The Placiti Cassinesi are four official juridical documents written between 960 and 963 in southern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, regarding a dispute on several lands among three Benedictine monasteries and a local landowner. They are considered the first extant documents written in a

Romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...

vernacular of Italy, along with the

Veronese Riddle The Veronese Riddle ( it, Indovinello veronese) is a riddle written in late Vulgar Latin, or early Romance, on the Verona Orational, probably in the 8th or early 9th century, by a Christian monk from Verona, in northern Italy. It is an example o ...

and the

Commodilla catacomb inscription The Commodilla catacomb inscription is found on the cornice of a fresco in the tomb of the Christian martyrs Felix and Adauctus, located in the catacombs of Commodilla in Rome. The graffito has an important place in the history of Italian, as i ...

Text

Original text: :''Sao ko kelle terre, per kelle fini que ki contene, trenta anni le possette parte Sancti Benedicti.'' :''Sao cco kelle terre, per kelle fini que tebe monstrai, Pergoaldi foro, que ki contene, et trenta anni le possette.'' :''Kella terra, per kelle fini que bobe mostrai, sancte Marie è, et trenta anni la posset parte sancte Marie.'' :''Sao cco kelle terre, per kelle fini que tebe mostrai, trenta anni le possette parte sancte Marie.'' Translation: :"I know that these lands, within the borders shown here, have been owned by the monastery of St. Benedict for thirty years." :"I know that these lands, within the borders that I have shown you, belonged to Pergoaldo, and he has owned them for thirty years." :"This land, within the borders that I have shown you, is property of Saint Mary, and the monastery of Saint Mary has owned it for thirty years." :"I know those lands, within the borders that I have shown you, have been owned by the monastery of Saint Mary for thirty years."

Explanation

The four ''placiti'' were discovered by Erasmo Gattola in the Benedictine monastery of

Monte Cassino Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first h ...

in the 1700s. They were meant to resolve land disputes in

Capua Capua ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, in the region of Campania, southern Italy, situated north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. History Ancient era The name of Capua comes from the Etrusc ...

, Sessa Aurunca and

Teano Teano ( Teanese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, northwest of Caserta on the main line to Rome from Naples. It stands at the southeast foot of an extinct volcano, Rocca Monfina. Its St. Clement's ...

, between three monasteries owned by

and Rodelgrimo d'Aquino, a local landowner. The depositions given by the witnesses were used to confirm that the monasteries were the legitimate owners of the land in question.

References

{{reflist Earliest known manuscripts by language Italian language

Text

Explanation

See also

References