The capture of a unicorn, miniature in the manuscript Oxford, Bodl. 533  (13th c.), f. 3r, © Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, CC BY-NC 4.0, https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/36652b63-d9b1-4480-a88b-769d558bf238/surfaces/6b403dae-4c5f-481c-9fd6-7089e4684a16 . Human imagination builds its most beautiful sandcastles on realities it cannot verify. This is the case with the legend of the unicorn, which centers on a fabulous animal everyone has imagined in their ow

The acheiropoieton of Gethsemane as depicted in the manuscript Madrid, Biblioteca del Monasterio de El Escorial, T.I.1  (ca. 1280-1284), f. 44r, https://rbme.patrimonionacional.es/s/rbme/item/11337#?c=&m=&s=&cv=95&xywh=-4400%2C-263%2C12014%2C5244 . Legends surrounding the so-called images “not made by human hands” ( acheiropoieta ) emerged around the 6th century, with the aim of popularising the miracles attributed to them, promoting their veneration, and increasing the numb

Giotto, Ascension of Saint John the Evangelist , Peruzzi Chapel, Santa Croce, Florence (14th c.), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Giotto_di_Bondone_-_Scenes_from_the_Life_of_St_John_the_Evangelist_-_3._Ascension_of_the_Evangelist_-_WGA09300.jpg . After the death of the Apostle and Evangelist John (late 1st century), his tomb did not become a place venerated by Christians, and later generations forgot its exact location. The oldest biography of the apostle only mention

The image of Edessa in the manuscript Paris, BNF Lat. 2688 (13th c.), f. 75r, https://mandragore.bnf.fr/mirador/ark:/12148/btv1b8101682k/f61 . In the Byzantine world, the icon of Edessa was arguably the most famous image “not made by human hands” (acheiropoieton). According to legend, before his death, Christ imprinted the image of his face on a cloth, which he sent to King Abgar V of Edessa with a letter. This story is not credible, especially since, unlike other Christian

The Martyrdom of the Three Children Ananias, Azarias, and Misael, as depicted in the manuscript Vatican, BAV gr. 1613 (10th/11th c.), f. 251 (detail), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ananias,_Azarius_and_Misael_(Menologion_of_Basil_II).jpg . In ancient times, losing one’s head was not an exceptional occurrence. Wars, conflicts of all kinds, and punishments could easily result in death by decapitation. Among those condemned to this type of death, hagiographic texts pr

The translation of Josaphat’s relics by King Barachiah, as depicted in the manuscript Los Angeles, Getty Museum, Ludwig XV 9 (15th c.), f. 375, https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/103SC6 Tales, like proverbs, have always traveled, knowing no borders. It is the case of an ancient Indian legend that, transformed into an edifying tale and then a hagiographic text, enjoyed great success in the Middle Ages. From the 11th century, its hero, the Hindu prince Siddhartha Gaut

Image of Thecla on a Coptic eulogy ampulla (6th/7th c.), Paris, Musée du Louvre, Département des Arts de Byzance et des Chrétientés en Orient, MNC 1926, https://collections.louvre.fr/ark:/53355/cl010280955 According to ancient writings that refer to her end, Saint Thecla (September 24) did not die but miraculously disappeared into the rock or underground. The event would have taken place near Seleucia (present-day Silifke, Turkey) in the ancient province of Isauria. In realit

The synaxarion of Pope Gregory I in the manuscript Sinai Gr. 548 (10th c.), f. 142r, https://www.loc.gov/resource/amedmonastery.00279380745-ms/?sp=145&st=single (Washington, Library of Congress) Pope Gregory I of Rome (590–604) is known in the Christian East primarily for associating his name with the Liturgy of the presanctified gifts. During Lent, this particular liturgy is celebrated on weekdays, from Monday to Friday. Improperly called a liturgy, it actually takes place

Emperor Theophilos and his court, as depicted in the manuscript Madrid, Gr. Vitr. 26-2, 12th c. (Chronicle of Skylitzes), f. 42v, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Emperor_Theophilos_and_his_court,_Skylitzes_Chronicle.jpg# In the Byzantine tradition, the first Sunday of Lent is called the Sunday of Orthodoxy. It evokes a historical moment known as the Triumph of Orthodoxy, i.e., the definitive recognition of the cult of images in the Byzantine Empire. The event occurred