An exceptional setting for venerating the body of the Saint

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The Saint’s body, kept in the glass urn, will be exposed to the veneration of the faithful in the Treasury Chapel that usually houses the relics of the Tongue and the Chin.

The Chapel in which the body of St Anthony will be exposed to the veneration of the faithful (above the reliquary that preserves the Saint’s habit) was the last building to be built in the basilica compound, a part added (and it is obvious to the eye) to a building that had been already architecturally well-defined for approximately three centuries. Its construction was a response to the need to gather in one suitable place all the relics and the more or less sacred objects acquired over time by the Basilica as a sign of devotion and recognition to the great Thaumaturge, and of which there are a great number in various areas of the sanctuary.

This need had led to various projects being proposed over time, which all resulted inadequate, like that – approved in 1665 by the administrators of the Venerable Ark – which envisaged turning the Chapter Hall into a sacristy and transforming the sacristy, in use at the time, into a “sanctuary of relics”. Just twenty or so years later friars and the Ark of the Saint decided to really do it, this time indicating the Chapter Hall, duly renovated, as the ideal place to house the relics.

About the planning and design we don’t exactly know how they went. However we do know that in the end it was the Genoese Filippo Parodi who was charged with the realising the work, one of the best pupils of Gian Lorenzo Bellini, the imaginative sculptor and architect whose masterpieces (including the colonnade of the Basilica of St Peter) had astounded Rome. And so in 1690 the Chapter Hall was transformed into a building site. But the works were interrupted immediately. Stability problems and the poor lighting convinced them to seek another solution. The Chapel of the Stigmata of St Francis was taken into consideration. The chapel is situated in the centre of the Basilica’s ambulatory, and has a small apse. The space was small, but the apsidiole could be demolished and the Chapel be extended into the “adjacent place, called Paradise” (the friars’ cemetery).

Parodi got to work to design a new project, which he submitted on 20^th December 1690, complete in every detail. In it the assigned Chapel became the vestibule of new large building that was built outside the Basilica. The project was quickly approved and work began straight away. The work took a long time, from 1691 to 1694, but when completed Padua could boast one of the most splendid realizations of Italian baroque.

Outside the building (circular perimeter with 13 metres diameter and 20 metres height) was in harmony with the architecture of the Basilica, almost its complement. As a covering Parodi had realized a shaft- conical cupola over which he raised, connected by volutes, a lantern with some windows that allowed light to pour into the Chapel. But in 1739 the lantern cupola was demolished, owing to stability problems, and substituted by a semi-spherical one, similar to the other seven that cover the sanctuary. Inside, however, there was an independent frame, inspired by the style of the time, the baroque, with all its spectacular abundance of ornaments, friezes and magnificence, mitigated however by 16^th century influences which gave the construction great elegance and harmony. Initially the Chapel had eight windows, but four of these were closed to make space for the stucco bas reliefs by Pietro Roncaioli from Lugano.

The glory of the Saint


The display that houses the relics is very impressive and gives a great scenic effect. On a raised base, detached from the building, Parodi created a passageway, delimited by a railing that holds six statues, depicting four virtues (Faith, Penitence, Humility and Charity), St Francis contemplating the crucifix and St Bonaventure holding a book.

The passageway goes in front of the backdrop and between the arcades Parodi made three niches for the precious reliquaries, topped by a magnificent “gloria”, composed by a triumphal arch which frames St Anthony transported in ecstasy. All around, according to the taste of the period, hosts of angels, large and small, flying about or playing an instrument or singing.

The Treasure


Relics and objects – over one hundred in all – were all placed in the niches just in 1745, when Parodi’s work, which had been revised and corrected for various reasons could finally be considered terminated. On some of these relics, doubts on their authenticity are legitimate, but a great many of them have undoubted preciousness and historical value and in any case the containers that hold them constitute a true treasure, so much so as to justify the name given to the Chapel – the Treasury Chapel.

The Saint’s tongue, the most precious of all the relics displayed here and of proven authenticity, is contained in a splendid silver gilt reliquary, 81 centimetres high, realized between 1434 and 1436 by a disciple of Ghiberti, Giuliano da Firenze. It is a refined piece of work, all fretwork and decorations, perfectly proportioned and of undoubted elegance.

The Saint’s chin, however, is contained in a reliquary shaped into a bust sparkling with enamels and precious stones. Made in 1349 for Cardinal Guido di Montfort, the reliquary hit the news headlines in 1991, when crooks from the Brenta gang managed to steal it, plunging the faithful from all over the world into despair. Recovery of this precious reliquary was swift and successful.

In full view there are censers in silver gilt; an incense boat shaped into sailing vessel with crew and equipment all meticulously depicted; a pyx decorated with 23 precious cameos; a golden chalice studded with emeralds donated by Maria Amalia of Austria (1733), a pilgrim to Padua, while a beautifully crafted monstrance made towards the end of the 13^th century and donated by Cardinal Girolamo Basso holds the three thorns from Christ’s crown.

There is also, held by silver devices, the glass thrown to the ground, and yet remained intact, by a heretic who had challenged the Saint. You can still admire the Turkish mace, in silver gilt, finely worked and with the top encrusted with deep blue stones, donated by the Polish king John Sobieski, and the reliquary with the right arm of St Anthony, a votive offering for healing (1672) from Victor Amadeus II of Savoy. Among the other “treasures” there is a letter written by St Giuseppe da Copertino dated 1650; a note signed by St Vincenzo de’ Paoli, and a note with the signature of St Alfonso de’ Liguori (1765).

More recently items from the recognition of the tomb of the Saint, which took place in 1981, have been added, including the chasuble that wrapped the Saint’s mortal remains, the two seals from 1263, the scrolls of parchment sewn on the cloths that wrapped the coffin, and the Saint’s habit reassembled in a cabinet. Lastly, a precious and original reliquary, made by the sculptor Carlo Balljana, holds the remains of the Saint’s vocal apparatus, found during the same recognition.