304 Golden Bulls
oak, it measured about 70 feet long, by 19 feet broad and
seven feet deep. Propulsion depended on one square sail
and 16 pairs of oars. Its keel points to its intended use in
deep waters. A rack along the gunwale was designed to
carry two shields between each oar port, suggesting the
ship was built for a double crew of 64. A replica sailed
across the Atlantic in 1893 and modern sea trials have
demonstrated that it was seaworthy with good windward
sailing abilities but unstable at more than a moderate
speed. The Gokstad ship was probably a karve,a ship
built for elite travelers.
GRAVE GOODSAlong with the ship, there were three boats, along with
the remains of 12 horses, six dogs, a peacock, several
beds, and equipment for shipboard cooking. These prob-
ably were only part of the original grave goods, since the
site had been looted. The quality of these goods indicated
that the person buried there belonged to the chieftain or
royal class.
See alsoBURIAL RULES AND PRACTICES;OSEBERG FIND
OR SHIP; SHIPS AND SHIPBUILDING;SUTTONHOO;VIKINGS.
Further reading: Ian Atkinson, The Viking Ships
(Minneapolis: Lerner Publications, 1980); A. W. Brøgger,
The Viking Ships: Their Ancestry and Evolution (Oslo:
Dreyers Forlag, 1971); Thorleif Sjøvold, The Viking Ships:
A Short Description of the Tune, Gokstad and Oseberg Ships
(Oslo: Dreyers, 1956).
Golden Bulls The term was applied to documents of
great importance and sealed with a bull made of gold.
These were usually imperial documents, initially such as
those by BYZANTIUMfrom whom the practice was adopted
in the HOLYROMANEMPIRE. Among the Golden Bulls,
two are of particular historical importance.
The Golden Bull of Eger, issued in 1213 by FREDER-
ICKII, granted privileges to the church and the German
nobility to win their support in his struggle against Otto
IV (d. 1218). The privileges led to a larger degree of
autonomy of the German princes, who were then given
full military and jurisdictional authority over vassals and
subjects. The Golden Bull of Eger effectively divided Ger-
many into a large number of principalities, under vague
authority of an emperor. This was to remain the case for
centuries.
The Golden Bull of 1356 issued by Emperor CHARLES
IV, organized imperial elections in GERMANYthrough the
establishment of a college of seven electors: the archbish-
ops of Mainz, Trier, and COLOGNE; the king of BOHEMIA;
the duke of SAXONY; the margrave of Brandenburg; and
the count-palatine of the Rhine. At the death of an
emperor, the electors met at Frankfurt-am-Main and
elected a successor. These electors were given regal rights,
making them virtually independent rulers in Germany
and recognizing their position at the top of the social and
political hierarchy. The system also flew in the face of the
pope’s claim to the privilege of deciding between rival can-
didates. It confirmed the tenuous unity of Germany.
Further reading:Friedrich Heer, The Holy Roman
Empire, trans. Janet Sondheimer (New York: Praeger,
1968); Brand Moeller; Jonathan W. Zophy, The Holy
Roman Empire: A Dictionary Handbook(Westport, Conn.:
Greenwood Press, 1980); Jonathan W. Zophy, An Anno-
tated Bibliography of the Holy Roman Empire(New York:
Greenwood Press, 1986).Golden Horde SeeMONGOLS.Golden Horn SeeCONSTANTINOPLE.Golden Legend (Legenda aurea) It was a factual and
fictional compilation of saints’ lives completed between
1255 and 1265 by the DOMINICANJAMES DEVORAGINE
and was one of the most influential examples of literature
in the Christian Middle Ages. Its circulation was enor-
mous, with at least 1,000 LATINmanuscripts. There were
translations into VERNACULARlanguages in more than 500
additional manuscripts. It was among the most common
texts in many early printed books. It was often used for
the iconography of images, in PREACHING, and even in
THEOLOGY. The text was not new and had little contem-
porary content but consisted of copying and summariz-
ing of old sources. Its popularity was due to its supposed
completeness and adaptability for various uses. The
Golden Legendwas perceived as a synthetic compendium
of Christian history and religion conventionally orga-
nized according to the ecclesiastical CALENDAR.
The Golden Legendcomprises more than 150 saints’
lives, some 30 chapters dedicated to the feasts in celebra-
tion of Christ, the Virgin MARY, and the great liturgical
feasts. Though written in Italy, it had no regional prefer-
ence and could serve readily for any local use. The Golden
Legendwas compiled as part of the expansion of Christian
evangelization early in the 13th century, especially by the
newly created MENDICANT ORDERS. It allowed preachers
easily to find needed anecdotal material for SERMONSon a
saint of the day or to enrich refectory readings in convents.
Further reading: Jacobus de Voragine, The Golden
Legend: Readings on the Saints, 2 vols., trans. William
Granger Ryan (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University
Press, 1993); Sherry L. Reames, The Legenda Aurea: A
Reexamination of Its Paradoxical History(Madison: Uni-
versity of Wisconsin Press, 1985).gold trade and gold working In the Middle Ages
and for time immemorial in most all cultures, gold was
used as an instrument and a medium of exchange. More-
over, it was considered a precious object giving prestige
and allowing the exercise of power. Western Europe had