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Why did Gerbert of Aurillac take the papal name Sylvester II?
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Sylvester II
Sylvester II, detail from the ivory vessel used at the consecration of Otto III, 996; in the Domschatzkammer des Aachener Domes, Aachen, Ger.
Gerbert of Aurillac took the papal name Sylvester II upon his consecration on April 9, 999, to signal his commitment to the ideal of a renewed Christian Roman Empire, a vision he shared with Emperor Otto III.1
By choosing the name Sylvester, he invoked the legacy of St. Sylvester I, the pope who reigned during the time of Constantine the Great, the first Roman emperor to embrace Christianity. This choice reflected the close, collaborative relationship between Gerbert and Otto III, mirroring the historical association between the original Sylvester and Constantine during the early development of the Christian Roman Empire.12