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Bones of Contention: Searching for Cosmas and Damian in Venice

22 Tuesday Jan 2013

Posted by in Tomb / Sarcophagus

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San Giorgio Maggiore 3In an earlier post, I discussed a 15th century Rhenish School-style reliquary located at the Church of Saint Michael (St. Michaelskirche) in Munich.  The reliquary purportedly contains the skulls of Saints Cosmas and Damian, although as I noted in the post, other churches are also said to possess the saints’ skulls. The Church of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice is one, and on a recent trip to Venice, I decided to find out whether the church really did posses relics of Saints Cosmas and Damian.

We arrived at San Giorgio Maggiore[1] by vaporetto at dusk. The church was dark and looked deserted, so we were afraid it might be closed. Nevertheless, we gave the door a Adoration of the Shepherds (detail)hopeful nudge, and it yielded freely. The church was open. Inside, a few tourists shuffled through the aisles, straining to catch a glimpse of the church’s treasures – paintings by Tintoretto,[2] Sebastiano Ricci, and Jacopo Bassano[3] – in the fading light, but it was no use. All sense of depth, line, and color seemed to dissolve in the gloaming, and the tourists quickly lost interest. Soon enough, they left, and in the sepulchral stillness of the empty church, we began our search for the skulls of Saints Cosmas and Damian in earnest.

We looked for traces of the saints in the gathering darkness. Were the skulls housed in an elaborate metal reliquary? Were they displayed in sturdy glass cases? Were they Tintoretto - Last Suppereven in the church proper rather than in a separate treasury or crypt? We hurried past fading altars, their angels and saints winking at us in the dim light of votive candles. We peered at statutes, examined chiseled writing, and contemplated the high altar. No sign of the saints.

Eventually, we stumbled upon a man striding confidently through the church. It was a priest, and we asked whether he knew about the relics of Saints Cosmas and Damian. He thought for a moment and then invited us to follow him. He led us to the rectory, where we repeated our question to one of his colleagues. “This may sound strange, but we’ve heard that the skulls of Saints Cosmas and Damian may be located here, at Chiesa di San Giorgio Maggiore. Is this true? Do you know whether the skulls of Saints Cosmas and Damian are here in the church?”

Venetian Polychrome CrucifixThe second priest looked uncertain, and he shook his head as he began to answer. “I don’t know about their skulls,” he said. “But, there is an altar of Cosmas and Damian.  Their bones are kept there.” I was elated, and I asked him excitedly where we might find the altar. “It is on the right side,” he explained. “Next to the large crucifix.”

I knew exactly where he meant. Earlier, I had paused before an imposing wooden crucifix, riveted by its wrenching depiction of Christ on the cross.[4] Next to it, we found the altar of Saints Cosmas and Damian. A large painting, the Martyrdom of Saints Cosmas and Damian, attributed to the workshop of Tintoretto, hung above it. We had missed it in the darkness!  (A black and white image is available here.)

One of the saints is shown in the lower lefthand corner of the painting, his left hand outstretched but tied to a cross that is resting on the ground. One of his persecutors binds his legs to the cross while another monitors his progress. In the upper righthand corner of the painting, his brother is securely bound to another cross, which has already been raised off the ground. In the background, archers loose arrows at him while other figures appear to hurl rocks. According to tradition, the saints were unharmed by attempts to kill them with arrows, by stoning, and by crucifixion. They were eventually beheaded, along with several other brothers, who also appear in the painting, crowned with halos. An angel, tumbling into the scene from heaven, bears palm fronds in his right hand, symbols of martyrdom.

With the aid of a small flashlight – it was truly dark by now – we found a plaque secured above the altar.  It read: “OSSA SS · MAR · COSME ET DAMINI IACENT HIC” (Here Lie the Bones of Saints, Martyrs, Cosmas and Damian). We had found their bones.

Altar of Saints Cosmas and Damian

[1] The Church of San Giorgio Maggiore is located on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, east of the Giudecca, and across the Canale di San Marco from Saint Mark’s Square.

[2] Tintoretto’s celebrated The Last Supper hangs to the right of the high altar, in the presbytery. Painted in the Mannerist style, Tintoretto’s The Last Supper differs from other depictions of the Last Supper in striking ways. For example, the table at which Jesus and the Apostles share their meal is shown at an angle rather than head-on, as in many depictions of the Last Supper (for example, Leonardo da Vinci’s famous rendition at the Convent of Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan.) Additionally, Jesus and the Apostles are not the only figures present in the scene. Although the eye naturally settles on Jesus, who is surrounded by a brilliant aureole of light, and the Apostles, who are distinguished by halos (except for Judas), some of the largest figures in the painting are ordinary men and women who have prepared and are serving the meal.

[3] Jacopo Bassano’s Adoration of the Shepherds hangs above the first altar on the right side of the nave.

[4] The crucifix is most likely one that was donated to the church in 1468.  The crucifix’s deteriorating, polychrome paint was restored in 1984 by the Venice in Peril Fund. Venice in Peril, “Church of San Giorgio Maggiore,” available at http://www.veniceinperil.org/projects/church-of-san-giorgio-maggiore. A sign below the crucifix read “HIC IACET CORPUS S · EUSTACHII PAT · CONST·” (Here Lies the Body of Saint Eustace, Father of [Saint] Constantius) indicating it hangs above the tomb of Saint Eustace.  (I briefly discussed Saint Constantius in an earlier post about the Waldauf Chapel in Austria.)  For a modest €0.50, were able to illuminate the crucifix for two minutes enabling us to capture a photograph of it.

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Waldauf Chapel

04 Tuesday Dec 2012

Posted by in Glass Reliquary

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Pfarrkirche St. NikolausPfarrkirche St. Nikolaus

The Pfarrkirche (Parish Church) St. Nikolaus in Hall in Tirol, Austria — approximately 10 km from Innsbruck — houses an impressive display of holy relics. The Waldauf Chapel, located in the northern part of the nave, is named for Florian Waldauf zu Waldenstein, an Austrian knight who bequeathed his collection of relics to the church upon his death in 1501.

Waldauf KapellePfarrkirche St. Nikolaus was established in 1281 and was initially Gothic in style.  Over the centuries, however, enlargement of the church and the addition of increasingly elaborate ornamentation changed the character of the interior, infusing it with a distinctly Baroque appearance.  The high altar, pictured in the distance above, is the work of Erasmus Quellinus II, a student of Peter Paul Rubens.  Interior frescoes were added in 1752 by Adam Mölk, a court painter to Empress Maria Theresa.

Florian Waldauf’s collection of relics adorns the northern wall of the eponymous chapel.  Dozens of skulls and an assortment of bones carefully arranged on red velvet cushions Saint Skull Close-upline the interior of a large cabinet, its glass wavy with age.  Each skull is veiled with a gauzy fabric, blurring its features, and each is crowned with a golden halo.  The effect is grim but striking: glints of gold on ashen bones in the shadows of an ancient church.

The collection of relics in the Waldauf Chapel are not the only relics on display in the church, however.  Three additional cases along the northern wall, near the center of the nave, appear to contain the remains of additional saints, two of whom are clearly identified.  I’m not sure whether these relics are part of Florian Waldauf’s original bequest, but given the prominence of the displays, they are likely the most important of the church’s collection.

A Mysterious Skeleton

Unidentified SkeletonThe most conspicuous display contains what appears to be a complete skeleton, recumbent, richly dressed in a red velvet cape, a heavily embroidered jacket, and white silk pants.  His right arm is bent at the elbow, and his head is almost poised on his gloved right hand.  The glove, probably of white silk, is decorated with jewels.  A golden crown formed of loosely gathered leaves adorns his skull, and the hint of a burnished halo is just visible above his head.  The case itself is not clearly labeled, so unfortunately I never discovered the identity of the skeleton.

In contrast, the two other repositories flanking the skeleton case are both clearly marked.  Each is built into the wall, above eye level, and each contains a single skull atop a pyramid of bones.  The first case is labeled in large, gold letters “St. Constantius M.”  The second case, similarly marked, reads “St. Agapitus M.”  The “M” following the names Agapitus and Constantinus refers to “martyr.”

Saint Agapitus at Pfarrkirche St. Nikolaus

The Roman Martyrology lists seven saints named Agapitus.  Saint Agapitus of Palestrina, for example, was fifteen when he was arrested by order of the emperor Aurelian.  According to the Roman Martyrology, he was first scourged and then “endured more severe torments, and being delivered to the lions by the emperor’s order without receiving any injury, he was finally struck with the sword . . . .”  After his death in 274, a basilica was erected in Palestrina, Italy, at the site of his beheading.  His relics are apparently kept there, though several relics were transferred to Besançon, France.  Consequently, the bones at Pfarrkirche St. Nikolaus cannot be those of Saint Agapitus of Palestrina.

Relics of Saint AgapitusOther potential Agapituses include Saint Agapitus the Deacon, who was beheaded in Rome in 258.  Saint Agapitus of Synnada, in Phrygia, was a bishop martyred in the 3rd century.  Saint Agapitus of Rome was martyred in 188.  He was the son of Saints Eustachius and Theophistes and the brother of Saint Theophistus.  During the persecutions of Hadrian, all four members of the family were “condemned to be cast to the beasts,” but having escaped unharmed, they were then essentially cooked to death after being “shut up in a burning brazen ox.”  Pope Saint Agapitus, “whose sanctity is attested by blessed Gregory the Great,” is also listed in the Roman Martyrology, though it is unclear how he was martyred.  He may or may not be the same Pope Saint Agapitus I (or Agapetus I) who served as pope from 13 May 535 until his death on 22 April 536. The latter Pope Saint Agapitus, however, apparently died of illness rather than as a result of martyrdom.  He is interred at Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Yet another Saint Agapitus was martyred in Heraclea in Thrace during the early 4th century along with Saints Bassus, Denis, and forty others.  Lastly, Saint Agapitus of Ravenna, bishop and confessor, was martyred at Ravenna in the 4th century.

Saint Constantius at Pfarrkirche St. Nikolaus

The identity of “St. Constantius M.” is equally uncertain.  The Roman Martyrology lists several Constantiuses.  Saint Constantius of Rome, a priest who opposed the Pelagians, was martyred in Rome c. 418.  Saint Constantius of Trier (also known as Trèves) was killed, along with several others, in Trier during the Diocletian persecutions, c. 287.  Saint Constantius of Perugia, the first Bishop of Perugia, Italy, was martyred along with members of his congregation during the reign of Marcus Aurelius.  He was beheaded in 170.  Another Saint Constantius, the son of Saint Simplicius and brother of Saint Victorian, was also martyred during the persecutions of Marcus Aurelius, in Marsica, Italy.  This Saint Constantius, along with his father and brother, “were first tortured in different manners, and then being struck with the axe, obtained the crown of martyrdom . . . .”  They apparently survived being thrown into a chamber with snakes and scorpions and escaped being torn apart by maddened heifers before they were eventually beheaded at Celano in 159.

In addition to these martyrs, several other Constantiuses have been recognized as saints or beati.  For example, Saint Constantius the Bishop was the Bishop of Aquino, Italy.  He died c. 520 of natural causes.  Saint Constantius of Ancona was, according to the Book of Saints, sacristan of the church of St. Stephen in Ancona, Italy.  He died in the latter part of the 6th century and his relics are reportedly kept in Ancona.  The Blessed Constantius of Fabriano, also known as Constantius Bernocchi, died of natural causes in 1481.

Saints Cosmas and Damian

28 Wednesday Nov 2012

Posted by in Metal Reliquary

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Reliquary of Saints Cosmas and Damian

Reliquary of Saints Cosmas and Damian

The reliquary pictured above purportedly contains the skulls of Saints Cosmas and Damian, twin brothers who were martyred in Cyrrhus, Syria, around the 4th century. The Rhenish School-style reliquary, which dates to 1400, is currently located at Saint Michael’s Church in Munich, Germany. The lower portion of the reliquary, which is decorated with standing figures, contains two doors that open to display the saints’ skulls.

Saints Cosmas and Damian were skilled physicians who lived on the bay of Alexandretta in Cilicia in what is now modern-day Turkey. They are venerated as “moneyless ones” or holy “unmercenaries” because they refused to accept payment in return for their services. They are honored as patron saints of physicians, along with Saint Luke and Saint Pantaleon, and are often depicted with symbols of medicine or healing, including phials, boxes of ointment, and the rod of Aesculapius — a rod entwined with a serpent. In the paintings below by the Early Renaissance painter Giovanni da Modena, both saints appear to be carrying boxes of ointment. (The two works are part of the medieval sacred art collection of the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin.)

Giovanni da Modena - SS Cosmas and DamianAlthough the exact date of their deaths is unclear, Saints Cosmas and Damian are believed to have died between 287 and 303 A.D. during the Great Persecution of the emperor Diolcetian. Following their martyrdom, a basilica was built in their honor in Cyrrhus, north of Antioch, and from there, the cult of Saints Cosmas and Damian spread to the rest of the Christian world. According to Butler, “The cult of SS Cosmas and Damian first reached Rome during the pontificate of St Symmachus (498-514; 19 July), who introduced it into an oratory near the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. But it was Pope St Felix III (526-30; 22 Sept) who translated their relics and built the basilica dedicated to them.”

Saints Cosmas and Damian are explicitly invoked in the Canon of the Mass and are included in the Litany of the Saints and the Roman Martyrology. In The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, first published in 1902, Nikolaus Gihr notes that in the Roman Canon, “only martyrs are named before and after the Consecration: this distinction is justly due to them. They have merited it by the bloody sacrifice of their life; . . .” Their younger brothers Anthimus, Leontius, and Euprepius, who also died during the Diocletian persecution, are memorialized in the Roman Martyrology as well.

In addition to being patrons of doctors, Saints Cosmas and Damian are also patron saints of nurses, surgeons, pharmacists, dentists, barbers, and oddly (at least according to Butler), confectioners. The feast day of the saints, which had been celebrated on 27 September, was moved to 26 September to accommodate the feast of Saint Vincent de Paul.

Meanwhile, the cult of Saints Cosmas and Damian appears to be alive and well. Every year, for example, thousands of people gather in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to celebrate The Italian Feast of the Healing Saints Cosmas and Damian. According to the festival’s official website, which currently features a delightful countdown clock to the next (87th) celebration, the goal of the festival is “to promote our Italian heritage, maintain a strong presence in our community, and preserve the devotion to our patrons, Saints Cosmas and Damian.” The celebration begins when statues of Saints Cosmas and Damian are removed from their chapel. Following a candlelight procession, “the festival opens as the statues are swayed down the main street of the feast. The statues are then placed in a temporary outdoor chapel as a ‘Healing Service’ is conducted with the Relic of Saints Cosmas and Damian for all in attendance.”

In addition to Saint Michael’s Church in Munich, the convent of the Clares in Madrid and Saint Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna also lay claim to possessing the skulls of the twin saints. Other relics of Saints Cosmas and Damian are apparently kept at the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice.