The Illustrated Archetype of the Historia Normannorum: Did Dudo of Saint-Quentin write a ‘chronicon pictum’?
Benjamin Pohl
Around the turn of first millennium, Dudo Saint-Quentin was commissioned to write dynastic history Normandy and its ruling family. His patrons were Norman rulers residing at Rouen, namely Richard I his son successor, II. The proud result this transgenerational relationship between ducal family their ‘official’ or ‘house historian’ Historia Normannorum (HN), which presented court in shortly after 1015. Scholars have paid much attention intricate textual relationships governed HN’s literary composition, successfully scrutinizing similarities works as diverse Virgil’s Aeneid, Scandinavian sagas Normandy’s local hagiographical traditions. Stylistically, HN owes a great deal models secular Latin literature inherited from Roman Carolingian empires, comprising both prose poetry, together provided with strong notion translatio imperii served strategically place work’s protagonists within succession kings, emperors, martyrs, even venerated saints. Notwithstanding ample amount knowledge previous scholarship has cultivated regard historical contexts, there is, however, paucity research dedicated exploring manuscript tradition. When Dudo’s work appeared print during quarter seventeenth century, no more than two manuscripts used by André Duchesne for text’s edition. Jules Lair set out amend situation 1865 publication De moribus et actis primorum Normanniae ducum. Lair, turn, opted consult merely seven fifteen are known today, thus leaving it Gerda Huisman make serious attempt collating entire tradition 1983. As shown elsewhere, Huisman’s study, though pioneering time publication, needs be treated caution. most disputable arguments article concern, on one hand, relevance metrical poems, she considered secondary text, and, other, her dismissal potential illumination form miniatures. Contrary arguments, scholars embraced almost thirty years, present study aims demonstrate that conceptualized, very outset, an illustrated chronicle ‘chronicon pictum’.