Vatican reliquary theca with relics of St. Lawrence of Rome, Deacon & Martyr

Round glass-fronted white-metal reliquary theca housing the first-class ex ossibus (of the bone) relic of Saint Lawrence of Rome. The relic is affixed to a red silk ground and identified in Latin on a typeset cedula label as S.Laurentii Lev. (Saint Lawrence, Deacon). On the back, under the protective cap, the theca is secured with a seal of red Spanish wax bearing an imprint of a coat of arms of Monsignor Ugo Poletti, the Vicar General of Rome (1973-1997).

Saint Lawrence of Rome († 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred during the persecution by Emperor Valerian in 258. St Lawrence is one of the most widely venerated saints of the Roman Catholic Church.He is a holy patron of Rome, Rotterdam (Netherlands), Huesca (Spain), San Lawrenz, Gozo and Birgu (Malta), Barangay San Lorenzo San Pablo (Philippines), Canada, Sri Lanka, comedians, librarians, students, miners, tanners, chefs, roasters, poor, and firefighters. His Feast day is celebrated on August 10.