Source: “The Holy Grail: The History Of A Legend”, By Richard Barber, Published in Penguin Books, 2005.
Obscure Histories And Dubious Relics.wav
This podcast explores the biblical and historical origins of the Grail and Lance within medieval romances, tracing their evolution from scant Gospel references to rich apocryphal traditions. It highlights how figures like Joseph of Arimathea and Longinus became central, particularly through texts like the Gospel of Nicodemus, which significantly elaborated on their roles in the Crucifixion and the collection of Christ's blood. The text emphasizes the cult of relics, especially those related to the Holy Blood and other Passion artifacts, demonstrating how these venerated objects, often with dubious provenances, influenced both visual art and the narrative development of the Grail stories. Finally, it examines the purported connections between Glastonbury Abbey and Joseph of Arimathea, revealing how the abbey selectively adopted and embellished these legends, alongside other prominent relics, to enhance its historical significance.
Topic 1: Biblical and Apocryphal Origins of Grail and Lance The Grail and the lance, key elements in medieval romances, were widely believed by medieval readers to have biblical origins, though Chrétien de Troyes's text itself doesn't explicitly make this connection, possibly due to it being unfinished. The prologue to Perlesvaus succinctly outlines their role in the Crucifixion narrative. Joseph of Arimathea is portrayed as a soldier of Pilate who sought permission to take Christ's body from the cross, honoring it by burying it in a sacred tomb instead of disgracing it as Pilate anticipated. He is also depicted as retaining the lance that pierced Christ's side and the holy vessel that collected Christ's blood. However, the Gospels offer a more limited account of Joseph, identifying him as an honorable counselor or a rich disciple who buried Jesus. John's Gospel briefly mentions a soldier piercing Christ's side. Over time, Christians sought more detailed narratives, leading to the circulation of elaborated versions of the Gospel, most notably the Gospel of Peter (c. AD 150) and the Acts of Pilate or Gospel of Nicodemus (late fourth century). The Gospel of Nicodemus became extremely popular, translated into many European languages, and often incorporated into Arthurian romances. This text provided a much richer post-Crucifixion narrative, detailing Joseph's imprisonment, his miraculous release by Christ, and the first naming of the soldier who pierced Christ's side as Longinus.
Topic 2: The Legend of Longinus and the Spear Longinus, the soldier who pierced Christ's side with a spear, first gains a name in the Gospel of Nicodemus. The widespread popularity of this apocryphal gospel ensured that Longinus's story became well-established within ecclesiastical tradition by the ninth century, appearing in the writings of figures like Bede and Rabanus Maurus, as well as in early medieval poems. A significant detail from the Longinus legend, which directly parallels Chrétien de Troyes's description of the Grail procession, is the blood from the spear running down to the hand of the person carrying it. This motif stems from a specific version of the legend where Longinus is blind. In this account, a Jewish onlooker guides him to strike Christ's side. As the blood flows down the spear to his hand, Longinus touches his eyes and is instantly cured of his blindness, leading him to realize the gravity of his act. This miraculous cure motif was featured in twelfth-century religious plays, suggesting that Chrétien was likely influenced by this particular narrative of the Holy Lance.
Topic 3: Other Major Crucifixion Relics Medieval romances not only focus on the Grail and the Holy Lance but also invoke other significant relics associated with the Crucifixion, demonstrating the profound cultural and religious importance of these sacred objects. Robert de Boron's The Romance of the History of the Grail incorporates the tale of Veronica and her cloth bearing a miraculous image of Christ's face, a story derived from The Healing of Tiberius, often found as a continuation of the Gospel of Nicodemus. This narrative, while not central to Joseph of Arimathea or the Grail's primary legend, introduces another vital relic of the Passion. Perlesvaus prominently features two additional Crucifixion relics: the Crown of Thorns and a portion of Christ's winding sheet. The Crown of Thorns is depicted as the "Circle of Gold," revered in a castle and described as being "set in gold and precious stones" by its owner, mirroring the common practice of enclosing thorns from the relic in elaborate gold reliquaries. The winding sheet, obtained by Perlesvaus's sister, is explicitly identified as the shroud that covered Christ in the tomb, likely referring to the famous Shroud of Turin, which was believed to bear Christ's image and was almost certainly in Byzantium in the early 13th century. The inclusion of these specific relics in the romances reflects the major collection of Passion relics held in the imperial palace at Byzantium, highlighting the direct link between historical relic cults and literary imagination.
Topic 4: Visual Depictions of the Crucifixion and Holy Blood Collection Visual art significantly influenced and reflected the developing narratives of the Crucifixion and its associated relics. While traditional Crucifixion scenes often featured Christ flanked by the Virgin Mary and St. John, the popularity of apocryphal stories led to more intricate compositions. The spear, used to pierce Christ's side, became a key visual element, often juxtaposed with a soldier offering a sponge soaked in vinegar. Some early iconography, possibly from the fifth century and prominent in Irish and Carolingian art, depicted Longinus's act as merciful, intended to hasten Christ's death, thereby signifying the moment of his passing. Crucially for the Grail narratives, images began to show a chalice collecting Christ's blood. Initially, the cup's purpose might be ambiguous, simply resting at the foot of the cross. However, from the ninth century onward, explicit depictions of Christ's blood flowing into a cup, either floating or on the ground, clearly indicated the chalice of the Mass. A further iconographical development introduced a symbolic figure, often named Ecclesia (representing the Church), standing near Longinus or alone, holding a cup to collect Christ's blood. This figure was widespread in eleventh-century Carolingian art, suggesting it was an accepted part of Crucifixion iconography. One unique representation features a small, haloed female figure at the foot of the cross collecting Christ's blood in a dish from his feet, echoing accounts in some Grail Continuations where Joseph of Arimathea performs a similar action. These visual traditions, featuring a woman holding a cup of Christ's blood and the figure of Longinus, served as a significant visual source that could have been familiar to the writers of the Grail romances, indicating an alternative tradition of Holy Blood collection at the Crucifixion, not exclusively by Joseph of Arimathea at the Deposition. Notably, Joseph of Arimathea himself is rarely depicted in these religious manuscript illuminations, only appearing when illuminators of Grail story manuscripts specifically add him to Crucifixion and Deposition scenes.
Topic 5: The General Significance and Cult of Relics in the Middle Ages In the Middle Ages, religious relics were far more than mere historical curiosities; they were immensely powerful objects, highly sought after, and capable of commanding significant wealth. Early Christian relics, such as the remains of saints and martyrs, served as potent physical reminders of their sacrifices for faith and were venerated for the spiritual power believed to emanate from them. This belief quickly extended to the power of physical healing, making relics a primary destination for religious pilgrimages, where individuals hoped for miraculous cures when all other remedies failed. Relics also served as focal points for local veneration, often fulfilling functions previously associated with pagan deities, such as healing the sick or granting prayers through intercession. Both religious institutions and lay patrons eagerly sought relics, not just for their spiritual efficacy but also for the prestige and economic benefits, like attracting pilgrims, they could bring. For example, William of Malmesbury's twelfth-century history of Glastonbury Abbey painstakingly cataloged the abbey's vast relic collection, including items brought from Northumbria and Wales. A striking instance of lay acquisition is St. Louis's purchase of the Crown of Thorns from Constantinople in 1239, for which he constructed the magnificent Sainte-Chapelle in Paris as a reliquary. The origins of the cult of relics date back to the third century AD, with early pilgrims to Palestine bringing back items associated with the Gospels, particularly the Passion, such as the legendary discovery of the True Cross by Emperor Constantine's mother, Helena, in the fourth century.
Topic 6: The Cult of the Holy Blood and its Relics The cult of the Holy Blood was a significant influence on the Grail narratives, which often portray the Grail as the most charismatic of Crucifixion relics. Robert de Boron's version describes the Grail as both the dish from the Last Supper and the vessel used by Joseph of Arimathea to collect Christ's blood during the Deposition. Other Grail writers, particularly in Chrétien's Continuations, offer a simpler view, identifying it solely as a dish for collecting Christ's blood at the Crucifixion, sometimes by unknown hands, but always eventually coming into Joseph's possession. One of the earliest documented Holy Blood relics was found in Mantua in 804 and rediscovered in 1048, with an account from around 1200 attributing its arrival to Longinus. A portion of this relic was given to Emperor Heinrich III, then to Baldwin V of Flanders, and subsequently to Judith of Flanders, who bequeathed it to Weingarten Abbey. A gospel book from this abbey features an early Western European illustration of the Holy Blood being gathered at the Deposition, suggesting a direct link between the relic and artistic tradition. Another early relic was at Reichenau on Lake Constance, supposedly sent to Charlemagne. The Holy Blood at Fécamp in Normandy is associated with multiple, often conflicting, legends that predate the Grail romances. One recounts a miracle where consecrated wine turned into blood, which was then preserved. A later, detailed version, likely from the late 12th century, describes Nicodemus collecting Christ's clotted blood and preserving it in lead within a fig tree trunk that floated to Fécamp, providing crucial evidence for a pre-Grail romance tradition linking Holy Blood collection to the Deposition and Entombment. The most famous Holy Blood relic, located in Bruges, is often tentatively linked to the Grail by scholars. While popular tradition claims it was brought from the Holy Land by Thierry of Alsace in the mid-12th century, historical evidence for its presence in Bruges only dates to 1256, indicating its origin story was a later invention. It is more likely that the Bruges relic was one of the many Holy Blood relics that arrived in the West following the Fourth Crusade's conquest and sack of Byzantium in 1204, where a vast collection of relics, including the Holy Blood, was amassed and subsequently dispersed across Europe.
Topic 7: The Holy Lance: Multiple Versions and Contention The Holy Lance played a dramatic and often controversial role throughout medieval history, especially during the Crusades. A notable instance occurred during the First Crusade's siege of Antioch in 1099, when a crusader named Peter Bartholomew claimed to have found the lance after a vision from St. Andrew. This discovery significantly boosted the crusaders' morale, leading to a crucial victory. However, the authenticity of this lance was doubted by some, including Adhémar, Bishop of Le Puy, who had likely seen a different Holy Lance possessed by the Byzantine emperors in Constantinople. This Byzantine lance was venerated in the imperial palace chapel alongside other major Passion relics. To prove his claim, Peter Bartholomew underwent an ordeal by fire, walking through flaming logs while holding the lance, but he died from his injuries, which largely discredited his relic in the eyes of many. Despite this, some crusaders maintained their belief. This episode highlights the fervent desire for relics and the existence of multiple, competing claims to the Holy Lance. Beyond the Antioch and Byzantine lances, another Holy Lance was part of the Holy Roman Empire's regalia, acquired by Emperor Heinrich II in 926 and held in great reverence. Furthermore, the Armenians claimed to possess the Holy Lance at Echmiadzin, though this claim is recorded later in the thirteenth century. The proliferation of these various lances and the controversies surrounding their authenticity underscore the complex and often disputed nature of relic veneration in the Middle Ages.
Topic 8: The True Cross and its Importance The True Cross was considered the most significant of all relics during the Middle Ages. Its legendary discovery is attributed to Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine, in Palestine around 326 AD. This relic held immense public visibility and importance, particularly during the period when the Grail romances were being composed. For the kings of Jerusalem, a fragment of the True Cross served as a crucial symbol and a talisman, traditionally carried into battle. It was present and believed to bless Christian armies in nearly every major engagement after the First Crusade established the Christian kingdom of Jerusalem. However, its most dramatic moment occurred in 1187 at the catastrophic Battle of Hattin, where Saladin's forces decisively defeated the crusader army, and the True Cross fell into Muslim hands. The loss of this paramount relic was a profound blow to the Christian world, and its recovery became a central theme for preachers who sought to inspire new crusades in the late twelfth century, underscoring its immense religious, symbolic, and military significance.
Topic 9: Joseph of Arimathea's Association with Glastonbury Abbey Glastonbury Abbey, a famous medieval Arthurian site, eventually developed a strong association with Joseph of Arimathea, though this connection evolved over time. Early accounts, such as William of Malmesbury's twelfth-century history of Glastonbury, did not mention Joseph. However, by the thirteenth century, a new foundation story for the abbey emerged, prominently featuring Joseph, and this new narrative even influenced a later edition of William of Malmesbury's work. By the mid-fourteenth century, John of Glastonbury explicitly incorporated material from the Grail romances into his abbey's history. While it remains uncertain whether Glastonbury's new foundation story preceded or followed the Grail romances, two romances offer possible connections. The Romance of the History of the Grail mentions Joseph's lieutenant, Petrus, traveling to the "vaus d'Avaron," which could refer to Glastonbury's "insula Avallonia," although an alternative location in Burgundy is also plausible. Perlesvaus, however, provides more explicit links. Its colophon states that the Latin text originated from the "Isle of Avalon, from a holy religious house" where King Arthur and the queen lay buried, a clear reference to Glastonbury. Fragments of an early Perlesvaus copy have even been found near Wells Cathedral, suggesting its presence in the area. The romance also places the burials of Arthur's murdered son and Guinevere at Glastonbury's Lady Chapel, with Arthur himself visiting these graves, directly connecting to the 1191 discovery of Arthur's grave there. While Robert de Boron is credited with initially linking Joseph to the Grail, he never suggested Joseph traveled to Britain; this specific Glastonbury connection appears to be an embellishment by the author of Perlesvaus around the early 13th century. Despite these strong narrative ties, Glastonbury Abbey was surprisingly hesitant to emphasize Joseph's presence until the late fifteenth century. Although a prophecy by an unknown writer named Melkin claimed Joseph's body would be found "whole and undecayed," and English kings like Edward III and Henry V encouraged searches for his tomb—motivated by a desire to emphasize the English Church's independence—these efforts ultimately did not firmly establish the legend. Glastonbury never claimed to possess the Grail, and ironically, a purported Grail relic with a Glastonbury provenance only emerged in Protestant England.
Topic 10: Interweaving of Apocryphal Narratives, Relic Legends, and Grail Romances A central theme revealed in the sources is the profound interweaving and mutual influence between apocryphal Christian narratives, the widespread cult of religious relics, and the development of the Grail romances. The distinction between authoritative sacred texts and these elaborated prose romances often blurred. The New Testament itself, though seemingly inviolable now, once had fluid boundaries with the Apocrypha, and these largely forgotten alternative versions of Christ's story were a critical component in the genesis of the Grail narratives. These apocryphal stories were not only current in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries but were also actively rewritten and translated into vernacular languages, making them accessible to a broader audience. Both the apocryphal tales and the legends surrounding relics existed at the periphery of orthodox Church teachings, expanding and adapting existing narratives to appeal to new audiences, sometimes even inventing new literary techniques in the process. At their core, the Grail romances are not merely tales of chivalry and adventure; they are deeply shaped by and engage with the religious beliefs, popular legends surrounding sacred objects, and even significant theological debates of the late twelfth century, extensively drawing upon and reinterpreting the narratives of Christ's Passion and the lives of key figures like Joseph of Arimathea and Longinus.