Discover the Eucharistic Miracle of Volterra: the Hosts Suspended in Light

In the terrible year of the sack of Volterra, 1472, the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta was the scene of a luminous prodigy: the consecrated Hosts, hurled against the wall by a sacrilegious soldier, rose free into the air illuminated by a mysterious light and remained suspended there, before numerous witnesses.

The Sack of Volterra

In 1472 the war for control of the alum mines set Volterra against Florence: hired by Lorenzo de’ Medici, the troops of Duke Federico da Montefeltro stormed the city, which suffered a brutal sack that has remained sadly famous. In that climate of violence, a Florentine soldier entered the cathedral and made for the tabernacle, seizing the precious ivory pyx containing numerous consecrated Hosts, along with several sacred objects.

The Hosts in the Light

Just outside the church, seized by a fit of rage against Jesus in the Sacrament, the soldier hurled the pyx and its contents against a wall. But from it came forth all the Hosts which, illuminated by a mysterious light, rose miraculously into the void and remained suspended there for a long while, before the eyes of numerous astonished witnesses. The prodigy, amid the horror of the sack, was read as a sign of hope for the wounded city.

The Cathedral of Volterra

The Romanesque cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, with its gilded ceiling and works of the Pisan and Florentine schools, preserves the memory of the miracle together with the municipal acts kept in the city library, which document the event along with the chronicles of San Francesco. Volterra, an Etruscan and medieval city suspended above its crags, offers pilgrims one of the most evocative settings in Tuscany.

Historical Clues and “Adventurous” Research:

• The municipal acts: the municipal library of Volterra preserves documents on the miracle: research within reach of the curious visitor.
• The sack of 1472: reconstruct the historical events — from the alum mines to the remorse of Lorenzo the Magnificent — that form the backdrop of the prodigy.
• The ivory pyx: investigate the fate of the precious desecrated vessel.

Useful Information for Pilgrims

• Address: Piazza San Giovanni, Volterra (PI), Italy
• Opening Hours: check with the Diocese of Volterra for visiting and celebration times.
• Getting There: Volterra is reached via the SR68 road (from Colle Val d’Elsa or Cecina); car parks lie at the edge of the pedestrian historic centre.

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