Sante Teuteria e Tosca
Teuteria and Tosca: the hermit saints
The Greek-cross plan sacellum (or small chapel) of SS. Teuteria e Tosca was probably erected in the 5th century along the Via Postumia. It would thus be the most ancient church in the Veneto region, although many uncertainties remain regarding its dating.
In this church lived two young hermit women, Teuteria and Tosca. The veneration of these two saints, whose story has been handed down in the form of legend and not without contradictions, dates back to the 3rd century AD.
In the 8th century, Bishop Annone placed the bodies of the two saints in a single urn and rededicated the small church. The chapel houses the tombs of Francesco Bevilacqua, a Veronese nobleman and his family. Under the church floor, restoration works have revealed some mosaics and three layers of Roman floor, coins and human bones. Originally, therefore, this area could have been a burial site, situated just outside the city boundaries.
Saint Giovanni Calabria was baptised in this church, and, according to tradition, but not supported by any historical records, also Matilde di Canossa.
Interesting facts
Teuteria was born to a noble Anglo-Saxon family; she converted to Christianity, but, harassed by a pagan nobleman, she fled to Italy, finding shelter in the chapel where the hermit Tosca was already living. Legend has it that a providential spider wove a web so thick that it concealed the entrance to the chapel, and the hired assassins who arrived in Verona to bring Teuteria back home could not find her.
General information
The church of Sante Teuteria e Tosca is part of the itinerary called “Rebirth from Earth. Verona, crossroads of civilizations, history and culture”. Admission is free thanks to the Verona Minor Hierusalem volunteers.
Opening times
Saturday: 10 am – 5.30 pm
Mass Schedule
Weekdays: 8:15 am
Address: Piazzetta Santi Apostoli – 37121 Verona
For further information, please email segreteria@veronaminorhierusalem.it
A little preview…
