A Croatian bishop's cathedral "Iuxta Castrum Tiniense"

Abstract

Thomas the Archdeacon's chronicle "Historia Salonitana" written in the 11th century contains information about an approximate location of a Croatian bishop's cathedral. For over a century scholars have attempted to define its exact localisation following Thomas’s narration, which produced three main theories, the most preferred among modem scholars being the one of the cathedral at Crkvina in Biskupija near Knin. The author's intention is to prove that another theory - the one championed by F. Bulić that placed the cathedral at Kapitul near Knin - is more plausible. The author brings a series of new arguments in favour of this Bulic's theory. At Kapitul there was a large monasterial church that was refurnished during the reign of Svetoslav and Držislav. Benedictine monasteries and monasterial churches in which occured the most solemn ceremonies in connection with the Croatian rulers, gained particular importance during the 11th century. Monasteries and monasterial churches (churches of royal monasteries were court chapels in the proper sense) were centres of inlclcctual and religious life. Considering such a character of the Benedictine monasteries, it is highly probable that the monasterial church at Kapitul became the scat of Croatian bishop who could have had ideal working conditions in the monasterial scriptorium. Main argument of representatives of the cathedral at Crkvina theory is the church's titular St Mary. Madonna was surely one of the titulars at Crkvina. Since the question of the titular of Croatian bishop's chatedral, on which Thomas the Archdeacon gave direct evidence, is very important for the cathedral localisation, tile author intents to prove that Madonna was probably the titular of the pre-Romanesque church at Kapitul. Madonna was the titular of the Romanesque church at Kapitul in the 13lh century; in addition, she is mentioned on a recently found pre Romanesque epigraphic fragment of Kapitul origin. The author dicusses at some length litis fragment while attempting to firmly establish its Kapitul origin and, accordingly, Madonna's early mentioning at Kapitul.