a- Theoretical analysis
Among the manuscripts found in Nag-Hammadi in 1945 (or in 1947) there was the Gospel according to St Thomas. This document that relates the work and the teaching of Jesus had not been taken into consideration by the Roman Catholic Church and was not included in the Official Gospel. The reason is probably due to the fact that it shows very clearly that the Gnostic doctrine was part of the real teaching of Jesus. We can resume as follow what the Sacred Scriptures say if we do not censure them:
-The material world is preceded by the spiritual one that has precedence.
-At the origin of this spiritual world there is the Infinite Principle, unchangeable and everlasting.
-From this Principle we obtain a first emanation one and treble (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit).
-From this tri-unit are born spiritual beings, some of which creates the material worlds. In the Gnostic tradition these are Satan and Lucifer.
-Man is the image of the divine tri-unit. This tri-unit is that of the Spirit (of divine origin), of the soul (intermediate between the Spirit and the matter) and of the Body (work of the demon).
The religious leaders have always privileged the Obedience to a Church and to Law coming from above. The notion of “Knowledge” coming from the interaction between the researcher and the object of his research has always been left in the background, left to the contemplators who have been sanctified after their death when they were not a problem anymore. (a)
According to the Gnostics the human being is able to discover God in himself hidden under the material part of the body. This revelation can come as the result of an intuition or, more often, as the result of a long “ascese” based on renunciation and precise procedures. The wise man knows that the best marriage on earth gathers the soul of man and the spirit who lives in it. In all ages, there have been groups of people to initiate a strange search. Those have considered that one and only one salvation path is open to the human soul: the “Knowledge” linking the researcher and the object of his quest. The Christian Gnosis and the religion that emerged out of it lead us directly to the medieval Catharism. But this Gnosticism has been known to other religions:
-The school of Mysteries that existed 2000 years before Christ had nothing to do with dogmas and theories. The final objective was the maturation of their disciples through an in-depth journey into the Psyche. This was obtained by long meditations and by being involved in situation generating strong emotions close to death. The conclusion was that man has the necessary resources in himself under unusual conditions to escape time and the finite world to reach a state where the notion of “Absolute” can become understandable.
-The Dualists ask themselves why an all powerful and good God would have created a world and human beings carrying in themselves the germs of their destruction. Two answers are generally given. The first one says that this mystery belongs to God and that we cannot comprehend it. This is an easy way out. Another answer explains this contradiction by the original sin. This is the only answer of the monotheist religions. God has created man. He could obey or not to the divine law. He chose not to and God banned him from paradise to his destiny on earth. It is difficult to believe that an all-perfect God would condemn man to such a destiny, as he must have known of the existence of the Devil. The Dualist theory brings a reasonable answer to this problem. This is nothing new. Zaroastre taught this religion seven centuries before Christ. The Orphism in Greece through Pythagoras, Plato and Socrates, the cult of Mithras and later on the Zervanism are all based on some kind of dualistic philosophy. (a)
We can classify as follow the different religions that have been active up to the beginning of the Christianity:
-The Materialists did not found any sense to the cosmic venture or in their own existence.
-The Pantheists have assumed a finality to the cosmic venture from which they are part and to what the brought their contribution.
-The Monotheists have adored a God that they could not reach. They listened to the Prophets’ words that showed them the salvation based on the Law of the Supreme Being. For some of them, prayers and meditation brought them closer to God.
-The Spiritualists have denied the existence of the material world and that means also their own self. They have followed a road of renunciation towards a non-defined Nirvana.
-The mystery school leads its members to a life far away from the appetites and the temptations of this world.
-The Dualists have followed in the footsteps of the adepts of the Mystery school. Man is at the cross road of two different orders incompatible between them. They try to purify themselves to the ultimate possible limit to know themselves and to meet the divine that is inside them in their material body created by the Devil. (a)
The first period of the Christianity has been a difficult one, full of controversies. At the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD under the authority of the Emperor Constantine the Christian Church chose among the existing documents those to be included in the Official Gospel. By opposition all the others were declared as false or apocrypha. These chosen documents formed since the base of Christianity. Jesus was recognised as the only Son of God. Osiris, Zoroastre, Mithras, Tommuz, Adonis, Attis, Dyonisos and others who had, in their time, been recognised as the children of God became part of the mythology. All the other interpretations (including the Nazarene’s for whom Jesus was the son of Judas of Gamalas, a prophet and the military chief fighting the Romans) were swept away and the official version of the Gospels was adopted three centuries after the crucifixion and 150 years after the work of the bishop Irénée de Lyon. The Christian religion was officially defined in a council that gathered 2048 bishops at the beginning and 250 or 318 at the end. One thousand seven hundred bishops who agreed with the opinion of Arius contesting Jesus’ divinity left the Council. The official dogmas of the Roman Catholic Church were then approved by 15 % of the bishops. From then on anybody that does not agree with these dogmas were classified as heretic. (a)
The real story of Jesus on earth is really not very well known from a historical point of view. The adepts of what is known as the “Christian Gnose” see him as the successor of the antic Mystery School and from the Dualist Zoroastre. The Gnose never presented itself as a unified system with a dogma accepted by all its members. The opposite is true. There were many variations on the same theme. This is due in part to the fact that there was little or no contact between the main protagonists who were living in all the countries touched by Christianity. Manes who lived in Persia in the third century did the only kind of unification. One can say that Manes unified the “Christian Gnose” but he also founded a new religion called “Manicheism”. This became a real danger for the growing influence of Christianity. The Gnose was the direct heir of the School of Mystery and the Dualistic religions of the antiquity. The Dualistic religions consider that the material part is formed by the matter that is unorganised, and by the spirit that is the creation of the Absolute God. Man expects from God the knowledge of light that they have in themselves as creation of the divine emanation. Jesus should bring the light and it is up to the human beings to accept it or not. The salvation must come from knowledge, the “Gnose” placing the adepts under the light in the divine order. Gnosis is a Greek word that means “Knowledge”. At that time Knowledge was the only act through which the human being identified himself to the object of his research: the Absolute or God. (a)
Manes was born in Ctésiphon in Mesopotamia in 240. According to some of his disciples he is one of the sons of God, being born from a virgin. He can be considered as the founder of a religion that unified all the various Gnosis. He can also be considered as Zoroastre’ spiritual son. He tried to gather in one religion the adepts of Zoroastre, Buddha, the Christian Gnostics, the other Christians and many other believers. He died in 277. According to a source he was crucified or burned alive and his body cut into two symmetrical pieces representing his dualistic beliefs. For the Manicheists, the dualism is a radical theory without any ambiguity possible or accepted. The Kingdom of Light and the Kingdom of Darkness exist at the same time since the origin. Manes, like Buddha and Jesus, is a prophet who has shown Man the way to purification, to renounce to the material world and to seek for the Light. Among all the dualistic religions the Manicheists do not compromise on the effective existence of the Evil that exists as such. The martyrdom of Manes did not prevent his religion to spread from China to the Roman Empire. The Manicheists, however, were strongly persecuted especially by the Roman Emperors. They even suffered more that the Christians in the first century. (a)
Catharism did not appear suddenly out of nothing in the 12th century. Ignoring the previous dualistic and Gnostic religions would be a mistake. The Cathar religion is very close to the Manicheist and rests on many similar principles. There is no doubt that there is a link between the two religions even if the name Manes is not mentioned in the Cathar writings. Unfortunately, they are very few documents that can be traced back to Cathar writers. It is known that the Manicheist doctrine has been transmitted orally in the Languedoc. This is also true for the Priscillianism that was, after all, a religion based also on many Machineism principles. The already mentioned Arianism can also be considered as a base of Catharism. The emperor Constantine, at the Council of Nicaea, ignored the Christian bishop Arius’ opinions, although about 84 % of the participating bishops agreed with him. He and these bishops supporting him left the Council allowing the minority to decide. The Roman Catholic Church has considered the Manicheists, the Pricillists and the Arianists as heretics since the emperor Constantine. As we know the Visigoths were followers of Arius and we know of their close links with Toulouse and Razes. Later on the Bogomilism was created in Bulgaria (in a region today known as Macedonia) by a man who asked to be called Bogomil (friend of God). This religion is again dualistic even if it was softer that the previous ones. They were specially numerous in Bulgaria (especially in the Macedonian region) but they also sent missionaries in the Mediterranean countries including Languedoc. The Roman Catholic Church did its best to destroy them and they succeeded but only up to a point at least in the South of France. (a)
The Bogomil missionaries were in general well accepted in the Toulouse region. In fact their teaching met a fertile ground due to the past experience of this region with many dualistic religions as we have seen before. The Counts Raymond governed the region quite well and it was considered very rich by the standards of the time. The people were not poor either on average and were rather well treated. The local law called “Paratge” established parity in dignity between all the people, men and women, rich and poor. This was the opposite of the social climate that existed in the North of France where the class system was still strongly enforced. The fair and equal treatment of women was particularly difficult to understand outside Languedoc. The songs of the “Troubadours” were a reflection of this equality between men and women. Moreover the “langue d’Oc” was used not only in the South of France but also at the Courts in England, Germany and Spain. It was perhaps one of the first international languages. In politics the counts Raymond delegated a lot of power to the people’s representatives. As an example the towns were administered by elected assemblies similar to the present local councils and with the same powers. The “paratge” called for a religious and philosophical tolerance unknown anywhere else. Jews, Manicheans, Arians, Priscillians, … were living in peace with the Christians following the doctrine of the Council of Nicaea. This high quality level of civilisation, the cultural freedom, the tolerance was the ideal ground for the introduction of another strong and demanding Gnostic religion, the Cathar. Of course the Roman Catholic Church could not tolerate its existence and destroyed it. (a)
In conclusion nobody is really certain how and why the Cathars appeared in the Toulouse County. Some say that this religion was born and died in the Languedoc. Others think that the presence of some remaining traces of Manicheans, Pricillians and Arians is not to be forgotten. Even more probable is the influence of the Bogomilist missionaries on the Cathar phenomena and its importance in this particular region. To say that the Cathar faith is Bogomilism’s child is probably exaggerated, but a certain link is obvious. Moreover Catharism has had strong roots in Germany, Eastern France (where it was quickly repressed) and Italy where it lasted longer. Catharism can be classified in the family of the Mystery School as well as in the dualistic tradition and in particular to the Bogomilist. It is obviously a deviation of the official Roman Catholic faith. It is not possible to say when it really appeared. There was no well-known prophet, no singular event. All we can say is that in the 11th century there were a lot of dualistic movements that culminated in the Cathar religion in the 12th century. At that time the definition of structures and the harmonisation in the teaching led to the well-known movement called Catharism. Men and women took the formal dress and instead of living a recluse life went on mixing with people of all social level to preach their beliefs. Their main message is that heaven is inside each person’ soul and that every one will discover it in this present life or in a next one through reincarnation. In the end through reincarnation all the souls will be saved and will be close to God. This message was well accepted by the people of Languedoc. Even the Pope went as far as to suggest his priests and bishops to live like the Cathars. This was not enough and the Catholic Church had to destroy this new religion to survive. (a)
b-The Cathar religion
Catharism did no exist long enough to leave many written traces. Moreover the Catholic authorities destroyed all the documents that they found. At first the Cathars only referred to the Gospels including some considered as apocrypha by Rome. With the exception of a few books the main sources of information are the minutes of the trials of the Inquisition. Unfortunately a large part comes from the declarations of average “Croyants” who cannot be expected to give a very detailed explanation of their faith. Moreover these kinds of information were very often released under torture and that does not add anything to their veracity. Some of the more material traces, like the Montsegur castle, often tell us more.
b.1- Parfaits and Believers or “Croyants”.
The dualistic religions require a very strict way of life of their priests known as Parfaits. On the other hand the ordinary members of the Church are only advised on how to behave in view of improving their spiritual life. Of course these last ones could decide to join the first group but before they had to change their way of life. If a parfait can expect to join God after his death it is not the case for the ordinary “Croyants”. They can only hope to reach God after as many reincarnations as necessary until they reach a pure state and until they acquire the necessary knowledge. This is due to the fact that the dualistic religions always say that the material life is evil and that only those who have the strength to renounce to the corrupted world reach the spiritual state required to go to God. For them even God cannot save an impure human being. The Parfaits were asking from their adepts to take conscience of the presence of the Good and the Bad in them and to choose the Good in actions, thoughts and reflections. For those who do not reach the pure state the only hope is reincarnation. The Parfaits (or Parfaites) when they were first accepted in the Church received the only Cathar sacrament called “Consolamentum”. They had also to swear to live according to the rules. (a)
b.2-Rules to be followed by Parfaits and to a lesser degree by the Believers.
– I give my faith to God.
The Cathars believed in a single God although not an all-powerful one. They also believed in another force called the Evil. God cannot or want to create or even to understand Evil. God is only good, he is the Absolute, the Being. When he joins the priesthood the Parfait “gives his faith to God”. This was an irreversible decision to the All Powerful God but without ignoring the presence of the Evil. He or she was then allowed to wear the dress of the priests. (a)
– I give my faith to the Gospel
When they received the Consolamentum the Cathars gave their faith to the Gospel. This does not mean that they followed the Gospels in the version we know to day which content has been selected at the Nicaea Council in 325. It is known that the Fathers of the Roman Catholic Church made a choice between many writings and eliminated, for instance, those of Gnostic inspiration like the Gospel according to St Thomas. It is worth mentioning that the Gospels chosen were described as “according” to Matthew, Luke, Mark and John. This probably means that they are not the authors but at best the inspirers. They are dated between 40 and 90 AC. The bishop Irénée de Lyon rewrote them at the end of the second century and the Nicaea Council made a choice. Moreover no original text dated before the Nicaea Council has reached us. This forbid us to guarantee the authenticity of the documents, as it is well known that the translations did not necessarily follow the originals. We do not really know which Gospels the Cathars followed although their preference went to the Gospel according to John and perhaps also to that of Thomas. In this last one there is the clearest indication that the Light can only be found by introspection or Gnose. (a)
I promise never to lie or swear
In this the Cathars followed the recommendations from Matthew. In debates it is known that the Cathars very often refused to answer. This is due to the fact that they preferred to say nothing rather that to lie. Lying for the Cathars was one of the worse sins. They also refused to swear for many reasons. If it is necessary to swear that one is saying the truth then this could be interpreted as meaning that if one does not swear lies can be said. They refused to swear obedience to a knight or any other being as this could lead to a conflict between the obligations coming from these actions and the rules of their religions. They also refused to swear before God as this would mean involving Him in material things and that is against their faith. (a)
The promise to renounce to sexual relations
This promise is only made by the Parfaits. The Cathars, believing in reincarnation, were aware that new beings had to be brought to earth to accommodate the souls of the people who had not reached the required spiritual state at their death to go to heaven. The Parfaits, on the other hand, had renounced to the material world when taking the Consolamentum. As a result they renounced to the procreation and even to the sexual act. There were two reasons for this. First, the parfaits had reached such a high spiritual level that they could not compromise with the material world and the Evil. Moreover, it was recognised that the sexual act brought the highest physical pleasure to man. To follow this practice means that the detachment required from the material world would become impossible. (a)
The promise not to kill animals or eat meat
The Cathars did not exclude that a man could be reincarnated in an animal or an animal in a man. By refusing to kill animals or eat meat the Cathars respected some lower brothers (in their present state) who, in the end, would be their equal before God. They also refused to eat anything that was the result of sexual activities like eggs. On the other hand they ate fish because, at that time, it was thought that they were not reproduced through sexual activities. They also ate vegetables even if they thought that it was not completely admissible. However the alternatives not eat vegetables meant suicide and this was a higher sin. (a)
The promise not to do anything without saying prayers
The Cathars had only one prayer: the Patter but in their own version. In particular the daily bread requested from God in the Patter did not mean the material food but a spiritual one. In order to concentrate more on the prayer they were always telling it twice. This prayer was not really a request from God but rather more an attempt to enter in closer communion with the Divine, a meditation. (a)
The promise not to travel or eat without a companion
The Parfaits were never travelling alone if they could avoid it. They were always with somebody. This could mean a senior Parfait with a younger one or one with a larger experience and one with the enthusiasm of the young. It was also a way to reduce the effects of the temptation, as it is more probable that one of the two would resist when one alone could fall in sin. It was also better to preach in two. (a)
The promise not to betray the faith even under the threat of death by water or fire
At first it looks as if the Cathars would prefer to be burn at the stake on earth rather that having to submit to judgement for betraying their faith once in heaven? In fact it is known that under some specific circumstances like a close meeting with death or after a long training of meditation or “ascese”, man can be seen as being at the cross road between earth and heaven. For these people, especially those who have been through a long “ascese” from which they come out purified, the idea of spoiling by sin their faith seem unbearable. Rather that adjuring their faith they prefer to be burned at the stake. In the case of the Cathars, history has recorded that during the crusades and in front of the Inquisition, two or three thousand Parfaits refused to deny their faith and only 1 or 3 adjured their religion. (a)
The promise not to kill
This promise did not appear among the vows made by the Parfaits because it seems that it was not necessary being so obvious. The Cathars always refused to fight. If captured they did not defend themselves to be sure not to kill anybody. They also refused to commit suicide rather that being burned on the stake or submitted to tortures. The Cathars considered their body as material and as such made by the Evil. In case of thread they were ready to submit it to the extreme limit. The only kind of suicide that was acceptable to the Cathars was the “Endura”. This is the case of people who received the Consolamentum because they were in danger of dying, of being taken by the Inquisition or killed by the crusaders. If saved they, sometimes, refused to eat until death arrived. In the cases where the probability to be assisted by Parfaits before dying was low some chose to die in this purified state rather that going back to sin. This pre-mortem Consolamentum had the same effect as the one given to the Parfaits even if the initiation period was missing. The “Endura” was acceptable to the Cathars in very special and dangerous time. (a)
The belief in a soft dualism
The Cathars believed in a soft dualism. This is due to the Bogomilist influence. This affirmation seems to go against the few written evidences that have reached us. However these documents appear to have been written as a kind of propaganda literature. Our feeling that the Cathar Dualist was soft, rather that extreme, comes from an analysis of their global behaviour. (a)
This is the only Cathar sacrament and it could be administered anywhere. However it was generally administered, except in case of danger or urgency, in the house of a “Croyants”, a Cathar house, a church or even in caves. It was generally administered in an assembly of Cathars by the senior Parfait present. The assembly prays with the Parfaits who also meditate on the Gospel. The candidate Parfait is escorted in the church by two older Parfaits who lead him to the altar. The candidate receives the blessing of the senior Parfait who leads the ceremony. After the Patter the new Parfait gives testimony of his faith in God and in the Gospel, declares that he will not lie or swear, renounces to sexual relations, says that he will not kill animal or eat their meat, will pray in all occasions, will not travel or eat alone and finally will not betray the faith even under the tread of death by water or fire. The senior parfait put the Gospel from John on his head and the ceremony is finished. The people present exchange a kiss of peace and the new Parfait blesses the assembly. The Consolamentum ceremony is the result of many years of preparation by the new Parfait. The details of this preparation are unknown. (a)
I promise to die in Christ
The crusade organised by Philip-August, the King of France, and the Pope Innocent III devastated the Languedoc from 1209. Languedoc lost its freedom, its culture, its customs and thousand of innocent people, Cathars and not. Two or three thousands of parfaits preferred to be burned at the stake rather that deny their faith. The defeat of Montsegur on the 16 March 1244 has been recorded in history. Not a single Parfait renounced his faith and 250 Parfaits died at the stake proclaiming loudly their trust in their God. (a)
In conclusion the Cathars believed in a double creation. The soul redemption had to go through its liberation from the evil body in which it was imprisoned. This could only be done at the end of a long “ascese” or initiation. After purification the soul was rejoining its spiritual principle in God. The Cathars were praying a lot and led a live of contemplation that allowed them to reach their inner self. The Cathars believed too that the souls that were not purified when their body met their death would come back on earth through reincarnation in another body. This could be an animal instead of a human being. This explains why they did not kill any animal or eat their meat. (a)
b.3 Some specific particularities
In the 10th and 11th century the religious feeling became stronger and exacting. At the same type the Roman Catholic clergy did not correspond anymore to the image of the primitive Church in all its purity. The small priests, badly prepared, lost all respect in the country. On the other hand the clerical hierarchy lived in luxury that contrasted with the people’s poverty. To the questions that the people were asking the clergy could not give very satisfying answers. They then tried to find themselves the answers ignoring the Catholic Church. In 1163 Ecker de Shönau bishop of Koln called then “Cathars” from the Greek word “Katharos” that means “Purs”. As for the word Albigenses, it is possible that it started as a result of the debates that happened in 1165 between the Cathars and the Catholics in Lombers near Albi. After these debates the Cathars were accused of Heresy and condemned by the Catholic Church. (l)
The Cathars believe in Christ, read the New Testament (above all St John’s) and base their creed on it. They even pretend to be the only true Christian. They have only one prayer, the Patter. Two principles run the world: the Good and the Evil. It is difficult to believe that God created Evil. The Cathars’ answer is based on the old “Bogomile” concept that God created only the Good that is to be found in our soul. The Devil created the world that is matter and time. This material world has to be considered as bad or evil. Man is them partly good -his soul created by God- and partly bad -his body created by the Devil-. The Devil created also the notion of time, which is a principle of corruption and destruction. Man is then at a crossroad. His soul belongs to God and his material body created by the Devil is bad. The salvation for the Cathars consists to free oneself of the material world to reach the spiritual world created by God. (l)
After death the Soul will reach God only if it is pure again. Christ, sent by God, reveals the way to salvation to Men. This is transmitted to us by the sacrament of Baptism by imposition of the hands and by the Spirit. The Cathars call this Baptism the “Consolamentum”. Consolamentum is at the same time revelation, ordination and extreme unction. The Consolamentum is the symbol of entering into the religious live and the Knowledge of the Spirit by the Soul imprisoned in our material body. The Consolamentum can only be given by somebody who has already received it himself that is by “a good Christian” or “Parfait”. Cathars are not afraid of death as for the hell is on earth. This explains why they accepted to be burned at the stake in Montsegur and in other places. (l)
There are a lot of similarities between Catharism and Buddhism and Hinduism. Catharism has more common points with these religions that with Roman or protestant Christianity. As an example we must remember that Cathars as Buddhists are vegetarian and Pacifist. (e)
The Cathars claim to be the “Good Christians” and followers of the early Christian Church. They believe that the Christian Churches were a corruption of Jesus’ teaching and this would explain why the Catholic Church destroyed them. (e)
Catharism grew in the Languedoc because, among other reasons, the Catholic Church opposed the development of Capitalism, recently introduced in the region. In particular the Church disagreed with money-lending and usury to which the Cathars were more open. Peasants, the new merchant class and the old aristocracy objected to the taxes they had to pay to the increased corrupt Catholic Church (e)
For some people Cathars beliefs are in the tradition of Gnosticism that dates before Jesus’ time. Unlike the Christians, Gnostics believe that knowledge comes not from faith but from inner experience (Gnosis means knowledge). The modern Gnostic faith is based on the Nag Hammadi Gospels found in Egypt in 1945. A casual discovery of old papirus gave light to the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Philip, the Gospel of truth and others. These Gospels are at least as old as the Gospels of the New Testament or perhaps even older. Gnostics and Cathars have a lot in common. According to them the view of Jesus that prevailed was the one that suited best the Roman Empire. Other valid interpretations were repressed as heresy. However the Gnostic tradition survived and was brought back to the West by the Cathars. (e)
The Consolamentum was the only Cathar sacrament. Through this rite the man or woman became a member of the elect of the Church and became “Parfait”. The Consolamentum is a baptism by word. They regard the Catholic baptism by water as impure and the work of the Devil. The Consolamentum could also be given to believers near to death to insure his or her salvation. The candidate Parfait, before receiving the Consolamentum, had to go through a long period of preparation in one of the hospice. This involved fasting, prayers and meditation. During the ceremony the future Parfait was reminded that he was joining the best people separated from their creator by the Devil. The baptism by word then took place. The Parfait had to promise that he would own no property, would not communicate with people involved in the material world unless it was to convert them, be truthful whatever the cost, not to kill or eat animals except fish and above all to remain celibate. St John Gospel was read and prayers were made. The kiss of peace-between man and man or woman and woman- ended the ceremony. In the ceremony the Holy Spirit entered into the soul. The new Parfait was then ready to enter into a life of asceticism. He was to preach around the country, living on the food given to him by the believers. He was to fast three days a week on bread and water and for three times forty days in continuation each years. As a result he lived on bread and water 225 days a year. Of course only few people could live this way. In 1240 it was estimated that there were about 4000 Parfaits in Europe from those 1200 in Languedoc. It is obvious that most ordinary believers only received Consolamentum on their deathbeds. If the believers recovered the sacrament would loose its effect and the person could live as before. The catholic “extreme unction” introduced at the Lateran Council of 1232 looks like an imitation of the Consolamentum (e)