Annone di Colonia, Enrico IV e Anselmo III da Rho. Sul baculus episcopale di San Nazaro in Brolo a Milano

The article proposes a new dating and interpretation of the episcopal crosier found in the tomb of a Milanese archbishop at San Nazaro in Brolo and hypothetically attributed to Archbishop Arderic (936–948), following the recognition of the relics by Carlo Borromeo and Carlo Bascapé in 1578 and their rediscovery in 1968. The correct reading of one of the two inscriptions on the crosier indicates that it was a gift to an individual named Henry from a donor named Anno. The giver refers to the recipient as his „beloved son“, applying to himself a formula of humility that appears only in the works of the Germanic clergy in the last quarter of the 11th century. This study identifies the recipient as Emperor Henry IV, the donor as his ‚tutorʻ Archbishop Anno of Cologne, and Anselm III of Rho (1086–1093) as the last owner of this symbolically and historically important object. Indeed, Anselm III was the last Archbishop of Milan to receive the symbols of his rank from the hands of Henry IV in the ritual of investiture per anulum et baculum. He chose as his burial place the Basilica of San Nazaro in Brolo, rebuilt after the fire of 1075 in the Romanesque form that still characterizes it today. This identification also provides new information about archiepiscopal burials in San Nazaro and resolves an old scholarly debate about the alleged saint Udalricus/Walricus/ Enricus Higudstanno.