Verses pascales de tres Maries
Encyclopedia
The Verses pascales de tres Maries (Easter Verses of the Three Maries) are twelfth-century Latin
lyric verses
from Vic
that form a liturgical drama
for performance at Easter
. The play, by an anonymous cleric, is highly original in content and form, though it only runs ninety-four lines.
, Mary, mother of James and John, and Mary Salome
. The play is based on Mark 16
, wherein the three women visit the tomb of Jesus
with spices to anoint his body. The play is not merely a reproduction of the biblical account but includes an apocryphal scene with a merchant
. The three women approach the merchant in order to buy a spice so powerful it will preserve Christ's physical beauty forever. When they find the potion among the merchant's wares, however, he asks for a very high price, which Mary Magdalene promptly pays. According to Peter Dronke, the rubric
".a.", which appears in the original manuscripts at certain points, indicates that the following lines, usually explanatory, prophetic, or comforting, are sung by an angel
. In the angel's scene in lines 53–69, he is seen by the three women after the stone that covered the tomb has obviously been removed. The women rejoice and the angel sends them on their way to tell the still-lamenting apostles. The scenes which follow are a contradiction which modern scholarship has not yet resolved. The women are again lamenting and have apparently not visited the tomb. The dramatist may not have even attempted to create an orderly narrative, or perhaps the joyful scenes with the angel are to be interpreted as a sort of prophetic dream.
The three Maries visit the tomb for a second time, where the angel confronts them and asks Quem queritis?: Whom are you looking for? The Magdalene alone answers and the three women are told that he has risen and to go proclaim it. The play ends in a singing of the Te deum
.
between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries. They were copied on two blank pages in or around the 1160s, but contain errors which point to a much earlier date of original composition, probably closer to c. 1130. The melody for all but lines 43–84 is preserved in the manuscript in Aquitainian notation on single-line staves. The music has been fully studied by Eva Castro Caridad in Tropos y troparios hispánicos (Santiago de Compostela, 1991).
, composed by the same person from Vic and also concentrating on Mary Magdalene.
Lines 32–66 form five strophe
s, each line of the first ending in a, each of the second in e, of the third in i, the fourth in o, and the fifth in u. This strophic, alphabetic vowel-based rhyme scheme
is entirely unique in medieval literature. Dronk calls it a "virtuous invention". It found its way to Austria
by the end of the century and was used by Walther von der Vogelweide
for a German
lament of the passing of summer, Diu welt was gelf, rôt unde blâ. Der Marner, a disciple of Walther, repeated the theme and the rhyme in the Latin Iam dudum estivalia, where winter represents the cooling of love. This latter poem is preserved among the Carmina Burana
and explains the path by which the theme of Mary and the Merchant could make its way to the Tyrol
and the Ludus de passione (passion play
) of the Carmina Burana.
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
lyric verses
Lyric poetry
Lyric poetry is a genre of poetry that expresses personal and emotional feelings. In the ancient world, lyric poems were those which were sung to the lyre. Lyric poems do not have to rhyme, and today do not need to be set to music or a beat...
from Vic
Vic
Vic is the capital of the comarca of Osona, in the Barcelona Province, Catalonia, Spain. Vic's location, only 69 km far from Barcelona and 60 km from Girona, has made it one of the most important towns in central Catalonia.-History:...
that form a liturgical drama
Liturgical drama
Liturgical drama or religious drama, in its various Christian contexts, originates from the mass itself, and usually presents a relatively complex ritual that includes theatrical elements...
for performance at Easter
Easter
Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...
. The play, by an anonymous cleric, is highly original in content and form, though it only runs ninety-four lines.
Story
The three Maries of the title are Mary MagdaleneMary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
, Mary, mother of James and John, and Mary Salome
Salome
Salome , the Daughter of Herodias , is known from the New Testament...
. The play is based on Mark 16
Mark 16
Mark 16 is the final chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It begins with the discovery of the empty tomb by Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome — there they encounter a man dressed in white who announces the Resurrection of Jesus.Verse 8 ends...
, wherein the three women visit the tomb of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
with spices to anoint his body. The play is not merely a reproduction of the biblical account but includes an apocryphal scene with a merchant
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
. The three women approach the merchant in order to buy a spice so powerful it will preserve Christ's physical beauty forever. When they find the potion among the merchant's wares, however, he asks for a very high price, which Mary Magdalene promptly pays. According to Peter Dronke, the rubric
Rubric
A rubric is a word or section of text which is traditionally written or printed in red ink to highlight it. The word derives from the , meaning red ochre or red chalk, and originates in Medieval illuminated manuscripts from the 13th century or earlier...
".a.", which appears in the original manuscripts at certain points, indicates that the following lines, usually explanatory, prophetic, or comforting, are sung by an angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
. In the angel's scene in lines 53–69, he is seen by the three women after the stone that covered the tomb has obviously been removed. The women rejoice and the angel sends them on their way to tell the still-lamenting apostles. The scenes which follow are a contradiction which modern scholarship has not yet resolved. The women are again lamenting and have apparently not visited the tomb. The dramatist may not have even attempted to create an orderly narrative, or perhaps the joyful scenes with the angel are to be interpreted as a sort of prophetic dream.
The three Maries visit the tomb for a second time, where the angel confronts them and asks Quem queritis?: Whom are you looking for? The Magdalene alone answers and the three women are told that he has risen and to go proclaim it. The play ends in a singing of the Te deum
Te Deum
The Te Deum is an early Christian hymn of praise. The title is taken from its opening Latin words, Te Deum laudamus, rendered literally as "Thee, O God, we praise"....
.
Manuscript
The Verses pascales are contained in a codex in the Episcopal Museum of Vic originally copied probably in the Vic scriptoriumScriptorium
Scriptorium, literally "a place for writing", is commonly used to refer to a room in medieval European monasteries devoted to the copying of manuscripts by monastic scribes...
between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries. They were copied on two blank pages in or around the 1160s, but contain errors which point to a much earlier date of original composition, probably closer to c. 1130. The melody for all but lines 43–84 is preserved in the manuscript in Aquitainian notation on single-line staves. The music has been fully studied by Eva Castro Caridad in Tropos y troparios hispánicos (Santiago de Compostela, 1991).
Influence
The Verses pascales are followed in the manuscript by another short drama, the Versus de pelegrinoVersus de pelegrino
The Versus de pelegrino or Verses about the Stranger is a medieval Latin drama composed by an anonymous playwright of Vic c. 1130. The Versus is a short piece of only forty lines on the meeting between Mary Magdalene and the glorified Jesus Christ on the road as recorded in the Gospel of John...
, composed by the same person from Vic and also concentrating on Mary Magdalene.
Lines 32–66 form five strophe
Strophe
A strophe forms the first part of the ode in Ancient Greek tragedy, followed by the antistrophe and epode. In its original Greek setting, "strophe, antistrophe and epode were a kind of stanza framed only for the music," as John Milton wrote in the preface to Samson Agonistes, with the strophe...
s, each line of the first ending in a, each of the second in e, of the third in i, the fourth in o, and the fifth in u. This strophic, alphabetic vowel-based rhyme scheme
Rhyme scheme
A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhyme between lines of a poem or song. It is usually referred to by using letters to indicate which lines rhyme. In other words, it is the pattern of end rhymes or lines...
is entirely unique in medieval literature. Dronk calls it a "virtuous invention". It found its way to Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
by the end of the century and was used by Walther von der Vogelweide
Walther von der Vogelweide
Walther von der Vogelweide is the most celebrated of the Middle High German lyric poets.-Life history:For all his fame, Walther's name is not found in contemporary records, with the exception of a solitary mention in the travelling accounts of Bishop Wolfger of Erla of the Passau diocese:...
for a German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
lament of the passing of summer, Diu welt was gelf, rôt unde blâ. Der Marner, a disciple of Walther, repeated the theme and the rhyme in the Latin Iam dudum estivalia, where winter represents the cooling of love. This latter poem is preserved among the Carmina Burana
Carmina Burana
Carmina Burana , Latin for "Songs from Beuern" , is the name given to a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts mostly from the 11th or 12th century, although some are from the 13th century. The pieces were written principally in Medieval Latin; a few in Middle High German, and some with traces...
and explains the path by which the theme of Mary and the Merchant could make its way to the Tyrol
County of Tyrol
The County of Tyrol, Princely County from 1504, was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, from 1814 a province of the Austrian Empire and from 1867 a Cisleithanian crown land of Austria-Hungary...
and the Ludus de passione (passion play
Passion play
A Passion play is a dramatic presentation depicting the Passion of Jesus Christ: his trial, suffering and death. It is a traditional part of Lent in several Christian denominations, particularly in Catholic tradition....
) of the Carmina Burana.