Levéltári Közlemények, 63. (1992)

Levéltári Közlemények, 63. (1992) 1–2. - Csukovits Enikő: A középkori írástudók „munkaideje” / 3–14. o.

14 Csukovits Enikő nach dem Beweis des Datums von Morgen bis Abend in den verschiedensten Stunden geschrieben, aber am meisten auch hier zur Zeit der Messe und der Vesper. Der Zeitpunkt und der Ort der Arbeit haben auf einander keinen Einfluß geübt: die Notare haben etlichemal im Winter, in den Abendsstunden unter dem freien Himmel Urkunden ausgestellt. THE „WORK SCHEDULE" OF MEDIEVAL SCRIBES Enikő Csukovits When and how did literate people in the Middle Ages perform their work? Did they have somé sort of determined order of work and rest, or did they have to be ready to work at any time? Was there a regulär work day, or a time when the Performance of work was forbidden? While laws and synodal decisions regulated the observance of holidays, the investigator of the Middle Ages often encounters documents dated on holidays. Even the most important holidays — Christmas, Easter, Corpus Christi, the feasts of individual churches' patron saints — are no exception to this. Every agency issuing documents used the dates of holidays on some of them. This is especially interesting in the case of the chapters and monasteries that functioned as notaries (locus credibilis), since their original function was liturgical. After examining documents dated on holidays, issued by six notaries — the chapters of Esztergom, Gyulafehérvár (today: Alba Iulia), Zágráb (today: Zagreb), Nagyvárad (today: Oradea), and Buda, and the monastery of Lelesz (today: Lelese) — we conclude that parties could call upon the notaries at any time, on Sundays and holidays as well. Since writing was not a servile activity, the ban against the Performance of work did not apply. The scribes at the notary offices had no regulär days without work, although there were days when nobody consulted the notaries. The decisions of the synod of Nagyszombat (today: Trnava), convened by Primat Nicolaus Olahus in 1560, demonstrate: the notary seal was applied after the mass or vespers, in the presence of most of the chapter's members, including the most distinguished members. The sources from the notary offices do not help clarify the work day schedule; on the other hand, the documents issued by public notary offices always indicate the hour of issue as well. This information indicates that the public notaries (notarii) issued documents at all hours from morning tili evening, but here, too, most frequently at the time of the mass and vespers. The time and place of work did not influence each other: public notaries in more than one case issued documents in the open air, in the winter, and in the evening.