“Damit siegt Hrabanus mühelos über Apelles”

Abstract

Abstract The first printed edition of the Liber sanctae crucis by Hrabanus Maurus, published in 1503 in Pforzheim, was a milestone in the reception history of the Carolingian figured poems, and a typographic and philological masterpiece as well. This article argues for considering Johannes Reuchlin as the principal initiator of the publication. This sheds new light on the excursus about the cross in Reuchlin’s De verbo mirifico and De arte cabalistica. Reuchlin’s theory of the miracle-working word implies a Cabbalistic-Pythagorean exegesis of the cross as a complement, which he left unelaborated. In view of this hiatus, Hrabanus’ figured poems on the cross might have appeared particularly promising for the humanist, both on grounds of their compositional methods and contents. Besides the demonstration of these affinities, the article provides an analysis of Reuchlin’s introductory poem to the edition, which confirms that he regarded the cycle of figured poems as a prospective source for his Christian Cabbala.