curriculum vitae

Born in Schwiebus (Mark Brandenburg), she studied jurisprudence in Freiburg/Brsg. and in Frankfurt/Main, graduated with an assessor’s degree, confered a doctor’s degree of German history of law with Adalbert Erler. Then assistant at the university of Mainz, lawyer and free-lance scientific collaborator in the field of German history of law (13^th to 15^th century). Numerous publications about „Kaiserrecht“ (imperial law), „Sachsenspiegel“ (Saxonian law) and the „Rolandfiguren“ (Roland statues). Scientific advice and development of digital forms pertaining the edition of these books of law.

Saxonian Law

New Ways in realising the Edition of Manuscripts pertaining to Medieval Law

A team of scolars is presently compiling the digital edition of the illustrated manuscript of the „Sachsenspiegel“ in cooperation with the  publisher of the „Deutsche Rechtswörterbuch“.

The „Sachsenspiegel, written by Eike von Repgow in the years between 1224 und 1235 as a private treatise, is one of the oldest known legal books in the German language. It contains the Saxonian „Landrecht“ (civil, criminal and adjective law) as well as the „Lehnrecht.“ Approximetely 460 manuscripts and fragments have survived, four of these provide illustrations explaining the text.

One of these, the Manuscript of the Library of the Heidelberg University, is distinguished by the precision of its interpretation of text and illustration. This manuscript is widely regarded as the oldest (dating from the beginning of the fourteenth century) and presumably has ist origin in Thüringen.

The digital edition contains the complete facsimile (a total of 60 pages). From the start menue the user can choose items from a preview pager for detailed viewing. By clicking a picture with the mouse one can open the picture-text analysis menue. The relationship of illustration and text is indicated in color. The transcription of the text together with its translation is also shown.

A further mouse click brings up a detailed analysis of the illustration: the translation of the text is displayed in a window on the upper right hand side of the screen: abbreviations shown in italics are explained. The translation tries to follow the rhythm of the original text as closely as possible. Technical terms (like „Gedinge“ and „Gewere“) as marked in red remain untranslated.  By moving the cursor over the marked text one gets a pop-up window giving further explanations on the item in terms of definitons of the „Deutsche Rechtswörterbuch“. The illustrations are described comprehensively in a separate window on the left hand side. 

On the evaluation level  one finds a detailed analysis of each illustration. This is classified in different categories: the most important category is the one describing the hand gestures, as these contain legal statements. A digital notebook is also available for remarks and  observations by the user. Any item of this digital edition of the „Sachsenspiegel“ can be printed conveniently on a hardcopy printer.

The „general information“ level provides a description to the illustrated manuscripts of the  „Sachsenspiegel“ and the „Heidelberger Bilderhandschrift“ including a brief summary of the origins and effects of the „Sachsenspiegel“. A list of the complete content of the laws of the „Sachsenspiegel“ as well as a word index to the „Heidelberger Handschrift“ is included as well. This information is also available in the booklet coming with the CD-ROM. The edition is rounded off by a multimedial presentation illustrating the manufacturing of the manuscripts as well as a map of places of discovery of the „Sachsenspiegel“.