relics

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Archaeological Dig May 'Change the History' of Brazil

Scientists find relics that push back the time of first inhabitants by about 1.4K years

(Newser) - Archaeologists weren't too surprised when they began unearthing relics from a dig in northeastern Brazil. They were stunned, however, to keep finding relics the deeper they dug in the coastal city of Sao Luis, reports AFP . In all, they've unearthed four layers representing different eras of human habitation,...

Art World's 'Indiana Jones' Recovers Relic in Surprising Way

Anonymous person gave to Arthur Brand stolen vials said to hold blood of Christ

(Newser) - Thieves were inconspicuously locked inside a French church on the evening of June 1. According to police, they burst out the next morning with one of the most cherished Christian relics: two lead vials containing pieces of linen said to be covered in the blood of Jesus Christ—collected in...

Patron Saint of Epidemics Has a Name That Will Throw You

Germany's Aachen Cathedral readies for showcase on—wait for it—St. Corona

(Newser) - Whether it's true irony or Alanis Morissette-style irony (i.e., something closer to coincidence) may be debatable, but what can't be refuted is that a German cathedral is about to reintroduce to the world an oddly named saint for these times. As the coronavirus sweeps the globe, Reuters...

A Martyr's Bone Was Plucked From the Sea, Then the Trash

Bone fragment said to be that of St. Clement handed over to Westminster Cathedral

(Newser) - St. Clement was said to have been put to death by being tied to a boat anchor and drowned. Just shy of 2,000 years later, what's believed to be a piece of one of his bones has been presented to Westminster Cathedral. The path from there to here...

Thief Steals What's Left of Saint's Brain

Case containing the relic of John Bosco was stolen Friday in Italy

(Newser) - It would take someone with "profound moral misery" to do what was done on Friday, says the archbishop of Turin: A person posing as a pilgrim entered a basilica east of that city and stole a glass case that contained fragments of St. John Bosco's brain. He's...

Boy Finds 3K-Year-Old Sword in River
 Boy Finds 
 3K-Year-Old 
 Sword in River 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Boy Finds 3K-Year-Old Sword in River

The bronze relic could be from China's Shang or Zhou dynasty, experts say

(Newser) - Yang Junxi is living the dream of every geek with a metal detector—except he didn't even need a metal detector. The 11-year-old boy from China's Jiangsu province was playing next to the Laozhoulin River in early July when he decided to wash his hands. As he dunked...

Pope John Paul II's Blood Stolen

One of only 3 known vials taken from Italy church

(Newser) - A vial of Pope John Paul II's blood has been stolen ... by Satanists? The first part is fact, the second speculation. NBC News reports that the relic was taken on Saturday from the Church of San Pietro della Ienca, which is located in central Italy's Abruzzo region. Reuters...

Remnants of Buddha's Body Stolen

Golden urn was stolen from Cambodian shrine

(Newser) - A golden urn containing what are considered to be remnants of the Buddha's body has been stolen from its shrine near the Cambodian capital, officials today announced. The theft was apparently discovered Tuesday, when a guard found the lock to the shrine's door had been destroyed and the...

Saint's Heart Stolen From Dublin Cathedral

Preserved heart had been on display for 800 years

(Newser) - A thief has ripped the heart of Dublin's patron saint out of one of the city's cathedrals. The preserved heart of St. Laurence O'Toole, which had been on display in Christ Church Cathedral for 800 years, was stolen over the weekend, reports AP . The relic was kept...

Shroud of Turin Real, Not Forgery, Italian Study Concludes
 Shroud of Turin Can't Be Fake 
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Shroud of Turin Can't Be Fake

Researchers think you'd need lasers to reproduce it

(Newser) - The Shroud of Turin must be real rather than a medieval forgery, an Italian study has concluded, because the markings on it could not possibly have been created with medieval technology. Scientists tried to recreate the sepia image of a crucified man that graces the shroud, and found its physical...

Church Recovers Its Chunk of St. Anthony

Woman busted after 800-year-old relic recovered

(Newser) - A Catholic church in Long Beach has been reunited with its piece of the patron saint of missing things. The 780-year-old relic of St. Anthony of Padua, a sliver of bone encased in a gold and silver reliquary, was stolen earlier this week . Police found the relic displayed in the...

Did Vermont Man Have Piece of Christ's Cross?

Earl Frost charged with possessing a religious artifact

(Newser) - A Vermont man charged with possessing a stolen religious artifact dating back to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ remained held on $10,000 bail yesterday after pleading not guilty. "The Relic of the True Cross"—which Christians believe was actually part of the cross upon which Christ was...

800-Year-Old Relic Stolen From California Church

Relic of St. Anthony, patron saint of missing objects, is missing

(Newser) - Calling Saint Anthony of Padua: A relic of the patron saint of missing objects and lost causes has gone missing from a Catholic church in California. The relic was stolen from a cabinet in the church in Long Beach, where it had been on display to mark the 780th anniversary...

Filmmaker Claims to Have Jesus Crucifixion Nails

Archeologists are skeptical of filmmaker's claims

(Newser) - Filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici is convinced he’s found the actual nails used to nail Jesus to the cross—even if no one else is. In a new documentary entitled The Nails of the Cross, Jacobovici will lay out what he calls “the best archaeological argument ever made” that the...

Krakow Church's New Relic: Blood of John Paul II

Vial will be installed in altar following late pope's beatification

(Newser) - A vial holding the blood of Pope John Paul II will be installed in a Polish church as a relic, the AP reports. The vial will form part of the altar at a Krakow church due to open in May, the month of the late Polish pope's beatification. The city’...

Afghan Archeologists Uncover Buddhist Site

Appeal for foreign money to protect ancient relics

(Newser) - As Western and Afghan forces battle Taliban Islamists for control of Afghanistan, archaeologists have discovered major relics of the country's Buddhist past in an area south of Kabul. The artifacts date back at least to the 5th century AD, and possibly to the era before Christ. "There is a...

Museum Shows Off Galileo's Fingers

Body parts of scientist their top exhibit

(Newser) - Florence’s Galileo Museum will reopen this week with a prized, albeit mildly grisly, new exhibit: two fingers, a thumb, a tooth, and a vertebrae that supposedly belonged to the legendary scientist. According to the museum’s director, the body parts were taken off Galileo Galilei’s corpse by masons...

Thieves Grab Stolen Antiquities Exhibit

Recovered black-market items back on the black market

(Newser) - A museum exhibit featuring "Antiquities Theft in Israel" has become the victim of antiquities theft in Israel. Thieves broke into the museum in Ashdod, southern Israel, and stole the display of items recovered from the black market, the Telegraph reports. The antiquities theft squad that recovered the items, including...

Writing's on the Wall for the Chalkboard

Some still attached, but whiteboards now rule classrooms

(Newser) - If today’s kids don’t know what a record is, tomorrow’s won’t likely know what a chalkboard is, at least in the classroom. Whiteboards, without the lung- and computer-choking dust (to say nothing of their immunity to scratching nails) are taking over, with one supplier of both...

China Slams Auction of Looted Relics

Christie's denies request to halt sale of Beijing palace booty

(Newser) - A Christie's auction of two relics looted from Beijing's Summer Palace 150 years ago has infuriated China, the BBC reports. A statement from the country's cultural agency denounced the "illegal" sale and warned of unspecified consequences. The bronze rat and rabbit, seized by invading French and British troops, sold...

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