Dominic, priest – August 8th
St Dominic (d. 1221, Bologna, Italy) (Relics: Bologna, Italy)
First Class Relics
Basilica di San Domenico
(Saint Dominic’s Basilica)
Piazza San Domenico
40124 Bologna, Italy
*The remains of St Dominic rest within this church in an exquisite tomb called the Arca di San Domenico. This tomb is placed in a large side chapel on the right side of the nave. The relic of St Dominic’s skull is enshrined within a reliquary on the backside of the tomb.
Churches of Honor in Rome
Santa Sabina (Saint Sabina)
Piazza Pietro d'Illiria 1
Rome, Italy
*This church is located on the Aventine Hill just south of Circo Massimo.
*In 1219 St Dominic and his friars received permission to move into this church. Three years later, on June 5, 1222, the church was given in perpetuity to the Dominican Order by Pope Honorius III. Today it serves as the Order’s General Curia. The room in which St Dominic lived has been converted into a chapel and can be visited with permission. Also in the garden, visible from the narthex, is an orange tree that is said to have been planted by St Dominic himself.
*The first chapel on the left side of the nave is dedicated to St Dominic. Within this chapel is a polished black stone that the Devil is said to have thrown at St Dominic.
San Sisto Vecchio (Old Saint Sixtus)
Piazzale Numa Pompilio 8
Rome, Italy
*This church is south of the Colosseum.
*Pope Honorius III gave this church to the Dominican order with the issue of a Papal Bull dated December 3, 1218. This was the first Dominican monastery in Rome.
*The Miracle of the Bread attributed to St Dominic occurred within the refectory of this monastery. Upon request this room can be visited.
*The relics of St Sixtus II (d. 258) were moved from the Catacombs of San Callisto to this church. A small stone located within the wall on the left side of the nave marks their location.
Santi Domenico e Sisto (Saint Dominic and Sixtus)
Largo Angelicum 1
Rome, Italy
*This church is connected to the Angelicum University. It is dedicated to St Dominic and to St Sixtus II (d. 258).
Santa Maria sopra Minerva (Our Lady Above Minerva)
Piazza della Minerva 42
Rome, Italy
*This church is near the Pantheon.
*Within the second chapel on the right side of the nave are several frescoes by Gaspare Celio depicting episodes from the life of St Dominic. Also the Blessed Sacrament Chapel within the left transept is dedicated to St Dominic.
*The body of St Catherine of Siena (d. 1380) rests under the main altar.
Basilica di San Clemente (Basilica of Saint Clement)
Via di San Giovanni in Laterano
Rome, Italy
*This church is east of the Colosseum.
*The chapel located in the back right corner of the nave is dedicated to St Dominic. Three paintings within this chapel depict scenes from his life.
*The remains of St Clement I (d. 97) and of St Ignatius of Antioch (d. 107) are beneath the main altar.
*Also a chapel on the right side of the nave is dedicated to Saints Cyril (d. 869) and Methodius (d. 885). The extant remains of St Cyril rest within the altar of this chapel.
Santa Maria del Rosario in Prati
(Our Lady of the Rosary in Prati)
Via Germanico 94
Rome, Italy
*This church is near the Ottaviano metro stop. It is dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary.
*A statue of St Dominic is within the fourth chapel on the right side of the nave.
