Codex Calixtinus

The Codex Calixtinus is the name given to the mid 12th-century manuscript preserved in the library of Santiago de Compostela Cathedral. This little book might not be particularly fancy, but it contains a good part of the history of the medieval pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. Because of this, it has immeasurable historical value as a document of the Camino and the European medieval era.

At the start of the book, Pope Calixtus II (ca. 1050–1124) is attributed as its author, represented in the codex itself as written in famous polychromatic capital letters. In reality, the book was almost certainly written in the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral school and started when he had already passed away—they added his name to give more prestige to the work.

Not exactly. The Calixtinus is one of many copies that exist of the the Book of Saint James (Liber Sancti Jacobi), a collection of texts with different themes. The one kept in Santiago de Compostela Cathedral is certainly the oldest of all the ones preserved, though it was probably not the first.

Remember that in the Middle Ages books had to be produced by hand, so each copy is unique and different from the others.

There are currently 12 manuscript copies of the Liber Sancti Jacobi, the majority in fragmented. The first was a partial copy by Arnaldo de Monte, a Ripoll monk who went on a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in 1173, and is now preserved in Barcelona.

The origins of the Liber Sancti Jacobi likely go back to 1120–30, when Diego Gelmírez, the first Compostelan archbishop, commissioned it as a political tool to promote the cult of Saint James and Compostelan pilgrimages in medieval Europe.

Though it appears to contain texts with obvious French influences, the majority of the collection was most likely written and compiled in the Compostelan school.

The author of the Codex Calixtinus is one of the most exciting enigmas in the history of medieval Europe. In the Compostelan manuscript, we can distinguish the handwriting of up to four different people, but there is nothing to indicate that the copyists were the actual authors of the texts.

Poitevin monk Aymeric Picaud, who is apparently cited in the book, has been considered the author of part of the Liber Sancti Jacobi for decades, but there is no proof of this.

The contents of the Liber Sancti Jacobi are divided into five different books. Not all of them were written at the same time. It is believed that the set was finally compiled around 1150 in a book that has now been lost, and that this was the template from which the Codex Calixtinus was copied around 1160.

Two appendices of huge historical value would be added later that would not be planned in advance, as evidenced by the fact that they do not appear in any other copies.

The codex is, above all, a liturgical book, since the contents of the first book, which makes up well over half the total length of the volume, are liturgical in nature. It describes the liturgy of Santiago de Compostela Cathedral itself, created that same era in honor of the Apostle. It is important to remember that in the Middle Ages, only the most important churches in Europe had their own rituals.

Yes, in the shortest of its five books, the third. Despite its short length, this book was the most important for Santiago de Compostela Cathedral as it tells the story of the transfer of the Apostle body from the Holy Land to Galicia, the basis of the entire pilgrimage and the origin of the Camino de Santiago.

The second book, which lists 22 miracles attributed to the Apostle. It was a way of letting people who were going on a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela know about the importance of Saint James, and the fact that his miraculous power would protect them once they started their journey, which at the time was very dangerous. The second appendix also added some additional miracles.

No, quite the opposite: for most of its history, the s Codex Calixtinu was actually five books. Firstly, there was apparently no definitive bound edition until the 15th century. Furthermore, in 1609 the Pseudo Turpin was ripped out of the Codex and bound separately, probably because the story of Charlemagne ended up being too implausible.

Since then it was preserved in two separate volumes for over 300 years until 1966, when the fourth book was reintegrated into the Codex when it was restored.

The fifth book, which has traditionally been attributed to Aymeric Picaud, describes the Camino journey from France to Santiago de Compostela with all its amenities and dangers and also gives practical advice.

The route traced in this medieval guide corresponds to what is known as the Camino Francés, which was recovered during the 1980s by Elías Valiña who used this Calixtinus text as his main historical reference.

When the books were finally compiled, some pages were added to the Codex Calixtinus. The first of these appendices contains 22 polyphonic musical compositions, some of the oldest in Europe.

The second appendix of the Codex Calixtinus contains, among other documents, the pilgrims' hymn: the legendary Dum Pater Familias. In contrast to the rest of the music of the Calixtinus, this piece's notation is written in a style termed In Campo Aperto. That is to say, without any staves similar to the modern pentagram.