Processions for St Agatha in Catania, Sicily

In the days leading up to the feast of St Agatha on February 5th, the Sicilian city of Catania, which honors her as a native daughter and heavenly Patron, holds a series of processions in which her relics are brought to various sites. One relic in particular, her veil, is an object of special devotion there; the Benedictus antiphon of her Office mentions the traditional story that it was once brought by a group of pagans to the place where a lava flow from nearby Mt Etna threatened the city, and stopped it. On the last Saturday of January, it is taken to the Collegiate Church of St Maria dell’Elemosina, and then on the following day, the provost and chapter bring it to the cathedral. Our thanks to Mr Piersanti Serrano for these photos; two videos of the ceremonies are included below.

Vespers

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Saints of the Roman Canon: St Agatha of Sicily, February 5th

Yesterday was the feast of another Saint of the Roman Canon about whom we know very little, beyond the fact of her existence and her martyrdom. Nevertheless, St Agatha is one of the most highly venerated virgin martyrs.

According to tradition, she suffered cruel torture in the persecution of Decius in 251 AD; her breasts were pierced with pincers, but she was healed by St Peter who appeared to her while she was kept in prison. She was then subjected to torture with hot coals and shards of glass until this was interrupted by an eruption of Mt Etna; finally, she was sent back to prison, where she died of starvation.

Her traditional iconography reminds us of this gruesome death and the grace with which she faced it. She is shown as a young woman, who carries her severed breasts on a plate, or has pincers in her hand. She sometimes displays a candle or flame, a symbol of her power against fire; a unicorn’s horn, a symbol of her virginity; or a palm branch or cross, symbols of martyrdom. Many of the images from the Renaissance and Baroque periods graphically focus on some of these details in ways that might not appeal to modern sensibilities (or mine at any rate!).

Franisco d’Osona, ca. 1505

Piero della Francesca, ca 1460-70. This is in my opinion a very poor woork, but it heartens me to know that even an artist as great as he was can have an off day!

Francisco de Zurbarán, 1630-33

This early Baroque painting, from 1614 by Giovanni Lanfranco is more tasteful, I feel, showing St Peter healing her injuries.

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