Who Steals Mummified Hands?

June 3, 2007

Our Italian teacher's father, Luigi, has become an expert on the churches of Sansepolcro, and he has even written a book about them. We were privileged enough to receive a private tour of two of the town's most beautiful churches, and he showed us things that most people never even know exist.

We met him in front of the Santa Maria delle Grazie, founded in 1518 by the Friends of Death. The group was dedicated to burying those too poor to receive Christian burials, and many of the symbols in the church involve death in some manner. The company's main symbol is a crowned skull and crossbones with "M" on one side and "G" on the other for Maria delle Grazie, or Maria of Grace. The church is small, with tiny pews and just a couple of paintings on the walls. The altar-piece and ceiling make it exceptional, however. The altarpiece is a tri-fold diptych painting, with a rare depiction of a pregnant St. Mary on the inside and saints on the outside. It used to be opened only in May, the time of St. Mary. The ceiling is covered in hand-done carvings of pomegrenates, Death, Christ, and Mary, and it is made of poplar. GORGEOUS!

The second church we entered was right across the street from the delle Grazie, and it is called the Chiesa di San Francesco. Built in the thirteenth century, only the outside remains original; the inside was redone during the eighteenth century. It was one of the most important churches in Sansepolcro because of its altar, which was created in Gothic style in honor of Beato Ranieri, a saint of the church--sixty miracles are credited to him, I think. His mummified body still rests in a crypt beneath the altar, and Luigi took us under and opened the coffin!!!! I am a huge fan of Ancient Egypt and all things mummified, and it was amazing to see him so close up. However, the pull of relics is still strong today, and someone stole Beato's hand one time during a period of prayer. Um, who steals mummified hands? I mean, honestly!