Discover the Eucharistic Miracles of Florence: the Two Prodigies of Sant’Ambrogio

A stone’s throw from the market that bears its name, the church of Sant’Ambrogio is one of the most extraordinary Eucharistic sites in Florence: it preserves the relics of two distinct miracles, which occurred in 1230 and 1595. A neighbourhood church, beloved of the Florentines, hiding a treasure of faith known to pilgrims across Europe.

The Miracle of 1230: the Blood in the Chalice

On 30 December 1230 the elderly priest Uguccione, chaplain of Sant’Ambrogio, absent-mindedly left a few drops of consecrated wine in the chalice after Mass. Returning the next morning to celebrate, he found living blood in the chalice, coagulated and incarnate. The prodigy was at once reported to Bishop Ardingo, who had the miraculous blood placed in a crystal ampoule. The relic, venerated for almost eight centuries, is kept in a precious marble tabernacle carved by Mino da Fiesole.

The Miracle of 1595: the Hosts Saved from the Fire

On Good Friday 1595 a fire broke out in Sant’Ambrogio from a candle left burning. The flames reached the tabernacle, but several consecrated Hosts, fallen onto a charred carpet, were found intact, barely browned at the edges. Gathered with veneration, they remained incorrupt for centuries and are likewise kept in the church: a second Eucharistic seal upon the same altar.

Sant’Ambrogio: Art and Faith in the Popular Heart of Florence

Among the city’s oldest churches, Sant’Ambrogio preserves works by Cosimo Rosselli — whose fresco of the procession with the miraculous chalice depicts fifteenth-century Florence —, by Mino da Fiesole and other masters. Artists such as Verrocchio and Mino himself rest here: a concentration of Florentine art gathered around the prodigy.

Historical Clues and “Adventurous” Research:

• Cosimo Rosselli’s fresco: the Chapel of the Miracle with the procession painted in 1486 is a “photograph” of Florentine devotion: recognising its figures and places is a fascinating historical game.
• Bishop Ardingo’s papers: the earliest attestations of the 1230 miracle in the Florentine diocesan archives.
• The processions of the great calamities: on several occasions, during pestilences, the relic was carried in procession through the city: follow these events in the Florentine chronicles.

Useful Information for Pilgrims

• Address: Piazza Sant’Ambrogio, Florence (FI), Italy
• Opening Hours: check with the parish or the Archdiocese of Florence for visiting and celebration times.
• Getting There: the church is in the historic centre, ten minutes’ walk from Santa Croce, by the Sant’Ambrogio market.

Historical source: the international exhibition “The Eucharistic Miracles of the World” created by Carlo Acutis (miracolieucaristici.org).