In 1251 a sculptor completing a magnificent Romanesque wooden sculpture group of the Descent from the Cross for the Catalan monastery of San Juan de las Abadesas placed a consecrated host within a small cavity in the forehead of the Christ figure. The location was forgotten. In 1428, when the sculpture was being cleaned, the host was rediscovered — perfectly preserved, intact, undecayed after 177 years. The relic, called the Santíssim Misteri ('Most Holy Mystery'), is still venerated within the Christ figure in the monastery church to this day.
discovered 1428 (the host placed by tradition in 1251) · Monastery of San Juan de las Abadesas, Catalonia, Spain
Status: approved holy see