St. Praxedes

Modern
Basilica of St. Praxedes, Rome

The red object in St. Praxedes' hand is a sponge which she is said to have used to gather the blood of martyrs for preservation in a large vessel or a well. In the church's 9th century mosaics, St. Praxedes' status as martyr is symbolized by a crown rather than a palm branch, and that iconography is followed in this case by means of the crown that hangs over the saint's head.

Read more about images of St. Praxedes amd her sister St. Pudentiana.

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Photographed at the basilica by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.