Konventní pečeti svatojiřského a břevnovského kláštera v Praze
Convent Seals of the Saint George and Břevnov Monasteries in Prague

Summary/Abstract: The paper deals with the convent seals of the oldest Benedictine monasteries in Bohemia – those of Benedictine nuns at Saint George in Prague Castle and of Benedictine monks in Břevnov. It was typical for medieval monasteries to use one type of convent seal for a long period of time. In the seal field, there are usually depicted patron saint or saints of the respective monastery. The Saint George monastery, therefore, used one type of convent seal with equestrian figure of Saint George from circa 1230s to 1560s; sitting figures of Saint Adalbert and Saint Benedict are portrayed both at the first and at the second, slightly different type of Břevnov convent seal, used as well from the mid-13th to the mid-16th century. A use of several types of seals is typical for early modern period. Apart from the major convent seal (sigillum maius), there appeared also a smaller seal, and the current agenda was sealed with the so-called signet. The Benedictine nuns at Saint George left the portrayal of patron saint of their convent church at the convent seals until the dissolution of the Order in 1782, only signet bore a heraldic motif of a herald cross. The situation in Břevnov-Broumov monastery was, on the other hand, more complicated. After a certain intermezzo in the latter half of the 16th century when a symbol seal with a stave in a fesse and raguly, and with two roses was used by a monastic community in Broumov, the seal with a portrayal of Saint Wenceslas (a patron saint of Broumov monastery) and with the convent coat of arms was used since the second quarter of the 17th century. Inscriptions of both late Romanesque convent seals were made by capital script with some uncial script elements. Gothic minuscule script was used on a symbol seal of the Břevnov monastery, documented in 1560. Younger seals till the 18th century bear a typical humanist majuscule.

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