Chapter 16. The Letters [September 1, 1347]
Cultural Explanations
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Chapter 16. The Letters [September 1, 1347] Cultural Explanations |
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In this chapter Bávlos witnesses the preparation of the letters he is to carry with him |
| Nieiddash, Bávlos |
This chapter underscores for the reader the work that went into making a letter in the medieval era. We tend to think of paper as a given nowadays, or even as a vestige of a past era. But for the medieval letter writer, parchment and vellum were the thing. The details on how medieval parchment was produced are drawn from the engaging study by Daniel V. Thompson The Materials and Techniques of Medieval Painting, originally published in 1956 but reprinted by Dover. The comparative material on Sámi methods of tanning are taken from several books, principally: Ørnulv Vorren and Ernst Manker's Same kulturen (Tromsø Museum 1958) and the compendium of traditional knowledge Kristoffer Sjulssons minnen, edited by Louise Bäckman and Rolf Kjellström (Nordiska Museet 1979).
As the chapter makes clear, letters were elaborate and costly items to produce. They were also important: travellers were in general suspect beings, and movement from one state to another could only be done with official letters of transit such as the ones Bávlos receives. The letter writers also seek to ensure that their letters will not be stolen and misused: King Magnus gives Bávlos a ring to confirm that he is the rightful bearer of the letter; Queen Blanche gives him a secret name that only she and the recipient are likely to know. Such precautions were necessary, as the chapter points out: by the fourteenth century, forgery is becoming a major problem in international communication. That Queen Blanche's uncle Robert III of Artois was guilty of such forgery is an interesting fact that ties the Swedish royal couple obliquely to the dynastic squabbles that precipitated the Hundred Years' War. This Swedish connection may help explain why St. Birgitta sought to settle the question of who should rule France by a series of letters detailing her visions from Christ on the matter. More on that in future chapters!
You will notice in Magnus's letter to the pope that he represents Bávlos as a Novgorodian. In this, he is stating the facts accurately: the part of Finland that Bávlos lived in belonged to the Novgorod empire at this time. Of course, Bávlos was not Orthodox before his baptism, but Magnus seems to make no distinction between Orthodox and pagans, or perhaps he simply wants to use Bávlos as a rhetorical ploy in his efforts to persuade the pope to support the crusade. You will note in his letter also how he has adopted elements of Birgitta's visions in his discussion of the conduct of the coming crusade. Magnus did indeed write to the pope to obtain his permission for a crusade against the Novgorodians in 1347, and he went to war in 1348 armed with a papal endorsement and permission to withhold some of Sweden's tithe as a source of income for financing the war. Then, as now, wars were expensive undertakings.
Birgitta's plans for shaving Bávlos's head were in keeping with medieval customs of pilgrimage and penance. Shaving the head was a sign of humility, a public announcement of one's complete submission to God's will. Sámi people did not dress their hair in the elaborate ways that their neighbors to the south did, let alone shave their heads: in fact, Bávlos's hair would probably seem in keeping with what you see in many rock bands today: free, bushy, and long.