Veil of Veronica
According to extra-biblical sources Veronica was a woman from Jerusalem who encountered Jesus on the way to Calvary. She is said to have wiped the sweat off his face with her veil, which left his image imprinted on the cloth. This event is commemorated by one of the Stations of the Cross.
According to legend Veronica later traveled to Rome to present the cloth to the Roman Emperor Tiberius. The story of Veronica and her veil does not occur in the Bible, though the apocryphal "Acts of Pilate" mentions a woman who was cured by touching the hem of Jesus' cloak. The name "Veronica" is a colloquial portmanteau of the Latin word Vera, meaning truth, and Greek Icon meaning "image;" the Veil of Veronica was therefore largely regarded in medieval times as "the true image," and the truthful representation of Jesus, preceding the Shroud of Turin.
The white, diaphanous cloth that was venerated as Veil of Veronica during the middle ages reportedly measured about 6.5 inches by 9.5 inches and displayed the features of a bearded man with long hair and open eyes. Its provenance prior to the 12th century is uncertain, but from 1297, by the order of Pope Boniface VIII, the image was brought to Saint Peter's, and until 1608 it was kept in the Vatican Basilica and is mentioned in Canto XXXI of Dante's "Paradise." On the occasion of the first Jubilee in 1300, the Veil of Veronica was publicly displayed and became one of the "Mirabilia Urbis"' ("wonders of the City") for the pilgrims who visited Rome.
When the part of the Basilica housing the relic was remodeled, the veil disappeared. In 1616, Pope Paul V prohibited the manufacture of copies of Veronica's veil unless made by a canon of Saint Peter's Basilica. Urban VIII (Pope from 1623 to 1644) not only prohibited reproductions of Veronica's veil from being made, but also ordered the destruction of all existing copies.
See also
Categories: Alleged relics of Jesus