Holy Face
The Holy Face is a large wooden crucifix located inside the Cathedral of San Martino, housed in a splendid polygonal chapel built in 1484 by Matteo Civitali. What is most striking about the famous face of Jesus are the truly unique and evocative eyes: large, round, and expressive, made of dark blue glass paste, they seem to follow the gaze of the viewer.
From the surprising results of scientific tests made public in 2020, the work can be dated between the last decades of the 8th and the beginning of the 9th century.
The Holy Face of Lucca is the oldest wooden sculpture in the West that has reached us.
Since the Middle Ages, the miraculous crucifix has been a destination for pilgrims from all over Europe and a key stop on the Via Francigena. Its image has become the symbol of the city of Lucca, so much so that starting in the 13th century, it was featured on money changers' seals and on coins.
According to the legend of Leobino, the body of the Holy Face was sculpted by Nicodemus, a disciple of Jesus, who, however, did not dare to create the face, which was completed that night by divine hand. The crucifix remained hidden in Palestine until 782, when it was placed on an unmanned boat in the hope that it would land in a safer place through divine intervention. The bishop of Lucca, Giovanni, warned in a dream, went to the port of Luni to receive the Cross, and a cart pulled by freed oxen finally brought it to Lucca (a fresco by the painter Amico Aspertini, depicting the legend, is preserved in the Chapel of Sant'Agostino inside the Basilica of San Frediano).
As soon as it arrived in the city, the Cross was placed in the church of San Frediano, but during the night it disappeared only to reappear near the cathedral, where it has been kept ever since. The event is commemorated every year on the evening of September 13th during the Luminara di Santa Croce, the solemn procession that starts from the Basilica of San Frediano and arrives at the Cathedral of San Martino; Here the blessing is imparted and the traditional Mottettone is performed (a polyphonic choral and instrumental composition, composed every year by musicians from Lucca).
On the days in honor of the Holy Cross, May 3 and September 13-14, the Holy Face is embellished with its jewels in gold, diamonds and precious stones, which for the rest of the year are exhibited in the Cathedral Museum.
NB: The Holy Face is currently being restored at the Cathedral of San Martino, in a special laboratory located in the left transept.
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