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E01441: The short Life of *Deusdedit (bishop of Rome, ob. 618, S00843) in the Liber Pontificalis, written in Latin in Rome soon after his death, mentions his burial in the church of *Peter (the Apostle, S00036) in Rome.

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posted on 2016-06-03, 00:00 authored by robert
Liber Pontificalis 70

Deusdedit, natione Romanus, ex patre Stephano subdiacono, sedit ann. III dies XXIII. Hic clerum multum dilexit, sacerdotes et clerum ad loca pristina revocavit.

'Deusdedit, born in Rome, son of the subdeacon Stephanus, held the see 3 years 23 days. He greatly loved the clergy; he restored the sacerdotes and clergy to their original places.'

.....

Quo defuncto sepultus est ad beatum Petrum apostolum. Hic demisit pro obsequias suas ad omnem clerum rogam unam integram.

'On his death he was buried in St Peter’s; for his funeral he left an entire stipend to all the clergy.'

.....

Depositus est sub die VIII mens. novembr.

'He was buried on the 8th day of November'


Text: Duchesne 1886, 319. Translation: Davis 2010, 61, lightly modified.

History

Evidence ID

E01441

Saint Name

Peter the Apostle : S00036 Deusdedit, bishop of Rome, ob. 618 : S00843

Saint Name in Source

Petrus, Marcellinus Deusdedit

Related Saint Records

Type of Evidence

Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)

Language

Latin

Evidence not before

618

Evidence not after

625

Activity not before

618

Activity not after

618

Place of Evidence - Region

Rome and region

Place of Evidence - City, village, etc

Rome

Place of evidence - City name in other Language(s)

Rome Rome Rome Roma Ῥώμη Rhōmē

Major author/Major anonymous work

Liber Pontificalis

Cult activities - Festivals

  • Saint’s feast

Cult activities - Places

Burial site of a saint - tomb/grave

Cult activities - Non Liturgical Practices and Customs

Burial ad sanctos

Cult Activities - Protagonists in Cult and Narratives

Ecclesiastics - bishops

Cult Activities - Relics

Bodily relic - entire body

Source

The Liber Pontificalis consists of a series of very short lives of popes. The preface attributes it to pope Damasus (366-384), but this attribution is obviously false. According to Louis Duchesne, the first modern editor of the Liber Pontificalis, the original series of lives was written in Rome by an anonymous author, probably a member of the lesser clergy, in the 530s, and contained the lives from *Peter the Apostle to Felix IV (ob. 530). Shortly after, before 546, the text was re-edited by another anonymous author and only this edition survives. The first edition, however, can be reconstituted on the basis of its two epitomes (and the second edition). The second edition started to be continued systematically from the time of pope Honorius (625–638). It should be noted that Theodor Mommsen dated both editions of the Liber Pontificalis to the 7th century, but his opinion is widely rejected and the commonly accepted dating is that of Duchesne. For the pre-Constantinian period (before 312), the credibility of the Liber Pontificalis is very low. The chronology is confused, and details concerning the personal lives, decisions and ordinations of the bishops of Rome at best reflect what people in the 6th century trusted to be true, at worst are a pure invention of the author. The situation changes with the later lives. Already the information of 4th-century papal foundations and offerings are generally trustworthy. The early 6th-century evidence, based on the author's first hand knowledge is even better, though still imperfect.

Bibliography

Edition: Duchesne, L., Le Liber pontificalis. 2 vols (Paris: E. Thorin, 1886-1892) (with substantial introduction and commentary). Translation: Davis, R., The Book of Pontiffs (Liber Pontificalis) (Translated Texts for Historians 6; 3rd ed.; Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2010).

Usage metrics

Evidence - The Cult of Saints in Late AntiquityEvidence - The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity

Categories

Keywords

S00036S00843History

Licence

CC0

Exports