Facundus and Primitivus
Saints Facundus (Spanish: Facundo) and Primitivus (Spanish: Primitivo) are venerated as Christian martyrs.[1] According to tradition, they were Christian natives of León who were tortured and then beheaded on the banks of the River Cea.[1] According to an account of their martyrdom, after the two saints were beheaded, lac et sanguis (“milk and blood”) gushed from their necks.[2]
- St. Primitivus is also the name of one of St. Symphorosa's sons.
Saints Facundus and Primitivus | |
|---|---|
 Facundus and Primitivus Procession statues in Las Quintanillas, Spain | |
| Martyrs | |
| Born | León, Spain |
| Died | 300 AD near present-day Sahagún, Spain |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Feast | 27 November[1] |
Veneration
The town of Sahagún arose around the Benedictine monastery dedicated to the two saints. The name Sahagún putatively derives from an abbreviation and variation on the name San Fagun ("Saint Facundus").[1]
The 12th century work known as The Guide for the Pilgrim to Santiago de Compostela states: Item, visitanda sunt corpora beatorum martirum Facundi scilitet et Primitivi, quorum basilicam Karolus fecit (“Furthermore, the bodies of Facundus and Primitivus must be visited, whose basilica was constructed by Charlemagne.”).[3]
References
- "Saint of the Day, November 27: Facundus and Primitivus". SaintPatrickDC.org. 2009. Retrieved March 18, 2012.
- James F. Burke, History and vision: the figural structure of the "Libro del cavallero Zifar." Volume 28 of Colección Támesis. Serie A, Monografías. (Tamesis Books, 1972), 27.
- Miguel León Portilla, Bernardino de Sahagún, first anthropologist (University of Oklahoma Press, 2002), 31.