Los Angeles herald., 1891-10-25
HOLY RELICS.
The Curious Objects in Eu-
rOpean Churches.
Articles Said to Have Belonged
to the Savior.
Charlemagne's Famous Marble and
Iron Throne.
Treasure in the Cathedral at Aix-la-
Chapelle-The Skulls of the Magt
at CoIogne-Rubens's Paint
ing of st. Peter.


AIx-LA-CHAPELLE, July q, 1891.
You have asked me to write letter
describing the holy relics and other OBJ
jects of interest have seen in the differ
ent cathedrals and churches of the
world. If you have been expecting a
description of the "holy coat OF Treves, I"
now creating such sensation in Europe,
you will be disappointed, as, although L
am now quite close to Treves, the coat Will
not be exhibited until next month, when
1 hope to be in America. But the treas
ury of the cathedral here, in which l
have spent the day, is very rich in these
relics. 1t contains in a sumptuous gold
shrine the "four greatrelics,' viz: The
robe of the Virgin Mary, the swaddling
clothes of the infant Christ, the bloody
cloth in which the body of John the
Baptist was wrapped, and the linen cloth
with which the Savior was girded on
the cross. These relics were, it
is said, presented to the EN-
peror Charlemagne by the Patriarch OF
Jerusalem. Among the petiteS reliqates are
lock of the Virgins hair, piece of the
true cross, the sponge that was dipped
in vinegar, one of the nails which fast
ened the Saviour to the cross, one of the
thongs by which He was bound to the
cross, His burial clothes, the thong
with which He was scourged, the girdle
OF the Virgin Mary, link of st. Peters
chain, lock of the hair of John the Bap-
tist, rib Of st. Stephen and some
pieces OF Aaron's rod.
The treasury also contains the rich
late Romanesque reliquary of Charlie
magne, in which repose the bones OF the
Great Emperor. In the gallery OF the
cathedral is the famous throne of the
Emperor. 1t is made of marble slabs
fastened together with iron clamps. On
it, seated in his robes of state, Charlie
magne was buried, and there his bones
reposed in peace for nearly $50 years,
when the tomb was opened by Otho
III. The tomb was Immediately closed,
and was left undisturbed for nearly 20O
years longer. In 1164 Charlemagne was
canonized, after which event this sump
tuous reliquary was prepared, and his
bones placed in it, where, it is to be
hoped, they will be left in peace till the
end of time.
In the cathedral at Cologne I was
shown the skulls of the magi, the three
"wise men from the east" who brought
offerings to the infant Jesus. Over
each skull is the name of the king to
whom it originally belonged, spelled
out in letters made of most precious
stones. Melchior, Kaspar, Balthasar-
such were the names. These skulls
were discovered by the Empress Hell
ena, the mother of Constantine the
Great, who also discovered the ''true
cross" the holy coat, and great many
of the sacred relics now in European
churches. The value of the gold and
Jewels in the treasury of this cathedral
is 81 ,50G, 900.
In the church of St. Ursula, at Co.
logne, also called the Church of the
Eleven Thousand Virgins, the walls of
the church and of the treasury are COW
cred with wooden racks and shelves, on
which are exposed to view the bones OF
the said eleven thousand. The legend
runs that St. Ursula, the daughter of
British king, made a pilgrimage to
Rome, accompanied by 1000 virgins,
who, on their return Journey, were
massacred at Cologne by the
Huns. The walls of the church
of st. Gereon are also lined with
the bones of the 5000 martyrs OF the
Theban legion who were slain here in
286 by order of Emperor Diocletian. In
st. Peters church is to be seen Rubens's
painting of the cruciixion of st. Peter,
in which the saint is represented as be-
ing cruci6ed head downwarde. This
picture is so true to nature, and the
sense of pain is so faithfully depicted
upon the face, that as you look upon 1t
you almost expect to hear the groans OF
the dying martyr.
1t is said that the model of Rubens
was an old beggar of Cologne, whose
extreme poverty compelled him to sub
NIT to the indignity and pain OF being
suspended by his feet for a short time
each day. Trial after trial was made by
the painter in his endeavors to portray
upon the face of the saint the pain OF
crucifxion, but always without success.
At last in a fit OF frenzy and despair he
ran his sword through his unfortunate
model, and copied his dying agonies
upon the canvas. The picture being
thus finished, he fled from Cologne, and
was only allowed to return, forgiven OF
his crime, by presenting the painting to
the church where it now hangs.
This reference to St. Peter brings to
my mind a visit paid some years ago to
the church of S. Pietro IN CGrcere in
Rome. This little church is built upon
the slope of the Capitoline hill, and is
very close to the arch of Septimius Sew
erus. 1t covers the entrance to the
Mamertime prison, where St. Peter and
st. Paul were immured, and where
Jugurtha, Vircingetorix, the Cataline
conspirators, and many other noble
prisoners, ended their days. Visitors
are shown the pillar to which St. Peter
was bound, and in the solid rock of the
wall an indentation is pointed out as
being the imprint of the features of the
saint, which he made by striking his
head against the wall. My guide as
sured me that the sluggish fountain that
oozes up in the bottom of the prison was
miraculoualy created by st. Peter IN
order to afford water for baptizing those
who visited him.
Rome is rich in mementoes and tradi-
tions of her patron saint. At the church
of ST. Sebastian Without the Walls is shown
a stone in which is the impression said
to have been made by the feet of Christ
when he was met by st. Peter on the
spot where now stands the little church
OF Domine Quo Vadis, so called from the
word addressed to the Savior by the
saint.
What a contrast between the loath-
some cell in which st. Peter was inn
prisoned, and the splendid mausoIeum
IN tha ehaneI of the c0n foeaior. xvhoro