The ''Registrum Gregorii'' is a

collection of letters A letter collection consists of a publication, usually a book, containing a compilation of letters written by a real person. Unlike an epistolary novel, a letter collection belongs to non-fiction literature. As a publication, a letter collection ...

pope Gregory the Great Pope Gregory I (; ; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great (; ), was the 64th Bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 until his death on 12 March 604. He is known for instituting the first recorded large-scale mission from Rom ...

. It was commissioned by

Egbert of Trier Egbert (c. 950 – 9 December 993) was the Archbishop of Trier from 977 until his death. Egbert was a son of Dirk II, Count of Holland. After being trained in Egmond Abbey, founded and controlled by his family, and at the court of Bruno I, Arch ...

from the anonymous Italian artist known as the "

master of the Registrum Gregorii The Master of the Registrum Gregorii, also known as the Registrum Master or the Gregory Master, was an anonymous 10th-century scribe and illuminator, active in Trier during the episcopate of Egbert of Trier. His work is generally figural and cha ...

" or the "Gregory Master" (fl. c. 980–996), probably after the death of

Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy. Otto II was ...

in 983.

Illuminated miniatures

The manuscript was separated: Two pages show one illuminated miniature each - one shows Otto II enthroned and surrounded by the four provinces of his empire (now held at the

Musée Condé The – in English, the Condé Museum – is a French museum located inside the Château de Chantilly in Chantilly, Oise, 40 km north of Paris. In 1897, Henri d'Orléans, Duke of Aumale, son of Louis Philippe I, bequeathed the château and ...

in Chantilly, France), and the other shows pope Gregory the Great writing whilst receiving inspiration from the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

in the form of a

dove Columbidae is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with small heads, relatively short necks and slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. ...

, which is perched on his shoulder (now held at the Stadtbibliothek at

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

Frontispiece and its inspiration

The

frontispiece Frontispiece may refer to: * Frontispiece (books), a decorative illustration facing a book's title page * Frontispiece (architecture) In architecture, the term frontispiece is used to describe the Façade, principal face of the building, usually ...

of the ''Registrum Gregorii,'' depicting Pope Gregory the Great writing, was inspired by a story of how he was given dictation by the Holy Spirit. The story goes that while Pope Gregory was writing his sermon on

Ezekiel Ezekiel, also spelled Ezechiel (; ; ), was an Israelite priest. The Book of Ezekiel, relating his visions and acts, is named after him. The Abrahamic religions acknowledge Ezekiel as a prophet. According to the narrative, Ezekiel prophesied ...

, a curtain was drawn between him and his secretary, Deacon Peter. From the other side of the curtain, Pope Gregory started to have long pauses in his speech, and Deacon Peter became nervous, so he poked a hole in the curtain to see what was happening. What the Deacon saw was a

perched on Pope Gregory’s shoulder with its beak in the Pope's mouth. When the dove took its beak out of the Pope’s mouth, he would begin to speak again, and Peter would continue to write down his words. The bird was supposedly the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove, and when it put its beak into the mouth of St. Gregory, it was putting its own words into Gregory’s mouth. It is from this legend that the dove became the hallmark of St. Peter, and has been since the ninth century.

Personal style of the artist

The Gregory Master was able to show personal expression even with the hieratic forms of

Ottonian art Ottonian art is a style (visual arts), style in Pre-Romanesque art, pre-romanesque German art, covering also some works from the Low Countries, northern Italy and eastern France. It was named by the art historian Hubert Janitschek after the Ottoni ...

, and did so through the characters' idealized faces, the way the clothing forms around their bodies, and through his use of colors and concentrated drawing. The illustration itself provides a visual to the legend of Pope Gregory, it shows Deacon Peter peering through a curtain hanging from two pillars, and the dove inspiring Gregory’s sermon. Peter is on the left, with a

tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice in ...

haircut, wearing a blue robe, and jumping in the air from excitement. Peter is also holding his

stylus A stylus is a writing utensil or tool for scribing or marking into softer materials. Different styluses were used to write in cuneiform by pressing into wet clay, and to scribe or carve into a wax tablet. Very hard styluses are also used to En ...

in one hand, which he used to poke a hole in the curtain, and a tablet in the other. Gregory is on the right, wearing a blue robe on top of other garments, and is sitting on a cushioned seat in front of a

lectern A lectern is a standing reading desk with a slanted top, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon. A lectern is usually attached to a stand or affixed to some other form of ...

. In one hand Peter is holding a book, his other hand is resting on the lectern, and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove is perched on his shoulder. Peter also has a gold halo around his head that encompasses the bird’s head as well. There is a chandelier hanging over Peter’s head that is reminiscent of a crown, and the way his feet are angled illustrates reverse perspective. The illustration also uses hierarchical tactics by making Gregory larger than Peter, but Peter is so big that it makes the ceiling look low, and the room shallow.

Other surviving parts of the manuscript

The other parts of the manuscripts are held at the Stadtbibliothek at Trier: one double page with a dedicated poem, and a fragment of the original text (37 pages).

Archaeological discovery

The Trier manuscript was bound in the 18th century.

References