From Sithiu to Saint-Bertin

"Previous studies of the abbey of Sithiu (modern Saint-Omer) have often sought to explain the competition between the canons of Saint-Omer and the monks of Saint-Bertin, a rivalry deriving from their shared origins in the abbey of Sithiu. However, David Defries’ book centres on the cooperative relationship that developed between the saints Omer and Bertin in the monks’ collective memory. Earlier historians overwhelmingly assumed that collective memory has a narrative structure and that the texts meant to shape its evolution are ́historiographic ́ in form. In contrast, Defries treats Sithiu’s historiography as a type of scriptural exegesis that emphasizes the allegorical levels, especially typology and tropology, of the Christian scriptural hermeneutic. This argument has broad implications for the study of early medieval collective memory; indeed, From Sithiu to Saint-Bertin may be seen as a preliminary case study for the value of paradigmatic approaches to early medieval memory."--