Ampullae (Catholic Encyclopedia article)
Maurice Hassett · 1913
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Description
Small vessels found among the fragments in the Roman catacombs, ampullae take several forms, and telling them apart matters for reading early Christian burial. Some are cups from the funeral banquet. Some held the scented oils buried with the dead, as Jews and pagans also buried such oils. A third class, the so-called blood ampullae, holds a dark red sediment once taken for a martyr's blood.
For a time the presence of such a vessel counted as a mark of a martyr's tomb. But Martigny and then Kraus argued against accepting the blood theory without reserve, and the article weighs their case. It closes with a better attested custom. Ampullae of oil from lamps at famous martyrs' shrines, such as Saint Mennas in Egypt, went home with pilgrims, often stamped with the saint's image.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Maurice Hassett |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 1913 |
| COLLECTION | REFERENCE |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 4 KB |
| LICENSE | PUBLIC_DOMAIN |
| RIGHTS | PUBLIC DOMAIN |
| SOURCE | New Advent — Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) |