| The dissertation is a partial edition of the Explanationes in Mattheum published in 815 by Claudius, a priest at the court of Louis the Pious, later bishop of Turin. Written at the request of Abbot Justus of Charroux, the work is noteworthy in being one of the first in the so-called catena form, built up of excerpts from the writings of earlier authors. It received early recognition and wide circulation, but was later suppressed and largely ignored, apparently due to the charges of heresy brought against Claudius. Nevertheless, it became a source for other Matthew catenae, especially those of Hrabanus Maurus and Sedulius Scotus, and the catena form was used throughout the Middle Ages by a wide range of scholars. The present edition is made by recension of eight manuscripts, one of which has only recently come to light, and represents the editio princeps of all but the dedicatory epistle. |
