The Volto Santo or ‘Holy Face’ of Lucca is a famous wooden crucifix that is housed in the cathedral of San Martino in Lucca city. The Volto Santo is housed in a beautifully built Carrara marble chapel which was designed by Matthew Civitali.
Stay in a pretty vacation rental in Lucca and explore all that this spectacular city and its surrounding area has to offer in terms of culture and beauty.
There’s an interesting legend tied to the beautiful craftsmanship of this crucifix, specifically the carved face of Jesus as the name suggests, ‘Volto Santo’.
It’s said that the crucifix was carved by a man called Nicodemus who was mentioned in the Gospel of Joseph after Christ ascended from the dead.
Stay in a pretty vacation rental in Lucca and explore all that this spectacular city and its surrounding area has to offer in terms of culture and beauty.
There’s an interesting legend tied to the beautiful craftsmanship of this crucifix, specifically the carved face of Jesus as the name suggests, ‘Volto Santo’.
It’s said that the crucifix was carved by a man called Nicodemus who was mentioned in the Gospel of Joseph after Christ ascended from the dead.
His wood carving skills were well known so he was tasked with creating a sculpture of Jesus hanging from the cross based on his memory of seeing that terrible sight for himself.
As Nicodemus worked on carving the sculpture, he managed only to carve a basic outline of the face but feared he would not be able to do it justice when attempting to clearly recreate Christ’s face.
He fell asleep still undecided but awoke the next morning to discover something miraculous had happened!
As Nicodemus worked on carving the sculpture, he managed only to carve a basic outline of the face but feared he would not be able to do it justice when attempting to clearly recreate Christ’s face.
He fell asleep still undecided but awoke the next morning to discover something miraculous had happened!
Angels had come in the night and used their powers to beautifully finish Nicodemus’s fine work! On his deathbed, Nicodemus asked Isacaar to hide the crucifix underground to keep it out of the hands of the Jews.
Around this time, Bishop Giovanni of Lucca had a dream urging him to go to the Port of Luni in Lucca as a special sculpture depicting he true face of Jesus would be there.
The Volto Santo finally made its way to Lucca in 742 and has been there ever since. Come and see the beauty of it for yourself within the cathedral on your next vacation to Lucca in Tuscany!
Around this time, Bishop Giovanni of Lucca had a dream urging him to go to the Port of Luni in Lucca as a special sculpture depicting he true face of Jesus would be there.
The Volto Santo finally made its way to Lucca in 742 and has been there ever since. Come and see the beauty of it for yourself within the cathedral on your next vacation to Lucca in Tuscany!
Photo credits
picture 1: Joanbanjo / CC BY-SA 3.0;
picture 3: Jean-Christophe_BENOIST / CC BY 2.5
picture 1: Joanbanjo / CC BY-SA 3.0;
picture 3: Jean-Christophe_BENOIST / CC BY 2.5
