The magic of jewels and charms

This list, which begins with the great Christian festival of Christmas, enumerates the days on which Roman martyrs died and were buried. The months are given in their order and below their names appears a very brief record, giving the day and place of burial and the name of each of the martyrs. The first entry, for instance, reads: “January 20, interment of Fabianus in the cemetery of Callistus.” The earliest martyrs mentioned are SS. Perpetua and Felicitas who died in 202 A.D.; thus all definite memory of the many martyrs of the first and second centuries seems to have been lost. Even heretics do not appear to have been excluded, for as it is stated that the Novatians carried away the body of Silanus, it seems more than probable that he himself belonged to this heretical sect. As martyrs, all are regarded as equally entitled to the highest veneration, regardless of what they may have passed through on earth. Other communities than the Roman one possessed similar lists, as is clearly indicated by the words of Cyprian, in his thirty-ninth epistle, where he says: “As you remember, we offered the sacrifice for them, just as we celebrated a commemoration of the sufferings of the martyrs and of their anniversary days.”

To many of the saints curative powers are attributed, and these powers are usually specialized so that each of these saints is invoked for aid against a different disease or defect. With very few exceptions it will be found that some circumstance in the history or legend of the saint is the origin of these beliefs. An exception may perhaps be made in the case of the two saints to whom recourse is most frequent at the present day, namely, St. Anthony of Padua (June 13) and St. Anne, the mother of the Virgin Mary (July 26). Relics of the latter saint, preserved in many parts of Europe and also in America, are regarded as endowed with wonderful therapeutic powers. Recently, in New York City, at the church of St. Jean Baptiste, a relic of St. Anne was shown to many thousands of the faithful, and some wonderful cures are said to have been accomplished by its aid. Sceptics will be inclined to attribute such cures to the influence of suggestion, while Catholics will see in them a proof of the power of the saint’s intercession on behalf of those who repose their trust in her. St. Anthony is usually appealed to for success in difficult enterprises, and more particularly for the discovery of lost articles. Here the belief in the successful intervention of the respective saints is more generalized and appears to have grown up independently of any event chronicled in the legends, but these instances are quite exceptional.

An exceedingly beautiful jewelled medallion said to have been given by Pope Paul V, in 1614, to the Archbishop of Lisbon, Don Miguel de Castro, shows in the centre the figures of the Virgin and Child, surrounded by a setting of old Indian, table-cut diamonds. The archbishop donated this to the Church of St. Antonia da Se, sometimes called the “Royal House of St. Antonio,” for this church was built on the site of the house in which dwelt the parents of St. Anthony, Don Martin de Bulhoes and Dona Teresa de Azavedo, and in which the saint was born on February 6, 1195. At his baptism he was given the name Fernando, but later he changed this to Antonio. The great Lisbon earthquake of 1755 completely wrecked this church, but the high altar wherein the medallion had been placed escaped comparatively unharmed, and the jewel was found by some peasants, who later sold it to the family of Machados e Silvas, in whose private chapel it reposed until within a few years.

The shrine of St. Anne de Beaupré may be seen in the Basilica of Beaupré, about 20 miles distant from Quebec. It stands on the site of a small wooden sanctuary erected about the middle of the seventeenth century by some Breton mariners who, when in imminent danger of shipwreck while navigating the St. Lawrence, made a vow to build a chapel to St. Anne, the dearly-loved patron saint of their native province, at the spot where they should first come to land. St. Anne was regarded in French Canada as the patroness of seafarers and hence a large number of those who frequented her shrine were seafaring people. However, even more were attracted by the report of the marvellous cures of all kinds of diseases which were said to have taken place there. Pilgrimages to this shrine continue to be made at the present time; indeed, the number of those who thus testify to their belief in the power of the saint has increased rapidly during the past thirty years. In 1880 the pilgrims numbered 36,000; in 1900 the record showed 135,000, and in 1910 the number had increased to 188,266, a proof that the devotees are more and more convinced that St. Anne’s relics are the sources of great healing virtue.

All of the numerous relics of St. Anne exhibited in Canada and elsewhere are said to have come originally from the town of Apt in France, where, according to Catholic tradition, her body was found by the Emperor Charlemagne in 792, and it is related that when the reliquary covering the holy body was opened a fragrance as of balsam emanated from the interior. How the body was transferred to Apt from its resting place in Palestine is a mystery not solved even in tradition, although some believe that it was brought thither by St. Auspicius, known as the Apostle of Apt. The Basilica of Beaupré contains five of these precious relics; one of them was brought to Canada from the Cathedral of Carcasonne, in France, about the year 1662, at the instance of Monseigneur de Laval, first bishop of Quebec, and founder of Laval University. This is the first joint of the middle finger of the saint. The devotees at the shrine first saw this precious gift March 12, 1670; it is adorned with two intersecting rows of pearls, forming a cross. Another relic of peculiar importance is that given in 1892 by the late Cardinal Taschereau. This is a bone from St. Anne’s wrist measuring four inches in length. It is enclosed in a reliquary made of massive gold and studded with precious stones, the gifts of those whose prayers to the saint had been answered. In the ornamentation appear eight diamonds, four amethysts, a fire opal, etc. At the bottom of the reliquary there is a gold plate with the inscription: “Ex brachio S. Annae,” and a gold ring set with twenty-eight diamonds.

This jealously-guarded treasure is exhibited in the shrine but once a year, from July 26 to August 2, a period comprising St. Anne’s Day and the week following it; at other times the reliquary is kept in the Sacristy, but may be seen on special request.

A remarkable jewel in the treasury of the Basilica is the seal of Santa Anna, elected president of Mexico in 1832. A golden eagle, with eyes formed of two rubies, stands on a rock of lapis lazuli and bears the stamp of the seal; resting on his spread wings is a sphere of lapis lazuli in which the words “Diaz, Mexico,” are inlaid in letters of gold. The seal is engraved with the initials of the president’s name, surrounded by a design embodying the insignia of his office.

At the feast of St. Blaise, Bishop of Sebaste, in Armenia (d. circa 316), which occurs on February 3d in the Roman Church, the wick of a candle is sometimes dipped in a vessel containing consecrated oil, the throats of the faithful being then touched with this wick, to preserve them from diseases of the throat. At other times the ceremony is performed in a different way. The priest holds two candles, adjusted so as to form a cross, above the heads of those who come to seek the saint’s aid, and the following prayer is recited: “Through the intercession of St. Blaise may God free thee from diseases of the throat, and from every other disease. (Per intercessionem S. Blasii liberet te Deus a malo gutteris et a quovis alio malo.)”

It is related that this saint in his travels, once meeting a poor woman whose only child had swallowed a fish-bone, relieved the child of its trouble by offering up a prayer and laying his hand upon its throat. In the prayer he adjures all who may suffer from a like trouble to seek his intercession with God.

St. Apollonia of Alexandria (February 9) is said to cure toothache and all diseases of the teeth, the reason for this being that at her martyrdom all her beautiful teeth were pulled out. In a similar way St. Agatha, of Catania or Palermo, in Sicily, is endowed with the power to cure diseases of the breast, because it is related that before her martyrdom her breasts were cruelly torn and mutilated.

To recite the formula of St. Apollonia was considered by the Spaniards of three centuries ago to be a cure for toothache. This fact is brought out by a passage in Don Quixote, when the knight’s housekeeper is urged to recite it for her master’s benefit when he is ailing. To this request the woman quickly answers: “That might do something if my master’s distemper lay in his teeth, but, alas! it lies in his brain.” This formula was probably used before the age of Cervantes, and has persisted to our own time. It is in verse and has been literally translated into English as follows:[495]

Apollonia was at the gate of Heaven and the Virgin Mary passed that way. “Say, Apollonia, what are you about?” “My Lady, I neither sleep nor watch, I am dying with a pain in my teeth.” “By the star of Venus and the setting sun, by the Most Holy Sacrament, which I bore in my womb, may no pain in your tooth, neither front nor back, afflict you from this time henceforward.”

Of Santa Lucia (December 13), born in Syracuse on the island of Sicily, a strange legend is told. A young man fell passionately in love with her, and wrote to her that her wonderful eyes pursued him even in his dreams. Moved by the Scripture text, “If thine eye offend thee, pluck it out,” and longing to save the youth from sensual passion, Lucia cut out her beautiful eyes, placed them on a dish, and sent them to her lover with the following message: “Here thou hast what thou so ardently desirest; I beseech thee leave me in peace.” Very naturally, this saint is believed to cure all diseases of the eye.

For protection against highway robbers and thieves, St. Nicholas (December 6), Bishop of Myra, in Lycia, was invoked. Legend relates of this saint that he restored to life three boys who had been murdered at an inn by the wicked innkeeper, a wretch who was in the habit of making away with his guests and then utilizing their bodies to enrich his menu. This tale accounts for the fact that, under the familiar name of Santa Claus, St. Nicholas is the patron saint of children.

St. Barbara (December 4), born in Heliopolis, is appealed to for protection against lightning and injury by firearms. For this reason the gun-room on a ship is called in French the sainte-barbe. The legend, as usual, gives us the origin of the belief in the saint’s special powers, for her heathen father is said to have been killed by a stroke of lightning, because of his having denounced his daughter, as a Christian, to the Roman authorities, and then executed judgment upon her with his own hands. Of St. Barbara the legend says: “She was a fair fruit from an evil tree.”[496]

Beneath portraits or images of St. Christopher (July 25) there often appears a Latin verse to the effect that whoever gazes on the image will not suffer from faintness or exhaustion on that day. As the saint is said to have been of great size and strength, the worshipper at his shrine was believed to acquire some of his physical power.

St. Roch, who was born in Montpelier toward the end of the thirteenth century (d. August 16, 1327), is regarded as the special guardian of those afflicted with plague or pestilence. In his lifetime he went from place to place ministering to those who suffered from the plague until finally he himself succumbed to this malady. So great was the repute of St. Roch’s curative powers that the Venetians are said to have stolen his body from Montpelier, where it was interred, and transported it to Venice, that they might have ever-present help in the numerous pestilences from which this city suffered, because of the constant commercial intercourse with the East.

Another saint who was invoked for help in plague and pestilence was St. Sebastian (January 20), born in Narbonne in Gaul. In this case the story of the saint’s martyrdom gave rise to the belief in his curative powers, for the legend tells us that he was transfixed with arrows, and these missiles were regarded as symbols of the plague. We have an illustration of this old belief in the first book of Homer’s Iliad, where the pestilence that visited the army of the Greeks is represented as due to the shafts sped from Apollo’s silver bow.

Although no curative powers are attributed to them, no one of English speech should forget SS. Crispin and Crispian, on whose day the battle of Agincourt was fought, in 1415. The old feud between France and England has been long forgotten, the rivalry between these nations has given place to a close friendship, and there is no trace of animosity in the glow that warms an Englishman’s heart when he reads the ringing words put by Shakespeare into the mouth of Henry V:

It is related by Metaphrastus that when St. George was condemned to death by burning, his executioners (fearing that the flames of the pyre might be extinguished because of his virtue) covered his body with a garment of amiantos (asbestos); for it was believed that when this material began to burn the flame could not be extinguished. But all precautions were vain, for as soon as the saint was placed in the flames the fire went out, contrary to the laws of nature, and not a hair of his head was injured. This tale illustrates a curious but not unnatural misunderstanding of the name asbestos, which really signifies inextinguishable, but was intended to mean that the substance would not burn, and hence that no flame could be extinguished in it.[497]

The St. George thalers, coined by the counts of Mansfeld (Thüringen), enjoyed in bygone times a reputation as amulets for soldiers. This belief is said to have originated from the actual preservation of a soldier’s life by one of these coins, which he had sewed up in the lining of his coat just over his heart for safe-keeping. A bullet which struck him here and would otherwise have killed him, was diverted by coming in contact with the thaler. Hungarian St. George thalers were regarded as amulets for sailors as well as soldiers. These coins derived their name from bearing the design of St. George and the Dragon.

Among the wonder-working saints none enjoyed greater repute in medieval times than Sainte Foy, the virgin martyr whose remains were taken from Agen to the abbey-church at Conques, a village on the hills of Aveyron. Pilgrims came from far and near to the shrine of Sainte Foy, for she worked marvellous cures upon those who appealed to her for help, even giving sight to the blind. Her grace appears to have been bestowed upon animals as well as upon human beings, a fantastic legend relating that she had raised donkeys from the grave! Naturally the pilgrims must bring rich gifts, as otherwise the saint might turn a deaf ear to their prayers.

Many of these treasures may still be seen in this out-of-the-way church, wherein no one would suspect the existence of the rich specimens of early goldsmiths’ work that are carefully preserved in the treasury. The most interesting of these treasures is a statuette supposed to represent the saint. This is a seated figure, about 33 inches high and encrusted with an immense number of precious stones, uncut emeralds, sapphires and amethysts, as well as with many cameos and pearls; all these having been offered at various times to the saint.

The figure—probably the representation of some ecclesiastic—is seated on an elaborate chair, originally surmounted by two golden doves. The saint is said to have appeared in a vision to the Bishop of Beaulieu and expressly directed this adornment; these doves have disappeared and have been replaced by crystal balls. The execution of the statuette—constructed of wood covered with gold plates—is stiff and conventional, but it is not unimpressive and gives evidence of considerable skill on the part of the artist. Nevertheless, it certainly has nothing of the youthful grace we would associate with a virgin martyr.[499]

The offering of precious stones to attract the favor of gods or saints is really a talismanic use of such gems and is intimately connected with the wearing of gems for their talismanic or therapeutic effect. The gift established a sort of relation between the being whose help was desired and the petitioner, and the gem was the medium through which the favor was bestowed.

The legend of the royal princess who was canonized by the Church as St. Enimie (d. 628 or 630 A.D.) contains an account of a miraculous spring and also enshrines the popular view of the cause of the strange outlines of an extensive mass of heaped-up boulders. This saint was a daughter of the French king Clotaire II (d. 628). Her most ardent wish was to devote herself exclusively to the service of Christ, but her royal parent insisted upon a marriage with one of the great nobles. The princess, who was the fairest of the fair, put up an earnest prayer that the Lord would destroy her beauty, even at the expense of some dreadful malady, so that she might cease to be an object of desire for men. Her prayer was heard and she was stricken with leprosy which entirely blotted out her charms. Not long after this an angel appeared to her in a dream and directed her to bathe in the Fountain of Boule, in the region of Gévaudan. On doing so she was immediately cured of her leprosy, but as soon as she went away from the spring to return to the royal residence, the malady returned. A second attempt had the same favorable and unfavorable results, and she now recognized that she must remain near the spring. So after bathing there a third time and being again completely cured, she erected a monastery on the spot and became the prioress. The institution flourished, but a few years later the saintly prioress was horrified to see that the Devil was busy with her nuns.

Once more she sought for divine aid, and she was given authority to imprison the Evil One should she catch him in the monastery. This she did, but the Devil was crafty enough to make his escape. Near the spot where the monastery stood was a mass of heaped-up boulders, through which led a way called the Chasm Road which led to a rocky aperture of unknown depth. This was fabled to afford egress and ingress to the Devil in his passage out of and back to the infernal regions. Along this road he fled when he escaped from the monastery; St. Enimie fearlessly pursued, but the agile demon was on the point of slipping back again into his own realm, when the saint made a supreme appeal and called upon the rocks to help her. As she raised her arms in supplication, one of the largest boulders, called “La Sourde,” moved of its own accord and fell upon the Devil, pinning him fast to the ground beneath its ponderous weight. In his rage and despair he made frantic efforts to free himself and his bloody claws left an imprint on the rock. This mark, still observable a half-century ago, though it has now disappeared, was prosaically explained by scientists as a stain of iron-oxide. The other boulders were in motion to assist in the good work, but when the Devil had been caught they stopped short in their downward course, and this is supposed to account for the strange angles at which they stand.[500] It would be pleasant to fancy that His Satanic Majesty eventually failed to make his escape, but unfortunately the ever-recurring instances of his activity from the age of St.

An heirloom in the family of Dom Pedro of Brazil is said to have been loaned to one of the pioneer aviators, Santos-Dumont, by Dom Pedro’s daughter, the Comtesse d’Eu. This was a medal of St. Benedict and had been long regarded as a powerful talisman in the Braganza family. One of its princely members had a striking proof of this virtue in 1705, when, after having worn the medal but two weeks, he was saved from deadly peril by the timely discovery and consequent defeat of a plot. Santos-Dumont had just experienced a terrible fall while experimenting with his new airship in the Rothschild park near Paris, and this it was that induced the Comtesse d’Eu to loan him the talismanic medal, with the injunction that he should always wear it on his person, and the assurance that if he did so no further harm could befall him. The talisman seemed to do its work well, for although the aviator had many narrow escapes, he was always saved from serious injury. Unfortunately, however, a thief picked it from the pocket of his coat while he was busily engaged in work on an airship in a Paris machine-shop.[501]

While it was customary to close the shops of the goldsmiths on Sundays and feast-days, a special exception permitted the “Confrérie de St. Eloi,” the goldsmiths’ guild, to open a single shop (not always the same one) on each Sunday and feast-day, the profits of the sales being devoted to providing a dinner on Easter Day for the poor of the Hôtel Dieu.[502] This combination of commercialism and philanthropy has illustrations in our own day, and, whatever may be the ulterior motives, some good results are certainly attained.