This project is not immediately connected to saints. Nevertheless, it is an excellent digital resource for hagiographic research because the actual manuscripts are searchable, for example for the term “saint”. The goal of Himanis is to digitise, transcribe and index medieval manuscripts and thus make them accessible to scholars. Currently, they are indexing the Trésor des Chartes registers. The registers “keep record of the charters, grants and privileges given by the king of France and were produced directly by the French royal chancery. Dating from 1302 to 1483, they contain ca. 68,000 charters and documents”. Make sure to read the instructions on search options before beginning your research.
Archiv des Autors: HSB
Internet Medieval Sourcebook: Saints‘ Lives
The Internet Medieval Sourcebook (IMS) is part of the Internet History Sourcebook project, which aims at providing digital versions of public domain original source texts and can be used as an online textbook. The sub-catalogue for hagiography lists the sources by era and geographical origin (for example “Celtic Saints”, “Byzantine Saints” etc.). Additionally, they provide sources for pilgrimage in Western Europe and about the contemporary critical handling of the cult of saints. While most of the sources are dedicated to one saint, the IMS also gives access to important hagiographical collections like the Golden Legend of Jacobus de Voragine or the work of Symeon Metaphrastes. The user – and that’s of the greatest benefit – can search the catalogue as well as the full text. However, the search procedure is split into different search engines. Reading the introduction to the search procedure is recommended. Not all of the links are still working but it still is an excellent resource for students and scholars! Paul Halsall and the large number of contributors included Latin and vernacular hagiographic texts and even some translations which makes the IMS a truly valuable source!
Franciscan Authors (13th -18th century)
A continually growing catalogue listing Franciscan authors who lived between the 13th and 18th century. In addition to biographical information on the life and work of the respective authors, the entries comprise information on manuscripts and editions of the author’s works as well as literature on the author and/or their works. The site is structured rather conveniently: you will be able to either research a particular author by the help of an alphabetical list or to browse via the categories “Vitae Miracula” and “Order Provinces”. Moreover, the authors of the website, namely Bert Roest and Maarten van der Heijden, also provide a small compilation of virtual publications and bibliographies on medieval and Franciscan preaching, medieval exegesis, Franciscan historiography and Franciscan travel and missionary works, all of which were last updated between 2017 and 2019. Additionally, the site lists a wide range of handy research resources, which are arranged bibliographically and can therefore be easily accessed for your own advanced research.
Make sure that you use the current website as the old version is still online, but is no longer updated.
Mapping Miracles
The project Mapping Miracles. A Database of Motifs in Insular Hagiography was initially started by students and aims to develop a taxonomy and online repository of miracles in saints’ lives written in Latin and the regional vernaculars in Britain and Ireland between 600 and 1200. They are aiming at developing a useful resource for researchers. However, Mapping Miracles is still in its first phase as they are currently cataloging conversion motifs and coming up with an overall data structure. Also, the last post was published in 2014 and the last symposium was in 2015.
Last Updated: 2015
Pinakes – Textes et manuscrits grecs
The French website Pinakes – Textes et manuscrits grecs aims at compiling information on all Greek texts up to the 16th century based on archive and library catalogues. Pinakes has about 200000 entries based on 13000 texts of which there are a total of 40000 manuscripts. There are two search options: you can either search for a specific manuscript or conduct a more general research (author, work, century, country). Also, you can search for specific saints as Pinakes also provides the digitised manuscripts of the Greek hagiographic manuscripts of the Société des Bollandistes (BHGms, Bibliotheca Hagiographica Graeca manuscripta). They also link to useful resources and further catalogues. The website is updated regularly.
Documenta Catholica Omnia
The website Documenta Catholica Omnia. Omnium paparum, conciliorum, ss. Partum, doctorum scriptorumque ecclesiae qui ab aevo apostolico ad usque Benedicti XVI tempora floruerunt is concerned with making Latin editions of Christian documents available online. The website is also in Latin. It provides a multitude of PDF-files and links to online versions of the respective editions. They include liturgy, papal documents, patristic texts, and much more.
Hagiography Society
The Hagiography Society was founded in 1990 and is the largest Anglo-American network for all historical research on saints and sanctity. The society aims to establish worldwide networking and communication. Its main focus lies on the medieval era, but does also welcome researchers from all eras and disciplines. Additionally, the websites provides information about the society’s own award, the “The Hagiography Society Book Prize” which they have been awarding annually since 2017; their own book series called “Sanctity in Global Perspective” and plans for the major medieval conferences in the United States and Great Britain (Kalamazoo, Leeds). The website has a useful online bibliography (currently unavailable) and a small selection of links (not annotated). The website also has a members only area, which includes a newsletter, additional accesses and other perks.
A Clerk of Oxford
A Clerk of Oxford is a blog mainly about the literature of medieval England from the 11th century onwards. Since 2008, Dr. Eleanor Parker, a scholar of Medieval English literature from Oxford University, blogs about a variety of topics related to her main research interest – the Danish Conquest of 1016 – in medieval historical writing. In doing so, she also blogs about legends of English saints and religious poetry in Old and Middle English. While the blog is not necessarily intended for academics, it might still be a useful resource for hagiographic research as Dr. Parker’s aim is to provide sources and translations which are not already available online. In order to navigate you might browse the posts via the label “saints”. She is also active on Twitter, where she posts about all things Medieval and scholarship.
Studies on Christian Hagiography
Studies on Christian Hagiography is a blog dedicated to the study of Christian hagiography. It mainly collects conference programmes, calls for papers and links to sources on Christian hagiography up to 2016. The entries are grouped by topics: the column on the right lists a call for participation, the aforementioned topics and the blog’s archive. The website might be useful if you want to have an overview of the topics which were discussed among scholars of hagiography between 2009 and 2016, although the entries differ in length and quantity of information. Some parts of the menu are in Greek which make it difficult to use for people who cannot read the Greek alphabet.
Viking Society Web Publications
The Viking Society for Northern Research makes all their publications since 1983 available online for free! They offer their excellent research for everyone to read: Facsimiles, primary sources, research articles and their annual journal, the Saga-Book, on medieval Scandinavian and Northern Research, including research on saints from that region.
Author: Anthony Faulkes
Last Updated: 2021
Link: http://vsnrweb-publications.org.uk/, also check out the Website of the Viking Society for Northern Research