The Egbert Psalter (also known as the Gertrude Psalter or Trier Psalter) is a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

illuminated manuscript Psalter preserved in the municipal museum of

Cividale Cividale del Friuli ( fur, Cividât (locally ); german: Östrich; sl, Čedad) is a town and '' comune'' in the Province of Udine, part of the North-Italian Friuli Venezia Giulia ''regione''. The town lies above sea-level in the foothills of the ...

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 ...

(Ms. CXXXVI). The psalter is an example of the illuminated manuscripts associated with the Ottonian Renaissance. It was originally created around the year 980 by the monks of the

Abbey of Reichenau Reichenau Abbey was a Benedictine monastery on Reichenau Island (known in Latin as Augia Dives). It was founded in 724 by the itinerant Saint Pirmin, who is said to have fled Spain ahead of the Moorish invaders, with patronage that included Charl ...

(a monk named Ruodprecht is mentioned in the original dedication) for Archbishop

Egbert of Trier Egbert (c. 950 – 9 December 993) was the Archbishop of Trier from 977 until his death. Egbert was a son of Dirk II, Count of Holland. After being trained in Egmond Abbey, founded and controlled by his family, and at the court of Bruno I, Archb ...

. In the mid-11th century, the book passed to

Gertrude of Poland Gertrude-Olisava (c. 1025 – 4 January 1108), princess of Poland, was the daughter of King Mieszko II of Poland and Queen Richeza of Lotharingia, and the great-granddaughter of German Emperor Otto II. Early life The exact time and place of Ger ...

, wife of Iziaslav of Kiev. She included her prayer book as part of the codex and commissioned its illuminations, which curiously blend

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

and Romanesque traditions. In the 12th century, the codex was in the possession of the Andechs-Merania family, and was given to

Elizabeth of Hungary Elizabeth of Hungary (german: Heilige Elisabeth von Thüringen, hu, Árpád-házi Szent Erzsébet, sk, Svätá Alžbeta Uhorská; 7 July 1207 – 17 November 1231), also known as Saint Elizabeth of Thuringia, or Saint Elisabeth of Thuringia, ...

either by her mother, Gertrude of Merania, or by her aunt, Saint

Hedwig of Andechs Hedwig of Silesia ( pl, Święta Jadwiga Śląska), also Hedwig of Andechs (german: Heilige Hedwig von Andechs, la, Hedvigis; 1174 – 15 October 1243), a member of the Bavarian comital House of Andechs, was Duchess of Silesia from 1201 and ...

. According to a 16th-century note on folio 8r, Saint Elizabeth gave the codex to the cathedral of Cividale in 1229. The book features a large picture of

Apostle Peter An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

venerated by Gertrude and her son Yaropolk, whose Christian name was Peter. It is known that Yaropolk was the first to build a church to St Peter in Kiev and that he placed an image of that saint on his coins. In 1075 he was sent by his dethroned father to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in order to secure the Pope's support in recompense for bringing Russ (Ruth) under the patronage of St Peter ("patrocinium beati Petri"). There are two letters of Pope Gregory VII to the king of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

and to Svyatoslav II of Kiev admonishing them to return the Kievan throne to Iziaslav.

References

External links

Egbert Psalter
overview and full reproduction of the codex: Cividale del Friuli, Museo Archeologico Nazionale, CXXXVI. {{Authority control Ottonian illuminated manuscripts Illuminated psalters 10th-century biblical manuscripts

See also

References

External links