ON THE HOLY MARTYRS OF NOVIODUNUM,
DINOCUS, ZOTICUS, ATTALUS, EUTICUS, CAMASUS, QUIRINUS, JULIA, SATURNINA,
GALDUNUS, NINNITA, FORTUNIO, AND ANOTHER 25. ALSO CIRINUS, EBUSTUS,
RUSTICUS, SILVIUS.
From the Hieronymian Martyrology.
CommentaryDinocus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Zoticus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Attalus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Euticus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Camasus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Quirinus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Julia, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Saturnina, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Galdinus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Ninnita, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Fortunio, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
XXV, Martyrs at Noviodunum (SS.) Cyrinus, Bishop, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Æbustus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Rusticus, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
Silvius, Martyr at Noviodunum (S.)
G. H.
The ancient copies of the Hieronymian Martyrology begin this fourth day of June with some difference concerning the arena of the Martyrs; for by some Nineveh, the city, namely, of Assyria; by others it is named Nividunum, or Nevidunum, or Novidunum. Names variously written The most ancient Epternach copy begins thus: "On the day before the Nones of June. At Nineveh, the birthday of Dinocus, Zoticus, Attalus, Euticus, Camasus, Quirina, Julia, Saturna, Galdunus, Ninnita, Fortunio, and another 25." In others, namely the two Lucca copies, the Corbey and the Blumian, the name of Dinocus is omitted. The reading also varies, Amasus, Quirinus, Saturnina, and Saturninus: and the number added is sometimes 22, sometimes 28, and sometimes only 20. Rabanus has these: "At Nineveh of Dinocus, Attalus, Camarus, Firina (in place of Quirina), Julia." Mss. of Reichenau in Swabia and Rheinau in Switzerland: "At Nineveh of Dinocius, Attalus, Euticus." The Aix-la-Chapelle one with inverted order thus reads: "At Nineveh of Dinocus, Zoticus, Attalus, Camostus, Julia, Saturninus." The Pseudo-Bede: "At Nineveh, the birthday of Dinoscius, Attalus, Camarius, Tyrinus (in place of Quirinus), Julia." But in place of Dinocus, "Dieni" is read in a Ms. Catalog, before the works of Isidore, in the Vallicelliana Library at Rome. Meanwhile, Dinocus being omitted, Usuard has thus: "In the city of Noviodunum, of Zoticus, Attalus, Eutychius." Notker adds, "With many others."
[2] Atrebatensis Ms.: "At Novodunum, the birthday of holy Saturnina, The arena is Noviodunum in Europe, Zoticus, and Euticus." Hence Saussay snatched the occasion of attributing these to Nevers, with this eulogy: "At Noviodunum," he says, "of the Aedui, that is, at Nevers, the birthday of the Holy Martyrs Zoticus, Attalus, Eutichius and many others, who being accused of the Christian faith, did not waver, but freely and constantly professed the most sacred religion, and for this confession most bitterly tormented, attained eternal rewards by a most distinguished combat." These things are there, which can be said almost everywhere of any Martyrs whatever. Besides that city of the Aedui, head of the province now named after itself, there is nonetheless a famous one in the Vermandois, also Episcopal, commonly called Noyon, to say nothing of Noviodunum of the Bituriges, commonly Neufvy; and another, capital of the Perticensis province, called by more recent writers Novigentum, commonly Nogent. But also Lower Moesia at the Danube, where now Bessarabia is called, has its own Novidunum in Ammianus and Ptolemy; and Upper Pannonia, another at the Save, listed by Antoninus and Ptolemy, in the borders of Carniola; in which Pannonia, since the Emperors Diocletian and both Maximians often and for long times stayed, there is a just suspicion of Schoenleben and others, that very many of these Martyrs, whom common opinion ascribes to Gaul, should be left to Pannonia.
[3] I too think the same: yet I presume to define nothing in particular about those placed here; except that I believe them, in whatever region of Europe, to have suffered rather not at Nineveh in Assyria than in Assyria. For although Ninus, called in the Scriptures Nineveh, was a city ample while the Assyrian empire stood; yet, cut off utterly with it, it retained the mere name among posterity; nor in the time of the Christian Law does it seem to have been any city, unless perhaps under another name; just as some part of it is thought to have been that which today is called Mosul. It is noteworthy that in all the copies in which Novidunum is written, Dinocus is silent; and it becomes likely from these words: "In civitate Nevidono," or "Nevidoni civitate" (for it is written both Nevidunum and Nividonum, with the same meaning always; since what is "Novum" to the Latins is pronounced "Neu" and "Niu" by the Germans, and "Dunum," that is, a city, is also rendered "Donum") — likely, I say, it becomes that "ci." written for "civitate" caused them to read "in Ninive Donici."
[4] Four others are added. We leave nevertheless Donicus in the number of the other Martyrs, on account of the multitude of copies naming him. Others omit him too, and in listing others suppress the name of the Arena, namely the very ancient Gellone, the Ms. of S. Udalric of Augsburg, the Helvetic
of S. Gallus, and the Parisian of Labbé; where mention is made of Zoticus, Camasus, Quirinus, Julius, Saturninus, and in the Ms. of Liessies of Saturnina, Zoticus and Euticius: and the name Rusticus is added. In the Corbey one, Rusticus and Silvius. In the Epternach one, Cyrinus, Bishop, Ebustus, Rusticus, Bishop: but for the name Cyrinus, elsewhere is read Cyricus, Cyprinus, and Cyprianus: with the title of Bishop also omitted, which is more pleasing, and may seem to have been taken from him who follows in the same place, but is by us placed before, namely Quirinus who suffered at Sabaria, and that his name was wrongly transferred to this class of Noviodunensian Martyrs.
ON THE SAINTS PICTUS, ARETIUS, DACIANUS,
MARTYRS AT ROME ON THE APPIAN WAY.
Their cult, and Spanish fabrications about the place of their martyrdom.
Pictus, Martyr at Rome on the Appian Way (S.)
Aretus, Martyr at Rome on the Appian Way (S.)
Dacianus, Martyr at Rome on the Appian Way (S.)
D. P.
The four ancient copies of the Hieronymian Martyrology, already so often cited, suggest these Martyrs to us in these words: "At Rome, the birthday of Pictus, Arecius, Dacianus." In the Ms. of Monte Cassino and another of Queen Christina of Sweden, "via Appia" is added, Names in the Martyrologies and indeed, as is read in the Mss. of Tournai and Liessies, "in the cemetery at the Catacombs," and in the Ms. of S. Peter's Vatican, it is said to have been at the fourth milestone from the City. Of the Catacombs on the Appian Way Aringhus treats in book 3 of "Subterranean Rome" chap. 12. S. Gregory in book 3 epist. 30 seems to place them at the second milestone; and the cemetery, begun there, may have extended for some thousand paces further. The names of these Saints are variously written: Pectus, Pastus, Pietus in place of Pictus; then Arecus, Aregius, Aretius in place of Arecius: finally Dacianus is also written with the letter t. In the Roman Martyrology Aretius and Dacianus, Martyrs at Rome, are listed. But Pictus and Dacianus are in the Mss. of Augsburg, Gellone, S. Gall, and Labbé.
[2] How Dacianus was ascribed to Emerita: It seemed sinful to the authors of the pseudepigraphic Chronicles in Spain, of whatever sort, if this day passed without some Spanish Saint. What then? They seized upon this S. Dacianus, and finding a certain Decianus, friend of the poet Martial, and celebrated by him with many praises, of whom Emerita boasts as born among them in Book 1 Epigram 62, they made their Julianus thus write in the pseudo-chronicle no. 287: "The memory is still celebrated of S. Dacianus or Decianus, a Stoic philosopher of Emerita, whom Martial so much celebrates, who suffered under Hadrian at Rome with others, on the 4th day of the month of June." Lest the chorus be wanting, Tamayus in the Spanish Martyrology adds a poem which he dreamed up under the name of Aulus Halus, as if writing while the Saracens still ruled, addressed to Bl. Dacianus, Martyr of Emerita, in which it is said that he drew the true dogmas of the Christian faith from Pope Evaristus, and flew to the stars as a Martyr before him. But since Baronius ascribed Evaristus's martyrdom to the year 121 (I judge he died in 108), Tamayus himself, supported by no reason or authority of an autograph, and how to Lusitania, rejected his martyrdom both in the Annals and in the Notes to the Martyrology to the times of Diocletian. Meanwhile he himself, leaning on the fiction of Pseudo-Julianus, compiles rather prolix Acts, from various sources, as he says: and Cardosus, somewhat more concise, follows him in the Lusitanian Hagiology, because Emerita, now reckoned a city of New Castile, commonly called on the river Anas in Extremadura, is Lusitanian to Pliny and Strabo, a city once celebrated as a juridical convention of many cities and Archiepiscopal; wherefore the same Cardosus calls it the capital of Lusitania in his Notes.