Cathedral of St. Martin – Holy Face of Lucca
Piazza Antelminelli, Lucca
History of the Cathedral of St. Martin
Holy Face of Lucca
The first modifications to the Cathedral of the Holy Face of Lucca, built by the will of Anselmo da Baggio, date back to the first half of the 12th century and consist of the construction and decoration of the new portico.
In the last decades of the 12th century, a Lombard workshop created the façade adorned with loggias. On one of the columns of the first order, Guidetto inscribed his signature and the date in 1294. On the exterior of the portico stands one of the most original sculptural groups (early 13th century), depicting St. Martin and the beggar (a copy; the original is inside the Cathedral).
The central theme is the Ascension of Christ, while on the architrave, the Apostles and the Virgin witness the event.
To the left and right of the central portal are four panels depicting the stories of St. Martin, while below them, the months are illustrated. The right door features the martyrdom of St. Regulus in its lunette.
In the early 14th century, the church adopted a Latin cross layout, with a large apse and transept; to support the imposing structure, massive buttresses were built along the sides.
Interior of the Cathedral of the Holy Face of Lucca
The renovation of the interior began in 1470 with Ghirlandaio, who painted a “Sacra Conversazione.” He was followed by Vincenzo Frediani, with frescoes depicting the stories of the Holy Face and the Trinity, a panel with a “Sacra Conversazione,” and the lunettes with Prophets that adorned the canopy of the pulpit sculpted by Matteo Civitali, now preserved in the Cathedral Museum.
From 1479 is the tomb of Domenico Bertini, and from 1484, the altar of St. Regulus, but the main effort was the construction of a new shrine for the Holy Face.
The Holy Face
The large statue depicting Christ alive on the cross, known as the Holy Face or Holy Cross, dressed in the Eastern-style colobium, has sparked a long critical debate about its dating, which is now generally placed around the early 11th century.
The wooden statue measures 4.34 meters vertically and 2.65 meters horizontally. The crucifix is dressed in a wide tunic, the colobium. The tunic is now black because it was painted at an unspecified time. Originally, the cross’s trunk was blue, and the tunic was blood-red. Behind Christ’s head is an opening, closed by a wood splinter covered with a silk cloth. Many chroniclers recount that in this cavity was placed an ampulla containing Christ’s blood. The interior of the statue is hollow.
Key Events Cathedral of the Holy Face of Lucca
The cult of the Holy Face originates from a legend that Nicodemus carved the statue in the Holy Land with the assistance of angels. The statue is said to have miraculously arrived by sea in Luni and was later transported to Lucca.
According to tradition, in 782, the deacon Iacopo, brother of Bishop Giovanni I, placed the ampulla of the Blood in the Chapel of the Cross, attached to St. Martin. Later, as bishop (801-818), Iacopo transferred the relic to the Benedictine monastery of Saints Philip and James of Placule, which he founded. Subsequently, the monastery’s church was dedicated to St. Pontian because Iacopo had the body of the martyr Pontian brought from Rome. An inventory of the church from 1158 mentions a “vitream de Sanguine Praetiosissimo” (glass ampulla of the Precious Blood).
In 1488, the church was demolished. The relic of the Blood, moved to the new church of St. Pontian, remained there until the early 19th century. On May 22, 1811, the relic returned to St. Martin, where it was placed on September 10, 1817, on the original marble tabernacle from the church of St. Pontian. In use: between the years 1000 and 1099.
Types of Ex-Votos
Among the most beautiful are: the executioner’s axe from 1334 and a war trophy taken from the Turks by Count Stefano Orsetti in 1706. In 1837, to thank the Holy Face for sparing the city from the cholera epidemic that devastated many Italian cities in 1835, the city of Lucca donated a lamp weighing twenty-four pounds of gold. A silver model of a steam locomotive was donated by the railway company in 1856. There have also been a considerable number of lamps, paintings, crutches, weapons, chains and shackles, anchors, depictions of heads, hands, feet, and legs, anthropomorphic figures, hearts, and rosaries.
Current Preservation: Many ex-votos have been lost due to wars, thefts, and the bombing on September 10, 1944.
Miracle of the Executioner’s Axe
A documented miracle from 1334 is worth remembering. Giovanni, son of Lorenzo from the county of Arras, accused of murder, was sentenced to death. The night before his execution, he vowed to the Holy Face that if he were spared, he would dedicate himself to its service. In a dream, the Holy Face appeared to him and said: “Do not fear: the blows of the axe that you will receive on your neck, I will take upon this foot.” At the moment of execution, the blade did not harm him. The Podestà of Pietralunga recognized the miracle and freed the condemned man. The axe is preserved in St. Martin’s, above the plaque commemorating the miracle. The report of the Podestà of Pietralunga sent to the Bishop of Lucca is also preserved.
Devotion to St. Zita
Inside the Fatinelli Chapel (the family for whom Zita worked), the body of St. Zita is preserved. The chapel was built in the early 14th century and later incorporated into the Cathedral.
Important Dates and Events
September 13-14
The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (Holy Face) is celebrated. The feast of the Archdiocese of Lucca begins with vespers on September 13 and includes the entire day of the 14th. It is famous for the nighttime candlelit procession called “La Luminara bella.”
Piazza Antelminelli, 55100 Lucca LU, Italy
