Tradizione monastica e cultura a Ravenna tra VII e VIII secolo

In Ravenna, the attractiveness of eremitism before the strong affirmation of Benedictine coenobitism can be read through Ms. 4 of the Chapter Library, one of the oldest archives in Europe. This little codex preserves an excerpt from the Apophthegmata Patrum translated by Pelagius, and it was probably produced for one of the Ravenna’s monasteria (i.e. monasteries connected to the great basilicas, or founded by members of the urban élite). Unfortunately, very little information survives on 7th and 8th century monastir life in Ravenna; while, in the 9th century, Agnellus’ Liber pontificalis provides some clues about its sociocultural context. Two elements are of specific relevance: the presence of Greekspeaking intellectuals, as Giovannicius, and the explicit admiration for monastic charisms.