MINIATO, saint, martyr. - Detail of the mosaic in the apse of the church of the same name (1297) - Florence, church of S. Miniato al Monte.
MINIATO, Saint, Martyr. - A Passio s. Miniati, earlier than the 9th century or at least than the 10th (BHL, 5965-66), narrates his decapitation on the hill of Florence, which later took its name from the martyr, on 25 October between 249 and 251, under the empire of Decius. It is not possible to establish M.'s homeland and deeds, since the information goes back to the legendary account of the Passio.
The existence of an early Christian cemetery on the hill where the basilica of S. Miniato stands is not proven, nor is the presence there in antiquity of the martyr's tomb. In the diploma of Charlemagne, drawn up in 786-87, mention is made of the martyr's relics and not of the whole body (MGH, Diplomata karolinorum, I, n. 155, p. 210). In 969 or 970 Theodoric, bishop of Metz, transported them to his episcopal city
(MGH, Scriptores, IV, p. 476 and VI, p. 351). It is not excluded that these relics were eulogiae of the famous Egyptian martyr St. Menas (v.), widely diffused in East and West from the 6th century onward. This hypothesis would also explain how the early Christians of Florence had built churches to Roman martyrs. A legend of the 13th century made St. M. a son of the king of Persia or an Armenian king himself. He is presented as a king also by the inscription in the apse mosaic of S. Miniato from the end of that century.
Bibliography5 worksActa SS. Octobris, XI, Paris-Rome 1870, pp. 415-432; P. Lugano, S. Miniato a Firenze. Storia e leggenda, in Studi religiosi, 3 (1902), pp. 2
BIBL.:Acta SS. Octobris, XI, Paris-Rome 1870, pp. 415-432; P. Lugano, S. Miniato a Firenze. Storia e leggenda, in Studi religiosi, 3 (1902), pp. 222-456; 6 (1902), pp. 482-505; R. Davidsohn, Storia di Firenze, Italian trans., Florence 1907, pp. 48, 58; Lanzoni, pp. 574-76.
Romanelli, Emanuele. “Miniato, santo, martire.” In Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. VIII, coll. 1026–1027. Città del Vaticano: Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1952. https://azioneromana.com/article/miniato-santo-martire.
MLA
Romanelli, Emanuele. “Miniato, santo, martire.” Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. VIII, Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico, 1952, coll. 1026–1027. Azione Romana, https://azioneromana.com/article/miniato-santo-martire.
BibTeX
@incollection{ec8_miniato_santo_martire,
author = {Romanelli, Emanuele},
title = {Miniato, santo, martire},
booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica},
volume = {VIII},
pages = {1026--1027},
note = {Cited by column},
publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico},
address = {Città del Vaticano},
year = {1952},
url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/miniato-santo-martire}
}
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