celebrated in Rome as the socalled Brumalia (from “bruma”, winter solstice) up until the Christian era, when in the middle of the fourth century its rituals became absorbed and reappropriated into the celebration of Christmas.

Interesting is to discover that there are analogous characteristics between the god Saturn and the Vedic figure of  Satyavrata. The Hindu tradition says that the Lord Vishnu appeared to the king Satyavrata in the form of a giant fish to announce him a cosmic deluge. The Lord ordered Satyavrata to build a boat to save seeds, plants and animals required for creating the next world. In the Hindu myth the figure of Satyavrata is similar to the Christian’s Noah. But according to René Guénon Satyavrata may represent – like the god Saturn – the manifestation of a deity who creates and recreates the cosmos continuously.
Vishnu appeared to Satyavrata in a transitional period at the end of the cosmic cycle preceding the present one, while Saturn’s role of renewer of the cosmos is confirmed by the Saturnalia, celebrated as a week of transition and renewal in which everything was allowed.
No less interesting is to note that the root “sat” (which in Sanskrit means “the One”) is common to both deities.

This leads us to ask why the Saturnalia fell at the end of December and not at the end of February, shortly before the spring when the ancient Romans used to celebrate the New Year. The fact is that the calendar of Romolo was composed of only ten months, as evidenced by the last month: December. On this calendar, January and February represented a time of transition towards the increasingly longer days of the New Year, and towards the renewal of the cosmos.

After the reform of Numa, who introduced the two missing months, the period of transition and renewal focused on the days preceding the winter solstice when the sun transcends an apparent death to rise again in three days time, higher in the sky.

I worked in Rome for about a year or so back in 2000. During that time, I had gotten to know some areas of Northern Italy fairly well, so I had planned a trip to show my family all of the great destinations I had found while working in Italy. But, at the last minute after all of the reservations had been made, on the strong recommendation of a friend, we squeezed in a 3-day trip to Perugia, in Umbria. We were so glad we did this because Perugia became one of our favorite destinations in Italy, based on our initial visit. The city is compact, picturesque, and chocked full of Italian history. It has excellent, but inexpensive food and is relatively unknown compared to the towns in nearby Tuscany. On the first trip we met a charming, gregarious Italian woman named Antonella, who was an acquaintance of the Italian friend who had recommended Perugia to us. She is a professional journalist, and has a special affinity for the local area of Perugia where she lives. We became fast friends on that first trip to Perugia.

My family and I spent a half-day or so with her and she was a marvelous hostess, taking us to some great local spots. I kept up my correspondence with Antonella for the intervening years until it was time to plan my next trip to Italy. This time I was taking my sister to Italy for the first time. The pressure felt immense as I wanted to be sure she got a real flavor for the country. But, I didn’t hesitate to recommend that we skip some of the other classic tourist destinations in Northern Italy in favor of Perugia and my sister readily agreed. Little did we know that on this second trip Perugia would once again exceed our expectations? When my sister and I arrived in Perugia, it was late afternoon and a beautiful fall day. It was warm, but not too hot. We sat in the main Piazza as my sister drank her excellent coffee, and I knew that the magic of the place was working on her. But, the coup de gras was the personal tour of the town by my friend Antonella the next day. We found out that Antonella studied political science and that as a journalist she specializes in historical research, iconography and archaeology. She showed us so many interesting spots in downtown from the Etruscan era to modern times, all the while weaving a fascinating tale about the history of Perugia as we visited these historical points in the city center. The last stop was the Fontana Maggiore.  Antonella spent a full hour giving us a detailed description of each of the levels on the fountain, showing how there was a balance between the religious and secular symbols that were used. For example, we learned that the fountain was completed in 1278, allowing the people of Perugia access to the spring water from Monte Pacciano, rather than having to depend on the Etruscan wells and cisterns. My sister was a History major in college and was just thrilled with her new-found knowledge of the history of Perugia and the understanding of the symbolism of the fountain. Later, when we returned to the US, my sister continued to read further about the history of the area. For those of you that might be interested, Antonella conducts tours of the area in English and she has a web site with some very interesting articles.

Here is the link to contact Antonella:

http://www.evus.it/contattaci/

Here is the link to an article about the fountain:

http://www.evus.it/the-fountain-of-women/

Ci sentiamo presto!

Lina de la Torre

Read more at MADEINITALYMALL

The group of statues could have represented the divine protective triad of the Etruscan Perugia

In the case of Porta Marzia, the sculptures at Jove’s side could be identified as the two mythical brothers Auleste and Ocno – an ancient saga tells us that it was they who founded Perugia, Bologna and Mantua. This legend recounts that Perugia was founded by the Etruscan hero Auleste, the same Auleste who Servio identified as the brother (or perhaps his father) of Ocno in his comments on the 10th book of the Aeneid. Servio also tells us that Ocno had founded Felsina (the original name of Bologna) and Mantua, in order to avoid arguing with his brother Auleste.
As historian Filippo Coarelli claims, it is very likely that Ocno and Auleste had an important role not just in the Etruscan colonization of Val Padana, but also in the colonization of Umbria and Tuscany. If this were true, then the two sculptures on the faux balcony of Porta Marzia really could represent the founders of Perugia and their presence next to Jove/Tinia would also justify the close allegiance with Rome.
We know that the name Auleste became Euliste during the Middle Ages. Not only, but the myth surrounding him, the hero-founder of Perugia, was still very much alive even in the 13th century. In fact, among the bas relief panels that surround the Fontana Maggiore – which the free and powerful City of Perugia commissioned from Nicola and Giovanni Pisano – there is one depicting Euliste right on the northern corner of the upper basin. This placement was far from accidental. If we start at the mythical founder of the city on the northern side and trace an imaginary axis along the basin’s diameter, towards the southern end, we find the allegory of Perugia exactly at the opposite end of the circular basin. The allegory is represented by a matron seated in a throne with a cornucopia in hand.

Perugia is represented by a matron seated in a throne with a cornucopia in hand.

If Rome, the ally of Perugia, could boast a legendary foundation that dates to the time of Romulus and Remus (it is not a coincidence that we find the twins, the wolf, Rea Silvia and the allegory of Rome among the fountains bas reliefs panels) then Perugia could be no less important where illustrious founding fathers were concerned.
With the same self-indulgent spirit, the rich and independent Guelph city of Perugia commissioned a literary work from the “magister in astrologia et in versificando” Bonifacio da Verona. This famous poet composed Eulistea, an epic poem he wrote in hexameter in 1293. Unfortunately, it has been lost over the centuries, depriving us of that which remained of an ancient saga which was still very much alive in the imagination of Medieval men. But who knows, perhaps some time in the future discoveries will be made that will return this tale to modern man.

by Antonella Bazzoli

translated by Patrick Raymer – 23 luglio 2011

The monk Bevignate is wearing a white habit like the Knights Templar

It was on the 13^th of October 1307 when the King of France, Filippo il Bello, ordered the arrest of the Templar Knights. The monks who belonged to the order were imprisoned and tortured, including the Great Master, Jacques de Molay. Their property was confiscated, and all archives and documents were destroyed, making the task of reconstructing the true story of the Templars a difficult one.
However, through the recovery of forgotten stories and through the study of minor characters, it is still possible to uncover interesting details, and even run into unexpected truths.
As is the case of St. Bevignate, to whom the Templars dedicated in 1260 the new church in Perugia, today considered one of the most interesting buildings of the Knights Order in Europe, whose interior was decorated with original frescoes that were recently restored.
Little to nothing is known, however, about the figure of Bevignate. He was a hermit who was never canonized by the Pope despite the many enduring supplications by the Commune of Perugia. The Church promptly denied the demands, despite the support of the Templars and the most revered monk among all the knights from Assisi, fra’ Bonvicino, who at that time was the papal bodyguard nicknamed “cubicularius”.

Templar monks painted in the church of St. Bevignate in Perugia

Despite the refusal to canonize Bevignate, the inhabitants of Perugia continued to worship him as a saint. Despite their failure, the municipal authorities did not lose heart and in 1453 decided to self-declare the sanctity of Bevignate, drafting a kind of secular canonization, a document very similar in style to that of a papal bull, in which it was written: “He was born and lived in our countryside and ended his life piously in the same city, and although he is not written of in the catalog of saints, regarding the sanctity of his life and frequency of the many miracles performed, in life and in death, there is no doubt that he is among the saints in the glory of paradise.”
Today, after so many centuries, we wonder how it was possible that the Templars of Perugia dedicated their new church to a saint who was never recognized as such by the Pope. It seems almost an affront, a challenge, or at the very least a bold and independent statement by an order of knights created to be at the service of the pope, and by the Guelph Commune of Perugia, always allied with the Roman Church.

1 Old Testament, Canticle of Canticles

2 “Erbario della Marucelliana” Manuscript C/168, Biblioteca Marucelliana di Firenze

3 T. Garzoni da Bagnacavallo “La piazza universale di tutte le professioni del mondo” ed.1599

Evus wants to be a virtual flight on the wings of knowledge, an original journey between myth and tradition, iconography, literature, architecture, art and more.

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There are many magazines on the web dealing with art history and archaeology, many blogs dealing with past cultures and ancient traditions. Some of these use a scientific language, reserved for specialists, while others disseminate interesting news, but unfortunately are not always inspired by the scientific method.

We think that the scientific method should characterize any kind of historical investigation, and we want to share the results of our research, as we believe that only through shared knowledge and awareness of the past is it possible to improve and transform our future.

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The capital in the crypt has an anthropomorphic aspect

The church of St. Ponziano, built outside the medieval city walls of Spoleto and close to the paleochristian temple of St. Salvatore, is considered one of the most interesting examples of romanesque architecture in central Italy. It belonged to a benedictine abbey and was dedicated to the patron saint of Spoleto, martyred during the persecution of the christians in the second century AD.
In accordance with ancient tradition, on January 14 during the festival of St. Ponziano, the inhabitants of Spoleto will not cut bread with knives, which were the weapons used by the Romans to torture and behead the martyr.
Outside the church two lions mark the entrance like guardians of a temple. Above the architrave there is an “agnus dei” (lamb of God) between a lion and an eagle, along with a Latin inscription reading: “To you who come in peace… remember that you become mud and ash, generated between tears receive begged forgiveness.” Around the rose window and accompanied by inscriptions are the traditional symbols of the four evangelists: the lion for Mark, the eagle for John, the bull for Luke, and the angel for Matthew.

The roman capital used as basement of the column in the crypt of San Ponziano in Spoleto

Especially worthy of a visit is the impressive crypt under the presbytery. Architecturally, there are three small aisles and five apses. On the walls, interesting fourteenth and fifteenth century frescoes still preserve signatures and symbols left by pilgrims and devotees over the centuries.
Some of the capitals and columns that support the vaults of the crypt were taken from earlier roman buildings. It was typical of those in the middle ages to use old materials and adapt them to new monuments. Columns taken from pagan temples were often used in christian churches, even if the columns could not reach the exact height of the vault of the new building, inserts were added to compensate.

The anthropomorphic aspect of the capital could represent the head of Ponziano

But in the crypt of St. Ponziano there is a column that is different from all the others. At its base there’s a roman capital overthrown, which seems to be an architectural element of symbolic value. The capital was not modified, while the floor was adapted around the capital by digging a small artificial hole below the level of the pavement. It is a sort of concave space, which seems deliberately created under the column, maybe to indicate a special place worthy of worship or memory. Could it mark the exact place where the martyr was buried in 175 AD?
The theory would be confirmed by the fact that someone intentionally transformed the capital into a sort of face, puncturing three big holes that resemble two eyes and a mouth wide-open. The anthropomorphic aspect of the capital could represent the head of Ponziano and probably even mark the tomb of the martyr under the pavement.
Lending aid to this theory is the legend that says Ponziano was buried just outside the city and his tomb was erected in a place of worship near a monastery. No less interesting is to discover that, according to a legend, an earthquake supposedly accompanied the beheading of Ponziano, who as a result became the patron saint against earthquakes.
We know that in 1703 the first of a long series of earthquakes that struck the south of Umbria occurred during the feast of St. Ponziano on the 14th of January. In the city of Spoleto there were no victims. Since then the martyr is commonly invoked during earthquakes, as the miraculous event gave rise to a prophecy: “Spoleto will shake, but will not fall.”

Following suit of her many forms, Hathor was the goddess of love as well as the goddess of fertility. However she did not bless fecundity solely upon women, but also upon the land. The discovery of wheat and barley was attributed to Hathor/Isis. She was the protector of agriculture and iconographically she was often depicted with two cow’s horns and with a sun disk haloed between them.

Isis was the queen of the earth, the sky, and the seas. Beginning from the New Kingdom (1560-1085 BCE) Isis and her heavenly sister Nefti were represented together in the ship normally occupied solely by the god Ra, used to drag the sun across the sky. In the different stages of the day, Isis takes on a different persona. In the morning she is personified as Sirius (or Sothis to the Greek) : she is the light that follows Orion (Osiris). The appearance of the constellation Orion determined the ancient Egyptian New Years, rising usually around July 15 and inaugurating the flood season of the Nile.

Isis was the goddess of medicine, as well as goddess of salvation who mourns the dead. Protecting mother of the living pharaoh, as well as wife to those deceased, Isis takes on the role also as the mother of all men, as she was known to bring compassion and hope to all of humanity.
It is in this motherly role that she rears Horus, and at the same time was able to help all mortals struggling in their earthly abodes.

Isis attributes and epithets were so numerous that in the hieroglyphics she was called “the many-named”. In Syria and Phoenicia her traits are incredibly similar to those of the goddess Astarte: portrayed nude, with a richly decorated diadem and necklace.

Already by the 5^th century BCE in the Greek world Herodotus makes note of the assimilation of Isis with the goddess Demeter (Her. II, 59). He describes her as a goddess holding ears of corn or a torch, with her dress gathered and knotted around a breast in the typical style of Isis. She carries a basileion on her head or the traditional crown with a sun disk, where however the feathers and the cow’s horns are substituted for by ears of corn.

In Egypt, around the end of the Ptolemaic reign, Isis appears highly assimilate to Aphrodite, often-portrayed nude, with a basileion on her head. She is depicted as either wearing her hair loose or gathered in a bun, an elegant hair style called “the Libyan style.”
At times her head is veiled. Occasionally she’d be holding a scepter or an orb in her right hand, while with the left she would have a cornucopia, the symbol of abundance.

Very often she is depicted with a “sistrum” in her right hand and a “situla”, a pail, in her left. The sistrum, a magical musical instrument used to diffuse harmony and accord among men, was one of the objects most frequently associated with Hathor.

It is not by chance that in Egypt stands a temple dedicated to Dendera known as “the temple of the sistrum.” Even in its fundamental designs it appears to be a musical instrument of stone, uniting the harmony of the cosmos with that of earth.

To this goddess-queen of myriad names, a Capuan prayer calls: “Tu, una quae es omnia, dea Isis.” For her multiple guises and powers, Isis has been welcomed and honored even in the temples dedicated to other goddesses.

Isis has even survived the grand strength of Christianity, as the monotheistic sect has appropriated many of her iconographical aspects. It’s sufficient to point out how Isis, the Mother, is depicted in her throne with a child on her lap or in the process of tenderly suckling. This is the “Isis lactans,” found often as small bronzes or in relief, a representation surprisingly similar to the iconography of the socalled Madonna of the Milk which was an extremely popular depiction during the Middle Ages.

Thanks to these endearing characteristics as the mother of all men, whose love nursed and protected Horus, Isis continued to be venerated for a long while, be it in the public or private sphere, in many places, and under many names.