Light in the Dark Ages: Rise and Fall of San Vincenzo al Volturno Book

This work illustrates the changing rhythms of the Benedictine monastery of San Vincenzo al Volturno, one of the great centres of Dark Ages Europe, placing particular emphasis on its ever-changing political context and its important role in the making of the Middle Ages. Situated in the foothills of the Abruzzi in Central Italy, the monastery's epic history has long been known from the "Chronicon Vulturnense", an illuminated manuscript written in the middle of the 12th century. Its author paid attention both to the spectacular rise of the monastery as a result of Charlemagne's patronage and to its cataclysimic sack by Arab marauders in 881. In 1981, when Richard Hodges began the excavation of the site, new light was thrown on the history of the monastery and its Samnite and Roman origins. The 8th-century monatery was modest; by contrast the 9th-century monastic city was grandiose and remarkable for its wealth of architecture and artistic culture. San Vincenzo is revealed as a model Carolingen monastery.Read More