From
the website for the Basilica of Saint Anthony:
In
the Treasury Chapel there is: the Saint’s tunic, the two wooden boxes, the
cord and two seals, the three crimson red cloths reconstructed as a cope, the
two large decorated drapes, the plaque, some small coins and the rings. All of
which can be devoutly observed.
Up the left flight of steps there are three niches which
contain relics of St. Anthony and other Saints, and above, gifts donated
in recognition or as signs of devotion by wealthy pilgrims who have
visited the Patron Saint of Padua. We must instead focus on the most
prestigious relics of St. Anthony which
are in the central niche. The
Saint’s tongue (in the center).
Its feast is February 15. Do not expect it to be a tongue which is bright red in color. It is still
however an inexplicable fact, given that it is a very fragile part of the
body that is usually among the first parts to disintegrate after death.
More than 770 years have passed since St. Anthony died and this tongue is
a perennial miracle, unique in
history and full of religious significance, a seal marking the work of
re-evangelization of society carried out by the Saint.
A gilded silver masterpiece, a work by Giuliano da Firenze
(1434-36) proudly contains the relic of the jaw (left). More
precisely, the lower jaw, contained in a case shaped like a bust, with a halo
and crystal glass where the face should be. It was commissioned in 1349 by
Cardinal Guy de Boulogne-sur-Mer, who experienced one of the Saint’s miracles:
He brought it to Padua the following year, to solemnly organize the
placing of the jaw into this reliquary. The
cartilage of the larynx. This is still incorrupt. These are the parts of the
body used in phonation, that is to say, in speech, and thus attracted attention
straightaway, although not considered inexplicable like the tongue during the
recent recognition in 1981. It was still decided to place it with the Saint’s
tongue. The reliquary is the work of Carlo Balljana from Treviso.
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