Nearly 1,800 years after his martyrdom, the blood of St. Lawrence still draws pilgrims to Amaseno, Italy.

Inside the Church of Santa Maria Assunta is a small ampulla traditionally identified as containing the blood of the Roman deacon and martyr. The relic is not simply blood: it also preserves material traditionally identified as skin, fat, ash, and charcoal—echoes of the fire in which Lawrence gave his life.

Around his feast on August 10, the normally dark, coagulated substance undergoes the prodigy of liquefaction, becoming fluid and vividly red.

A remarkable relic. An ancient prodigy. A timeless witness to a man who gave everything for Christ.

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