Transfer of the Relics of St Anthony

Español

When St Anthony died on June 13, 1231, his body was buried in the little Franciscan Church of St Mary in Padua. 

On April 8, 1263, when the coffin was opened after 32 years, it was found that the saint's body had been reduced to ashes except for a few bones, but his tongue was intact and life-like. St Bonaventure, who was present as minister general of the Friars Minor, took the tongue reverently into his hands and exclaimed,

"O blessed tongue, which has always blessed God and caused others to bless Him, now it appears evident how great were your merits before God!"

The tongue of St Anthony was placed in a special reliquary, and can still be seen today in a separate chapel on the epistle side of the basilica. In 1310 the basilica was almost finished, and the remains of St Anthony were transferred to a tomb in the middle of the nave.

The final transfer of the relics of St Anthony to their present chapel on the Gospel side of the basilica took place in 1350.

Get this image of Saint Anthony, now at 75% off