The two wax bodies of the holy virgin martyr Philomena

Wax reliquaries for catacomb martyrs were first fabricated in late 18th-century Italy by surgeon-artisans whose main occupation was making anatomical models for medical studies. This essay offers a study of the cult of the martyr Philomena, whose skeletal remains were discovered in the Roman catacombs in 1802. In 1805, these were inserted into a lifelike wax facsimile and moved to Mugnano del Cardinale (Campania). After Pauline Jaricot, founder of the Society of the Propagation of the Faith, was cured of a heart condition by Philomena in 1835, she brought to Lyon a relic of the martyr encased in a second wax figure.

A relic also went to Ars-sur-Formans (Ain), where Philomena conducted many miracles. This essay assesses Philomena's attraction for the faithful and explores the cult promoted by the improbable existence of her two dissimilar wax figures. It also asks whether the uncanny parallels between these devotional objects and spectacular displays in wax museums hindered or promoted veneration of Philomena [Publisher's text].

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