The Lives of the Saints through 100 Masterpieces

Veronica

The Lives of the Saints 212 Veronica February 4 Neither Rome nor the martyrology (an officia listing of all the saints of the church) has ever recognized Veronica. Nonetheless, she is present in every church, since she appears in the sixth station of the Way of the Cross, wiping the face of Christ with her veil. One can debate ad infinitu whether her name is a permutation of “Bernice,” or a hybrid combining the Latin word verus (true) with the Greek word eikon (icon). What is certain is that she was venerated by the people at a very early stage, and the piece of cloth she is said to have used is still preserved in Rome. Veronica’s story has so permeated European culture that her name is used for the bullfighter’s pass in which he seems to wipe the bull’s snout with his cape. And certain plants with leaves bearing a pattern that resembles a face are also called “veronicas.” Tradition has it that Saint Veronica was the wife of Zaccheus, the tax collector of Jericho at whose home Jesus spent a night. They were converted to the new faith, and Zaccheus changed his name to Amadour. Later the couple left the Holy Land to evangelize southwest Gaul, and while Veronica gained ground in the area of Quercy, her husband became a hermit upon the rocky sea cliffs, at a spot which ever since has been called Rocamadour (Rock of Amadour), an important pilgrimage site during the Middle Ages. The Master of Saint Veronica (1405–1440) The Veil of Saint Veronica Alte Pinakothek, Munich ...