Silver Reliquary Relic St Lawrence of Rome (Ex Ossibus/Bone) + Document COA

Description:
Silver reliquary from XIX Century with a First-Class relic of Saint Lawrence of Rome with its original document of authenticity COA signed by His Eminence, Fr. Stefano Missir, Archbishop of Irenopoleos by order of the Pope Gregory XVI.
 
The relic is Ex Ossibus (From the bone) 
Saint Lawrence of Rome – Martyred in the year 258.
 
Reliquary description
The relics are safely kept under a glass resting on a red silk background surrounded by silver bullion thread.
At the back of the reliquary, we find the wax seal of His Eminence, Fr. Stefano Missir, Archbishop of Irenopoleos which matches the original authentication document and ensures the authenticity of the relics.
 
History of Saint Lawrence
Saint Lawrence or Laurence (Latin: Laurentius, lit. "laurelled"; 31 December AD 225[1] – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roman Emperor Valerian ordered in 258.
St. Lawrence is thought to have been born on 31 December AD 225, in Valencia (or less probably, in Huesca), the town from which his parents came in the later region of Aragon that was then part of the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis. The martyrs Orentius (Modern Spanish: San Orencio) and Patientia (Modern Spanish: Santa Paciencia) are traditionally held to have been his parents.
Lawrence encountered the future Pope Sixtus II, a famous teacher born in Greece, in Caesaraugusta (Zaragoza), and they travelled together from Spain to Rome. When Sixtus became the Pope in 257, he ordained the young Lawrence who was only 22, as a deacon, and later appointed him as "archdeacon of Rome", the first among the seven deacons who served in the cathedral church. This was a position of great trust that included the care of the treasury and riches of the Church and the distribution of alms to the indigent. St. Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, noted that, at the time the norm was that Christians who were denounced were executed, and all their goods confiscated by the Imperial treasury. At the beginning of August 258, the Emperor Valerian issued an edict that all bishops, priests, and deacons should immediately be put to death. Pope Sixtus II was captured on August 6, 258, at the cemetery of St. Callixtus while celebrating the liturgy and was executed immediately.
After the death of Sixtus, the prefect of Rome demanded that Lawrence turnover the riches of the Church, and St. Ambrose wrote that Lawrence asked for three days to gather the wealth. He worked swiftly to distribute as much Church property to the indigent as possible to prevent it from being seized by the prefect. On the third day, at the head of a small delegation, he presented himself to the prefect. When ordered to deliver the treasures of the Church, he presented the city's indigent, crippled, blind, and suffering, and declared that these were the true treasures of the Church: "Here are the treasures of the church. You see, the church is truly rich, far richer than your emperor!"
Martyrdom
As a deacon in Rome, Lawrence was responsible for the material goods of the Church and the distribution of alms to the poor. Ambrose of Milan related that when the treasures of the Church were demanded of Lawrence by the prefect of Rome, he brought forward the poor, to whom he had distributed the treasure as alms. "Behold in these poor persons the treasures which I promised to show you; to which I will add pearls and precious stones, those widows and consecrated virgins, which are the Church's crown." The prefect was so angry that he had a great gridiron prepared with hot coals beneath it and had Lawrence placed on it, hence Lawrence's association with the gridiron. After the martyr had suffered pain for a long time, the legend concludes, he cheerfully declared: "I'm well done on this side. Turn me over!" From this, St. Lawrence derives his patronage of cooks, chefs, and comedians.
Condition
Great condition. No damage or missing parts. The silk threads and wax seal are intact and in their place. Beautiful patina.
Provenance
Belgium private collection
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