The Tomb of Mystery, miraculous water and sarcophagus...

Arles-sur-Tech is placed under the protection of Saints Abdon and Sennen, two Christian martyrs of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches.
They are celebrated on 30 July.
The relics of these two saints would be at the origin of the mystery of the tomb of Arles-sur-Tech.
The Holy Tomb of Arles-sur-Tech is a sarcophagus dating from the 4th century placed in the abbey, whose particularity is to continuously produce pure water, supposedly miraculous.

This tomb is made of blue marble from Céret, carved and sculpted.
The story begins when Arles-sur-Tech was plagued by plague, natural disasters and ferocious animals.
These animals were probably represented on either side of the archivolt of the portal of the abbey church of Arles.

To ward off these disasters, Abbot Arnulphe decided to leave for Rome to ask the Pope for his help.
Arnulphe explains to the Holy Father the misery of his fellow citizens and presents him with his request.
The Pope heard the plea and allowed him to choose from among the relics kept in Rome.
Father Arnulphe returns to the Catalan country with the remains of Abdon and Sennen in a barrel filled with water.
The water is decanted into the ancient sarcophagus. Normally this water, by evaporation, should disappear, but we see that it is constantly renewed, without any rational explanation being found. According to many believers the water in the sarcophagus has miraculous virtues.
Many scientists, scholars and amateurs have studied the phenomenon.
Each one came up with his own explanation, but none of them became the official truth.

 


Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator

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To go further....

Notice sur les SS. martyrs Abdon et Sennen et sur le sarcophage qui contient quelques-unes: de leurs reliques et une eau miraculeuse, à Arles-sur-Tech

Le présent ouvrage s'inscrit dans une politique de conservation patrimoniale des ouvrages de la littérature Française mise en place avec la BNF.
Histoire du martyre des saints Abdon et Sennen, de leurs reliques, de leur culte et de l'eau miraculeuse du sarcophage

Et voilà pourquoi je vous loue et je vous remercie de m'avoir ramené vers le passé en me contant de nouveau l'Histoire de vos saints, de votre église et de votre abbaye. J'ai pris un très vif plaisir à cette Histoire : j'ai admiré la manière heureuse dont vous l'avez divisée, l'ordonnance que vous avez mise dans le classement des faits qui la composent, le soin que vous avez pris de donner satisfaction aux exigences de la critique moderne sur le fait miraculeux de la Sainte-Tombe, enfin la forme si littéraire que vous avez su donner à votre récit. Je ne doute pas que votre livre ne contribue à raviver dans le coeur des catalans la confiance dans les Saints d'Arles et à ramener auprès de leurs reliques les foules pieuses que d'autres temps ont vues et admirées. C'est pourquoi je bénis de tout coeur ce livre et celui qui l'a écrit. Jules, Ev. de Perpignan.
Sarcophage: Cercueil, Égypte ancienne, Inhumation, Sarcophages paléochrétiens, Sarcophages d'Arles, Sarcophage du triomphe de Bacchus (Lyon)

Also to be seen in the department

La Vallée des Tortues, royaume des tortues dans la vallée heureuse

placeSorède – Pyrénées-orientales 
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Soutine

Chaïm Soutine the Catalan

placeCéret - Pyrénées Orientales  
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La Vallée des Tortues

placeSorède – Pyrénées-orientales 
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