Agnes of Rome
Born: c292
Died: c304
Canonized:
Feast Day: January 21
Patron Saint of:
Children of Mary, girls, young girls
According to St.Augustine and St. Ambrose, St. Agnes was
martyred at the age of 12. Pope Damasus adorned her tomb with sacred poetry. St. Agnes is
represented with a martyrs palm and a lamb. On her feast day the Pope blesses the Pallium,
a stole made from lambs wool which is worn by metropolitans. St. Agnes is the Patron Saint
of Children of Mary, girls, and young girls.
The
body of the virgin martyr was placed in a separate sepulchre on the Via Nomentana, and
around her tomb there grew up a larger catacomb that bore her name. The original slab
which covered her remains, with the inscriptions Agne
sanctissima, is probably the same one which is now preserved
in the Museum at Naples. During the reign of Constantine, through the efforts of his
daughter Constantina, a basilica was erected over the grave of St. Agnes, which was later
entirely remodelled by Pope Honorius (625-638), and has since remained unaltered. In the
apse is a mosaic showing the martyr amid flames, with a sword at her feet. A beautiful
relief of the saint is found on a marble slab that dates from the fourth century and was
originally a part of the altar of her church.
Since
the Middle Ages St. Agnes has been represented with a lamb, the symbol of her virginal
innocence. On her feast two lambs are solemnly blessed, and from their wool are made the
palliums sent by the Pope to archbishops.
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