Rawlinson Excidium Troie
Encyclopedia
The Rawlinson Excidium Troie ("The Destruction of Troy"), discovered among the manuscripts collected by Richard Rawlinson
(1690-1755) conserved in the Bodleian Library
, Oxford
, is unique in that it contains the only medieval account of the Trojan War
that is fully independent of Dictys
and Dares
, "strikingly different from any other known mediaeval version of the Trojan War", according to its editor, E. Bagby Atwood. Its discovery revealed a source for many details in medieval texts whose sources had been obscure, not appearing in the familiar Latin epitome
s of the Iliad
, through which Homer
was transmitted to medieval culture, the Greek text being lost to Europe.
That there was a lost Latin source grew clearer in the late nineteenth century, as scholars compared narrative poems like the Middle English The Seege or Batayle of Troy with Konrad von Würzburg
's Trojanische Krieg and with versions in Old Norse
and in Bulgarian
, and found that they shared details in the opening episodes that were not to be found in Dares nor in the famous Roman de Troie of Benoît de Sainte-Maure
. The themes included the dream of Hecuba
and the birth of Paris
, his Judgement of the goddesses
— with varying degrees of independence in this oft-told material— and his carrying off of Helen, and the youth of Achilles
. In some of the vernacular poems, traces of Latin declension
s in proper names betrayed an unidentified Latin source.
The Rawlinson manuscript formed part of a volume of fragments collected by Peter Le Neve
(1661–1729), herald and antiquary, which found their way into Rawlinson's library. It consists of eight and a half folios, written in two columns in a fine late thirteenth-century hand. Two-thirds of the manuscript consists of a condensed epitome of the Aeneid
, unusually faithful to the original, but rearranged in chronologically consecutive order. The opening third contains a history of the Trojan War from the marriage of Thetis
to the building of the Trojan Horse
, set out in a question-and-answer fashion that suggested to Atwood a school text, perhaps prefatory to the study of Virgil
.
The narrative material has been drawn together and classically ordered from so many scattered sources that its editor, E. Bagby Atwood, considered that it was "utterly impossible to consider that the account was originated by the mediaeval author of the extant version," and "utterly impossible to suppose a mediaeval writer capable of selecting and arranging this scattered information in a simple, connected narrative agreeing so closely in plan and order with the ancient Epic Cycle". He concluded that it was a rescension of a considerably older Latin chronicle of the Trojan War, perhaps as early as the Augustan age.
Richard Rawlinson
Richard Rawlinson FRS was an English clergyman and antiquarian collector of books and manuscripts, which he bequeathed to the Bodleian Library, Oxford.-Life:...
(1690-1755) conserved in the Bodleian Library
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...
, Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, is unique in that it contains the only medieval account of the Trojan War
Trojan War
In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is among the most important events in Greek mythology and was narrated in many works of Greek literature, including the Iliad...
that is fully independent of Dictys
Dictys Cretensis
Dictys Cretensis of Knossus was the legendary companion of Idomeneus during the Trojan War, and the purported author of a diary of its events, that deployed some of the same materials worked up by Homer for the Iliad...
and Dares
Dares Phrygius
Dares Phrygius , according to Homer, was a Trojan priest of Hephaestus. He was supposed to have been the author of an account of the destruction of Troy, and to have lived before Homer...
, "strikingly different from any other known mediaeval version of the Trojan War", according to its editor, E. Bagby Atwood. Its discovery revealed a source for many details in medieval texts whose sources had been obscure, not appearing in the familiar Latin epitome
Epitome
An epitome is a summary or miniature form; an instance that represents a larger reality, also used as a synonym for embodiment....
s of the Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
, through which Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
was transmitted to medieval culture, the Greek text being lost to Europe.
That there was a lost Latin source grew clearer in the late nineteenth century, as scholars compared narrative poems like the Middle English The Seege or Batayle of Troy with Konrad von Würzburg
Konrad von Würzburg
Konrad von Würzburg was the chief German poet of the second half of the 13th century.As little is known of his life as that of any other epic poet of the age. By birth probably a native of Würzburg, he seems to have spent part of his life in Strassburg and his later years in Basel, where he died...
's Trojanische Krieg and with versions in Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
and in Bulgarian
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
, and found that they shared details in the opening episodes that were not to be found in Dares nor in the famous Roman de Troie of Benoît de Sainte-Maure
Benoît de Sainte-Maure
Benoît de Sainte-Maure was a 12th century French poet, most probably from Sainte-Maure de Touraine near Tours, France. The Plantagenets' administrative center was located in Chinon - west of Tours....
. The themes included the dream of Hecuba
Hecuba
Hecuba was a queen in Greek mythology, the wife of King Priam of Troy during the Trojan War, with whom she had 19 children. These children included several major characters of Homer's Iliad such as the warriors Hector and Paris, and the prophetess Cassandra...
and the birth of Paris
Paris (mythology)
Paris , the son of Priam, king of Troy, appears in a number of Greek legends. Probably the best-known was his elopement with Helen, queen of Sparta, this being one of the immediate causes of the Trojan War...
, his Judgement of the goddesses
Judgement of Paris
thumb |right |460px |[[The Judgment of Paris |The Judgment of Paris]], [[Peter Paul Rubens]], ca 1636...
— with varying degrees of independence in this oft-told material— and his carrying off of Helen, and the youth of Achilles
Achilles
In Greek mythology, Achilles was a Greek hero of the Trojan War, the central character and the greatest warrior of Homer's Iliad.Plato named Achilles the handsomest of the heroes assembled against Troy....
. In some of the vernacular poems, traces of Latin declension
Latin declension
Latin is an inflected language, and as such has nouns, pronouns, and adjectives that must be declined in order to serve a grammatical function. A set of declined forms of the same word pattern is called a declension. There are five declensions, which are numbered and grouped by ending and...
s in proper names betrayed an unidentified Latin source.
The Rawlinson manuscript formed part of a volume of fragments collected by Peter Le Neve
Peter Le Neve
Peter Le Neve was an English herald and antiquary. He was appointed Rouge Dragon Pursuivant 17 January 1690 and created Norroy King at Arms on 25 May 1704. From 1707 to 1721 he was Richmond Herald of Arms in Ordinary, an officer of arms of the College of Arms...
(1661–1729), herald and antiquary, which found their way into Rawlinson's library. It consists of eight and a half folios, written in two columns in a fine late thirteenth-century hand. Two-thirds of the manuscript consists of a condensed epitome of the Aeneid
Aeneid
The Aeneid is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. It is composed of roughly 10,000 lines in dactylic hexameter...
, unusually faithful to the original, but rearranged in chronologically consecutive order. The opening third contains a history of the Trojan War from the marriage of Thetis
Thetis
Silver-footed Thetis , disposer or "placer" , is encountered in Greek mythology mostly as a sea nymph or known as the goddess of water, one of the fifty Nereids, daughters of the ancient one of the seas with shape-shifting abilities who survives in the historical vestiges of most later Greek myths...
to the building of the Trojan Horse
Trojan Horse
The Trojan Horse is a tale from the Trojan War about the stratagem that allowed the Greeks finally to enter the city of Troy and end the conflict. In the canonical version, after a fruitless 10-year siege, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse, and hid a select force of men inside...
, set out in a question-and-answer fashion that suggested to Atwood a school text, perhaps prefatory to the study of Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
.
The narrative material has been drawn together and classically ordered from so many scattered sources that its editor, E. Bagby Atwood, considered that it was "utterly impossible to consider that the account was originated by the mediaeval author of the extant version," and "utterly impossible to suppose a mediaeval writer capable of selecting and arranging this scattered information in a simple, connected narrative agreeing so closely in plan and order with the ancient Epic Cycle". He concluded that it was a rescension of a considerably older Latin chronicle of the Trojan War, perhaps as early as the Augustan age.