A ''condaghe'' (also spelled as ''condache'' or ''condake'', ; also ''fundaghe''), from the medieval Sardinian term (from grc-x-byzant, κοντάκιον, kontákion, the pole around which a scroll is wound), was a kind of administrative document used in the

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

judicates The Judicates (, or in Sardinian, in Latin, or in Italian), in English also referred to as Sardinian Kingdoms, Sardinian Judgedoms or Judicatures, were independent states that took power in Sardinia in the Middle Ages, between the ninth a ...

between the 11th and 13th centuries. They are one of the earliest witnesses for the development of the Sardinian language and are an important source for historians of medieval Sardinia. The original ''condaghes'' (later italianized into ''condaghi'') were collections of acts of donations to churches or monasteries. Later ''condaghes'' were kept by noble families for recording inheritances, purchases, donations (''datura''), transactions (''tramutu'') and litigation (''kertu''), principally when relating to the church. The chief object of such records was to provide precise dates in case of legal dispute. Physically, the first ''condaghes'' were scrolls: overlapping parchment manuscripts wound tightly around a ''kontákion''. Over time they took on the familiar form of a

codex The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...

(like modern books). They were produced in the

scriptoria Scriptorium (), literally "a place for writing", is commonly used to refer to a room in medieval European monasteries devoted to the writing, copying and illuminating of manuscripts commonly handled by monastic scribes. However, lay scribes and ...

of monasteries and cathedrals, but the great majority have been lost. Only some ''condaghes'' have been preserved, with most of them being of ecclesiastical kind like the ''condaghes'' of the monasteries of Saint Mary of

Bonarcado Bonarcado ( sc, Bonaccatu) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Oristano in the Italian region Sardinia, located about northwest of Cagliari and about north of Oristano. Bonarcado borders the following municipalities: Bauladu, Mil ...

(''Sancte Marie de Monarcanto'' or ''Bonorcadu''), Saint Michael of Salvennor (''San Miguel de Salvennor'', of which we have only a translation into Spanish from an original Sardinian copy), Saint Nicola of Trullas (''Sanctu Nichola de Trullas''), Saint Peter of Silki (''Sanctu Petru de Silki''), and of the

Basilica of San Gavino The Basilica di San Gavino (Basilica of Saint Gabinus) is a proto- Romanesque church in Porto Torres, Sardinia, Italy. A former cathedral, it is now a place for the veneration of local martyrs and a parish church. History Turris Libisonis (Lati ...

(''Sanctu Gavinu'').Condaghe of Saint Gavin
/ref> There is only a single condaghe of laical kind left, the one of Judge Barisone II of Logudoro.

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Further reading