Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

There's an exhibition in Cologne and I visited it yesterday. About the 3 holy kings, which are now 850 years in Cologne (robbed in Italy 1164). ... aspx?s=533

They have collected in the exhibition 127 objects, some rather old (Roman time), some rather small, others rather big. There's a pleasant catalog with good pictures (39 Euro; well, too much, I didn't buy it).

The Phrygian caps of the kings or Magi, which we detected once at a very early mosaic in Ravenna ....

... isn't a rare attribute of the Magi in the early time (I saw them variously on the early objects). The crowns developed later, likely by the influence of German emperors (?).The number "3" and the crowns aren't part of the text of Matthew, who was the only evangelist, who told about them. I was interested in this detail "Phrygian caps".


Phrygia (according German wiki) is this location ...


... in other words, a greater part of Turkey. This I found a little curious, cause I imagined from the general descriptions, that the 3 magi were considered to come from the East of Bethlehem, not from the North. "Phrygian caps" might indicate, that they came from Phrygia.

I found Attis (son of Cybele, which is Phrygian cult), but also Mithras (which is generally given as belonging originally to Persia) with Phrygian caps ...





from this webpage ...
... which arguments similarities between Attis cult and early Christianity:
Attis was born on December 25th of the Virgin Nana.
He was a shepherd, as Christ was called the "Good Shepherd."
He was considered the "only begotten son," the Logos/Word and the savior slain for the salvation of mankind.
His cult had a sacrificial meal, at which, it is contended, his body as bread was eaten by his worshippers.
His priests were "eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven" (Mt 19:12).
Attis served as both the Divine Son and the Father.
On "Black Friday," he was "crucified" on a tree, from which his holy blood ran down to redeem the earth.
He descended into the underworld.

The Mithras cult is generally seen as in competition with early Christianity

About the Phrygians I read (I summarize a few things)...
The Phrygians possibly came from the region of Macedonia and invaded Anatolia after the break down of the Hittite kingdom.
In the Iliad Priamos, king of Troja, married Hekuba, a Phrygian princess. The Phrygians helped in the war against the Greek.
"According to the Iliad, the homeland of the Phrygians was on the Sangarius River, which would remain the centre of Phrygia throughout its history. Phrygia was famous for its wine and had "brave and expert" horsemen."

Sangarius (/sæŋˈɡɛriəs/; Ancient Greek: Σαγγάριος) was a Phrygian river-god of Greek mythology.[1] He is described as the son of Oceanus and Tethys, and as the husband of Metope, by whom he became the father of Hecuba.[2][3] He is also the father of Nana and therefore the grandfather of Attis.[4] The Sakarya River (in Phrygia-Turkey) itself is said to have derived its name from one Sangas, who had offended Rhea, and was punished by her by being changed into water.
Wiki "Sakarya" = Sangarius"

Likely the river region was excellent for wine production. Turkey has still a lot of wine, though in the more Islamic times it was used more for the production of Sultaninen ("Sultana" in contrast to "raisin").

"During the 8th century BC the Phrygian kingdom with its capital at Gordium in the upper Sakarya River valley expanded into an empire dominating most of central and western Anatolia and encroaching upon the larger Assyrian Empire to its southeast and the kingdom of Urartu to the northeast."
see wiki: "Gordium"

King Midas was a Phrygian king. Known for his ass ears, one wonders, if the "Phrygian cap" might have given reasons for this mythological joke.
Anway, king Midas stands for the height of the development of the Phrygian culture. Gordium was destructed at a not clear date, around 700-800 BC, the precise date is debated.

Phrygian cults had been Cybele, Attis and Zeus Zagreus, also called Sabazios:
Zeus Zagreus had a strong connection to the general Dionysos cult. owonder, the Phrygians lived in a wine region.

Zeus Zagreus (a child god later, but possibly as Sabazios a horse riding god originally) became victim to the Titans, who hunted him. They cut him to pieces. But he returned back.

Well, the Romans knew this:
The first Jews who settled in Rome were expelled in 139 BCE, along with Chaldaean astrologers by Cornelius Hispalus under a law which proscribed the propagation of the "corrupting" cult of "Jupiter Sabazius," according to the epitome of a lost book of Valerius Maximus:

Gnaeus Cornelius Hispalus, praetor peregrinus in the year of the consulate of Marcus Popilius Laenas and Lucius Calpurnius, ordered the astrologers by an edict to leave Rome and Italy within ten days, since by a fallacious interpretation of the stars they perturbed fickle and silly minds, thereby making profit out of their lies. The same praetor compelled the Jews, who attempted to infect the Roman custom with the cult of Jupiter Sabazius, to return to their homes."[17]

By this it is conjectured that the Romans identified the Jewish YHVH Tzevaot ("sa-ba-oth," "of the Hosts") as Jove Sabazius.

This mistaken connection of Sabazios and Sabaos has often been repeated. In a similar vein, Plutarch maintained that the Jews worshipped Dionysus, and that the day of Sabbath was a festival of Sabazius.[18] Plutarch also discusses the identification of the Jewish God with the "Egyptian" Typhon, an identification which he later rejects, however. The monotheistic Hypsistarians worshipped the Most High under this name, which may have been a form of the Jewish God.
Wiki: Hypsistarians
Well, a sort of early Monotheism. Possibly Phrygians, sitting in Minor Asia. Possibly people with Phrygian caps.

.... another aspects:

Dionysos, son of Zeus and Semele, and Semele was the daughter of Kadmos and Harmonia, and Kadmos was a Phoenician and brought the alphabet to Greece.
The Phoenicians came from the region, where the early Jews distributed.

Noah, who made a big ark to save mankind and animals, stranded at the mount Ararat, a high mountain (about 5100 meters). That's not precisely there, where the Phrygians produced their wine, but somehow nearby, and Noah (he was the first who planted a vineyard according Genesis) became acquainted to vine with some bad results ...


... which caused, that Ham (= Canaan), who saw his naked father, was cursed, and his sons had to become slaves to the other descendents.


Well, there's a riddle about the Phrygian caps of the 3 Magi.

Lorredan recently wrote at another place ...
Hmmm The Pope with Donkey......

Silenus is an old man with a bald head and a snub nose, who is generally to be seen riding on a donkey; he is of Lydian extraction. Assembly of Gods or Gods Council by Lucian spoken by Momus.
Lydia was a neighbor to Phrygia ....


Silenus is used as a sort of father figure for Dionysos. Well, it was Noah, who had build the first vineyard according the biblical mythology, somehow it has some mythological logic, that he, cause he had seen so much water, that he invented the vine. A specialist for fluid matters.
The donkey (Silenus attribute) was often used in Jewish contexts, occasionally in an attacking manner.

So the figure "Silenus" is possibly a Greek mockery reference to Noah and his claim to have invented the first vineyard?

Re: Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

Possibly the use of Phrygian caps in early depictions reflect an influence of Byzantium models?
T. S. Eliot

Re: Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

SteveM wrote:Possibly the use of Phrygian caps in early depictions reflect an influence of Byzantium models?
Well, would be a most natural explanation.

St. Helena, mother of emperor Constantine, had been from Drepana (later called Helenopolis for St. Helena) in Bithynia. She is believed to have found the bones of the Magi, and she also made some sort of archeological research in Palestina with other successes. Emperor Constantine in his old times spend a lot of time there.


Bithynia is close to Phrygia and influenced by the same mythical Sakarya/Sangarius river with its vine production. The river isn't as long as the Rhine, but 824 km isn't short. It's likely comparable to the Rhine with all its legends in the Western region of Turkey. Regions, which are connected by one river, have naturally a lot of traffic and communication with each other.

Stumbling around the question, where St. Helena found the bones, I detected a text of Johannes of Hildesheim reported by Goethe and Gustav Schwab in 1822 ... ... navlinks_s

Even an edition of 1477 is available ... though in Latin.

Well, perhaps I should first read it ...

Re: Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

Well ...
... they had Phrygian caps. The first crowned 3 magi appear in the row of the exhibition objects for Fulda (Fuldaer Sakramentar, Pergament Manuscript)in the year 990, I don't know, if anything is older outside of the exhibition (the short text of the small catalog gives the impression, that it is the oldest: it "nähern sich nun erstmals drei Könge" and "aus den phrygischen Mützen sind Kronreifen geworden").

Fulda is in the mid of Germany and Quedlinburg (place of the German king family with Otto I, Otto II and Otto III) isn't far (about 200 km). The abbey of Fulda had been the center of science in Germany in this time. About 600 monks worked there.

Otto I (reigned 951-973), victor of the battle at the Lechfeld
Otto II (reigned 973-983), married Theophanu, princess of Byzanz
Otto III. (* 980, reigned till 1002), child of Theophanu, who reigned for her son some time

Well, there had been a phenomenon "3 kings with the name Otto" in Fulda 990. And one important background of the time was, that Otto I. had had 955 the victory at the Lechfeld against plundering Hungarians ...
... which in its consequences led to a peace with Hungary and this opened the way to Byzanz. Byzanz replied with princess Theophanu and she married Otto II and brought a lot of foreign culture to the colder Germany, possibly also the game of chess (the game of the kings).

In her late years Theophanu found her way to Cologne, and she died and was buried here.

On the Fulda text follows in the exhibition catalog Eusebio Caesariesis, Condcordaniae Evangeliorum in Reichenau (Southern Germany, near Constance). The crowned kings present the 3 ages. End of 10th till begin of 11th century, the style is called "ottonisch".

Then follows the Bremer Perikopenbuch 1039-1043 with a 3 magi scene. The figures are crowned.

A large wooden door (not part of the exhibition) at the Cologne church "Maria im Capitol" (close to the exhibition and we visited it) from c. 1050 has as decoration a series of reliefs from the life of Jesus and one them (the 6th) shows the 3 Kings, though crowns I can't detect and also not Phrygian caps.

(at the right)

Interestingly the church was build on the fragments of a large Roman temple (Jupiter, Juno, Minerva) from 1st century AD.
Plektrudis, wife of Pippin der Mittlere, didn't like Karl Martell as follower of her deceased husband and made him prisoner. But Karl Martell freed himself and finally urged, that Plektrudis had to accept him. She retired in a women-convent at Maria im Capitol, which she sponsored before beside other engagements. A church was build from the fragments of the earlier temple. The church was burned by Wikingers (winter 881-2). Later it was rebuild, considerably larger (100x40 m; finished in the time of 1049-64).
When the bones of the 3 magi were robbed in Italy and brought in secret manner to Cologne, they got their first place in Maria im Capitol. A door nearby was erected or renamed, "Dreikönigspförtchen" possibly cause the bones entered the city on this way. It was decorated with 4 figures:



Anyway, there was a large triumphal celebration, when they arrived, at least it is stated this way.

Re: Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

The Ravenna mosaic (6th century) has the names Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar.

Beda Venerabilis ...
... must have written something of interest (c. 700-730) about the 3 magi, but I don't find the original source.

I find to this theme:
The Western tradition of the names of the Magi derive from an early 6th Century Greek manuscript, translated into the Latin Excerpta Latina Barbari. The description seems to be of a mosaic of the magi, possibly those at Ravenna. A pseudo-Bedan text, Collectanea or Excerpta et Collectanea apparently continues the tradition of three kings. The text is said to be from the 8th or 9th century, of Irish origin, and first found in a printed edition of works ascribed (probably incorrectly) to St. Bede the Venerable at Basel in 1563.

One source states that the pseudo-Bedan text gives us the following clues about these men.

The oldest of the Magi was Melchoir, King of Arabia. He had a long gray beard and gave gold as a gift, symbolizing the acceptance of Christ as King.

Balthazar, King of Ethiopia, was middle-aged, swarthy, bearded, and bore the gift of frankincense, symbolizing Christ as High Priest.
Finally, Caspar was King of Tarsus, in his twenties. His gift was myrrh, which was used in making medicines. This symbolized Christ as the healer and great physician.

It is said that after discovering and honoring the Savior, the Magi returned home and surrendered their high positions, gave their property to the poor, and went to spread the Gospel. The apostle St. Thomas is said to have baptized them forty years later in India, ordaining them as priests. An excerpt from a Medieval saints calendar printed in Cologne reads: "Having undergone many trials and fatigues for the Gospel, the three wise men met at Sewa (Sebaste in Armenia) in 54 (AD) to celebrate the feast of Christmas. Thereupon, after the celebration of Mass, they died: St. Melchior on 1st of January, aged 116; St. Balthasar on 6th of January, aged 112; and St. Gaspar on 11th of January, aged 109." They became martyrs and were buried in the walls of Jerusalem. [1] ... eir_na.htm

The mentioned Cologne version (they died with 116, 112 and 107 years) appears also in the text, which I already noted:

Johannes of Hildesheim (1370) and Goethe/Schwab (1822) ... navlinks_s

The bones of the Magi in Cologne were researched in 1864 (in the time, when the Cologne Dom was finished with Prussian money): Astonishingly they dated the youngest to c. 12 years, the second to c. 30 and the oldest to c. 50 (otherwise I've read 15, 30 and 60 years).


I find a Latin passage here:
New Testament Studies: Philological, Versional, and Patristic, Band 10
Bruce Manning Metzger
BRILL, 01.01.1980 ... 22&f=false

Page 24
As far I understand it, it doesn't say, that it were kings.

Re: Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

Once - a longer time ago - we talked about connections between 3 holy kings, the 3 theological virtues, the 3 heraldic feathers of the Medici and about the 3 Tarot cards Sun, Moon and Star.
A part of this discussion, which likely was expanded by more than one thread, was this here in late 2013 in November ...


I remember, that I opened the "speculation", that the cards Sun, Moon and Star might have meant representatives of the 3 kings. I was then inspired by the observation, that one of the kings was black (at least occasionally) and he might have been easily understood as "night" or "moon".
Now, as part of my Cologne exhibition researches, I got another catalog from another Cologne exhibition about the 3 Holy Kings made in 1982.

This catalog reports heraldic devices for the 3 Holy Kings, at least used in the region of Cologne, and presents two pictures, one from an armorial text in c. 1370 by Herold Gelre (Herold from Geldern), another a woodcut from 1492 presenting city heraldic in Botho, Sachsenchronik, printed in Mainz by Peter Schöffler.

The first picture (from c. 1370) ...


That's the page (from c. 1370). The 3 Kings are in the upper right, at the left middle there's the black cross of the archbishop in Cologne. The detail of the 3 Kings ...


The second shield is two dark to recognize something (but it are 6 stars, I've read; at the other picture it are 9 stars). At the helmet there's a Star (of Bethlehem; or a Sun ?).
The first shield "with Moon and a Star or Sun" (the text identifies it as Star, but Sun seems not impossible) has a bearded man for his helmet.
The 3rd shield favors a moorish person, which is repeated at the helmet.

At the other picture we see 5 shields at top, which repeat the other shield designs in slight modification, below the black cross for the arch bishop and as the 5th sign three crowns (for the 3 holy kings) and below 11 flames for the 11.000 virgins, which accompanied the English princess (from the Bretagne) St. Ursula, who died in Cologne by an attack of the huns (Attila wanted to marry her, but she refused; so she had to die). When Cologne expanded the city walls at begin of 12th century from 1 qkm to 4 qkm (then one of the largest cities in Europe), they detected a Frankish burial place, and a wise woman from Köln-Deutz recognized the first 11 corpses as the 11 virgins of Ursulas. But then they found some more and it was clear, that one had to correct the myth of St. Ursula and it became 11.000 virgins. And Cologne had a lot of relics, which they could sell to other places. And so the St. Ursula cult spread.


The oldest known 3 crowns (of the Holy kings) as city heraldic appeared on a church window of the Cologne cathedral between 1304-1316. Impresa for Ursula (the ermine flag) are known from 1475 on the city shield, later the 11 flames (at the city shield of the 1492 picture I recognize 14 of them; btw., the building crane at an unfinished tower in the right background of the picture, that's the tower of the Cologne Dom and the crane stood there till c. 1840 to remember, that the cathedral wasn't finished).

Back to the Holy 3 Kings. The theory exists, that the shields of the 3 Kings were designed by a heraldic painter of he Cologne Dreikönigsbruderschaft (Fraternitas trium Regum) with members, which belonged to the clergy or were knights. The designer knew the flags of Africa and the Orient and just took a choice of three objects.

Well, it's not that difficult to paint a star or a moon like this in its rudimentary quality and also a moorish person also can't be so difficult, especially as one of the kings was already often designed as a colored man. And on the other hand I would think, that somebody had simply own ideas. It's not so difficult to have own ideas.

This I found in an anonymous work of c. 1380 called "Codex von den Ersten", also "Codex Seffgen". ... fo/1076284
fol. 41


The first has gotten a crown for the man with beard on its helmet. The second has changed the helmet from one star to many, and for the third one has to assume, that the moorish person with flag was too difficult to paint.

Interesting is, that in this text with 42 folios the kings are arranged together with the 9 heroes (9 worthies) at the end of the text (Fol. 41-42) in the manner, that first the 3 Christian kings appear, then the 3 holy kings, then the Pagan heroes and then Jewish heroes (the writing is difficult, I'm not sure, if all 9 are the same figures as usual).



The position at the end likely means in the intention of the book designer, that this 12 were considered as the most noble men, which ever lived on earth. And Cologne had 3 of them, at least as bones.


For Herold Gelre (above mentioned as the author of the first picture):
At "28v" are the modernized forms of Cologne (black cross for the arch bishop) and the 3 holy Kings ... tie_VI.htm
28v ... e/F28v.htm
Balthazar is missing.


Well, the "3 crowns" became a symbol, which a lot of persons in 14th/15th century might have connected to the city of Cologne ... cause the 3 holy kings. Cologne reached a lot of pilgrim tourism with it, and title of a 4th holy city, additionally to the already existing holy cities Jerusalem, Constantinople and Rome. Likely this success was observed in other cities, for instance in Florence. Cosimo Medici in his sponsoring mode imitated a little bit this Cologne strategy. Finally he ended his life in the finishing work of the Riccardi chapel with the triumphal march of the 3 holy kings, in 1464.

"3 crowns" of poetry appeared as a terminus in the 1420s in Florence, addressing the triad Dante, Boccaccio and Perarca. The terminus reappeared in 1436 in the biographical work of Bruni, the same honoured person. Giannozzo Manetti followed 1440, and around 1448 a private commission formed 3x3 crowns with 3 Florentine condottieri, 3 sybils and 3 poets, again Dante, Boccaccio and Petrarca, the whole composition somehow imitating the 9 heroes model.

Petrarca's new role as a great poet (before he was a great scholar) advanced partly with the increasing fame of his Trionfi poem. This poem and its figures somehow seem to have stood in some interaction with another new fashion, the Trionfi cards.

Franco Pratesi - recently, 2 years ago - had detected a new card game or card deck name called "Corona", "crown", for the years 1446 and 1447, one document in Florence and the other near Siena. Otherwise there is nothing known about this game.

How does this different uses of "crowns" or "3 crowns" fit together? That's puzzling.

Re: Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

In as much as one can find references to 'sun-darkened peasants' being likened to Moors, it is possible the Sun was seen as being associated with the 'blackness' of the Moor. (The association fed into class/racist concepts of the time, Moors being associated with 'serfdom' through perceived resemblance with 'sun-darkened peasants'.)
T. S. Eliot

Re: Cologne exhibition: 3 Magi

The Cologne or Rheinische Heraldik for the 3 Kings is rather childish, it's likely not necessary to have a one-to-one identification with a Florentine use of the symbols Sun-Moon-Star. Cologne adapted a geographical identification (Johannes of Hildesheim 1370), according which there were three Indias, one of these was in Africa, a second in Near East, and a third was a sort of island (likely the India, that we know today as India). And the three kings came from these Indias. And somewhere was also the priest Johannes.
An important role seem to have played "Dreikönigsspiele" (theater plays with religious character; one very important is said to have been staged during the council of Constance in 1417). In these the younger king got a knight dress with armor and weapons.
This knight-dress-style appeared already on the seal of the new university in Cologne, though I don't recognize weapons or armor..


Coins and medals played a role rather early, an easy way to earn money from the pilgrims.

We have, that the later cardinal Albergati became bishop of Bologna in 1417, just the year, when the Dreikönigsspiel took place in Constance. Albergati was inspired by St. Jerome, who in his life finally settled in Bethlehem (388 AD, the place where the 3 Kings went to) and worked there. In Northern Europe (especially also Cologne) St. Jerome teaching institutes had developed during 14th century as a form of new education style, possibly inspired from the condition, that St. Jerome and his stay in Bethlehem did fit rather well with the expanding cult of the 3 Kings.

Albergati In his attempt to get young students of card playing and other amusements used religious theater plays to replace such forms of misbehaviour. Leon Battista Alberti, himself author of an early theater play, later was close to Albergati and worked for him some time.

"Dreikönigsspiele" sill exist in modern times. 3 boys walk in disguise as 3 kings go from door to door at 6th of January and collect, thanking with a "C.M.B" at the door, which shall protect against thieves and other dangers.

Further it had happened in Bologna before, that Dietrich II. von Moers studied in Bologna, nephew of the long-time archbishop of Cologne Friedrich III. von Saarwerden (reigned as archbishop 1370-1414). The San Petronio church, with 136x60 m the 5th largest church in the world ...

(according German wikipedia; a modern list has it at place 16 [calculated accoding volume) - ... _the_world
-, but it was 5th in 1390, when the building work started, after Sevilla [135x100 m, started in 1401], Milan [158x92, started in 1386], Ulm [124x49, started in 1377] and Antwerp [120x75 m, started 1352]). San Petronio was very little larger than the Cathedral of Cologne [started in 1248, so the oldest of these monster cathedrals].

... had then the "La Capella dei Re Magi" (three king's chapel) in work, which became the object with the greatest attention. Giovanni da Modena, the major painter, is said to have worked on this chapel 1408-15, so starting precisely at the time, when Dietrich of Moers was present as a student in Bologna.
I'm still not sure, but I think, that this work on the chapel in San Petronio was the greatest work in Italy, which was done in relation to the 3-magi-cult in Italy till that time. The later expansion of the cult in Italian art might depend on the San Petronio pictures.

Giotto painted the magi scene in the Arena chapel, but it was not a major topic in the Arena chapel.


Dietrich participated then as representative of his uncle in 1409 at the council of Pisa, which elected pope Alexander V, mainly on the initiative of Cardinal Cossa. Alexander died soon, and there were rumours, that he was murdered by Cossa, who became after it a new pope till the Council of Constance, when all existing 3 popes were deposed.

In 1414 Friedrich of Saarwerden died, and Dieterich, though still rather young (perhaps 30), followed him in his function as arch bishop, likely following an old plan in his family, which, however, was opposed by Wilhelm von Berg.
Dietrich crowned Sigismondo as Roman king in Aachen in November 1414, with whom he had a strong cooperation, and had then a strong role at the council in Constance. He endured as archbishop of Cologne till 1463 for 49 years, he has the longest record as archbishop in Cologne.

The Dreikönigsspiel in Constance ... ... nz&f=false
... was arranged on the initiative of the present English clergy (after the battle of Azincourt in 1415 Englad had gained a lot of reptation, and France had lost it) took place at 12th of January. The actors had expensive clothes
and the star of Bethlehem was moved by a machine. The show finished with the murder of many children, ordered by Herodes. The presentation was embedded in a mass ( ... CCwQ6AEwAg ) and took place at the chuch of St. Nicolaus in Constance.

The following text is of interest:
Image ... #v=onepage
page 62

It says, that generally sources about Dreikönigssopiele are rare, mostly only notes. It offers a longer description of a a Milanese celebration in 1336, which is connected to a triumphal march, which also involved the church of Eustorgius, which was the place, were the bones of the 3 Kings had been till 1164. I find it of interest, that 1335/36 is the same time, in which Azzo Visconti engaged for "Trionfi" and "Vanagloria" (as earlier reported by Michael Hurst), also it follows the Italian engagement of John the Blind and his son, the later emperor Charles IV, which might him given some information about the growing 3-magi cult in Northern countries and also some interest in the 9 heroes, which he imitated in his own manner.
In a later passage it is stated, that just in 1417 a Dreikönigsspiel took place in Parma, in connection to a doctorate celebration, possibly influenced by the Dreikönigsspiel in Constance.

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