The Ancients The First Popes
20 snips
Jan 29, 2026 
Professor Rosamond McKitterick, Emeritus Fellow at Sidney Sussex College and medieval historian, guides a journey through early Roman Christianity. Short takes cover the Liber Pontificalis and how it shapes papal biographies. Traditions about Peter, links between Peter and Mark, Sylvester’s ties to Constantine, and Leo I’s confrontation with Attila are explored.
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Liber Pontificalis As Constructed History
- The Liber Pontificalis is a serial papal biography compiled from 6th-century papal archives and earlier lists like the Calendar of 354.
- Its authors shaped a continuous narrative that presented Roman bishops as the sole authoritative lineage from St. Peter onward.
Standardized Papal Biographies
- The Liber Pontificalis uses a strict formula: origin, length of pontificate, deeds, ordinations, burial, and vacancy.
- This formula preserves administrative details while leaving room for variable narrative length.
Gaps And Selectivity In The Record
- The Liber Pontificalis often omits context and specifics, especially about martyrdoms and internal disputes.
- Historians must fill gaps with archaeology and other early sources to reconstruct likely realities.
