Necrologium Lundense was written in
Latin to serve the
canons of
Lund Cathedral in their daily life as a so-called capitulary book. The book consists of different parts which were written at slightly different times. The oldest part of the manuscript is also the main text: the
Aachen Rule of canons. The rule regulates the lives of the canons of the cathedral, similarly to
monastic rules such as the
Rule of Saint Benedict. It was probably finished in time for the consecration of the crypt of the cathedral in 1123. Sometime later, perhaps in the 1130s, customary rules (
Consuetudines canonice) for the canons of the cathedral were added; they are statutes for the community serving as a complement to the Rule of Aachen. The customary rules are furthermore complemented by a number of short texts in the same vein as the Rule of Aachen. The customary rules and the complementary texts appears to have been conceived as a manuscript of its own before being merged with the slightly older text. It may have been written by
Hermann of Schleswig, a deposed
bishop who ended his days as a canon, and possibly
scribe, at Lund Cathedral. The customary rules from the
Necrologium Lundense are the only preserved statutes for a religious community from the
Early Middle Ages in Scandinavia. A third part of the book, though placed first in the manuscript, is a copy of a
deed of gift from
Canute IV of Denmark. Written in 1085, it details the donation of means for the construction of the cathedral as well as the establishment of the community of canons. Apart from these texts regulating the lives of the canons, the book also contains a
martyrology and a list of deceased canons from the cathedral and benefactors, listed according to the day on which they died. This is the second principal part of the book and sometimes referred to by its Latin description as
Memoriale fratrum. Like the Rule of Aachen, it was finished by 1123 but is based on an earlier martyrology, now lost but probably written for the cathedral at the end of the 11th century. It also contains lists of kings, bishops and monasteries and religious communities which were connected to Lund, and has served as an important source for historians,
etymologists and
philologists. The book is regarded as the oldest still intact manuscript written in
Scandinavia. It has been known by its
Latin name since the 18th century, when Danish historian
Jakob Langebek first referred to the manuscript as
Necrologium Lundense. The canons of the cathedral used the book on a daily basis. Sections from it would be read when they gathered in their chapter house. A suitable part from the rules would be read aloud, and then the names of the martyrs, saints and deceased brethren relevant for that day would be announced as part of the preparations for the daily prayers.
Necrologium Lundense was in use for a short period of time. The cathedral had been under construction since before the consecration of the crypt in 1123, but in 1145 the
chancel was inaugurated and from then on the canons could start using it instead of the chapter house for their recitals. This coincided with a shift in liturgical practice, which meant that instead of the capitulary book, a new martyrology
(Liber daticus vetustior) was used for their daily readings. For a while entries were still made in the
Necrologium, but these were copied from the martyrology and eventually ceased altogether. It was owned by the chapter of the cathedral until 1671, when all its books were transferred to the newly established library of
Lund University, where it has been kept since then. ==Description==