Oxford Notitia Dignitatum

Oxford Notitia Dignitatum

Manuscript Canon. Misc. 378 of Oxford’s Bodleian Library counts among the most precious pieces of evidence of the Late Roman Empire. The historic specimen was made in the year 1436 for Pietro Donato, the Bishop of Padua (1428.1447), who inter alia chaired the Council of Basel in 1436. This manuscript was copied from a now-lost 9th century Carolingian manuscript from the Speyer Cathedral treasury and is considered to be the oldest surviving manuscript of the Notitia Dignitatum.

Grandiose Medieval Illumination for a Roman State Registry

Pietro Donato presumably contracted the Savoy miniaturist Perronet Lamy as the illuminator of the manuscript. In the last quarter of the 15th century, Perronet Lamy was active for the House of Savoy above all, but also stood in the service of the Bishop of Padua on occasion. It was for him that the transcript at hand of the Notitia Dignitatum, a true gem of illumination and history, was created! In doing so, Perronet Lamy partially copied the example, but also appended it through his own visual inventions and presented all his ability in the wonderful and detailed depictions of the armaments, clothing, and armor of the warriors or a figurative depiction of an enthroned Hadrian in conversation with the philosopher Epictetus standing before him.

How Did the Roman Empire Function

The manuscript of the Notitia Dignitatum presents itself both as an important source for knowledge about the administrative organization of the Late Roman Empire as well as for the rediscovery of Greek antiquity during the Renaissance period. In the notitia dignitatum omnium tam civilium quam militarium, the administrative and military organization of both the Western and Eastern Roman Empires recorded. For example, one finds a register of all civil and military dignities, offices, and troops organized according to the ranks of the hierarchy. The script is gorgeously illustrated with illustrations of stylized cityscapes, tables with shield patterns of the various military units, insignias, and images of ancient coins.