bones in Santiago

[Maryjane Dunn]

Michael Wyatt wrote:
> I know that I saw several tombs in the cloister.  I assume they are
> occupied.  I saw nothing else in the crypt though--and I would be
> surprised
> if anyone else were there.
Kathy Gower asked:
> A simple, sincere question...are the "bones" of St. James the only bones
> buried in the cathedral grounds at Santiago?

Good question and a sincere answer, but actually much more complex than you
might imagine. There are studies of the *tombs* Michael mentions, helping to
date the Cathedral complex, etc. as they range in dates from 1106-1407, but
the "bones" of these are of lesser importance at this point.

The deeper (pardon the pun) question is are the bones really those of St.
James, and this is more complex. On earlier lists we spent several days
going over the etymology of the name "Compostela" which romantically is said
to be from "Field of Stars" but is more likely to come from Latin
"compos(i)ta + ella" (a pretty little place) or from references to the site
as a burial ground.

There are indeed many skeletons under the actual Cathedral area, and
excavations have been carried out since the 50s. Engelbert Kirschbaum  wrote
"Die Grabungen unter der Kathedrale von Santiago de Compostela" in Romische
Quartalschrift fur christliche Altertumskunde und Kirchengeschichte 56
(1961): 234-54, in which he describes and differentiates between the Roman
Visigothic and 9th c. tombs, which are found at various levels.

Another reference and point of view would be that of Manuel Chamoso Lamas
who wrote extensively about the 1950s excavations in a variety of places.
One article of direct interest would be: "Sobre las necropolis
paleocristianas ultimamente descubiertas en Galicia y Portugal" in Anuario
de estudios medievales 2 (1965): 433-49. This is also one of the early
references to problems/relationships between the Stgo cult and
Priscillianism.

As another bit of personal evidence, I have had the opportunity to descend
to the excavation areas of the Cathedral and saw many of the skeletons/tombs
myself. We included a picture (unfortunately it is not very clear, and is
too cropped to be of great help) on p. 162 of our edition of The Miracles of
Saint James (eds: Thomas Coffey, Linda Davidson & MJ Dunn, NY: Italica Press
1966). (By the way, in blatant self-promotion I would let you know that this
book is still available from Italica, and is a very good "read" for anyone
interested in the medieval Santiago and pilgrimage

Maryjane