Mark and Marcellian (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: ''Marcus et Marcellianus'') are

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

s venerated as saints by the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops vi ...

. Their cult is sometimes associated with that of Saints Tranquillinus, Martia, Nicostratus, Zoe, Castulus and Tiburtius, though not in the official

liturgical book A liturgical book, or service book, is a book published by the authority of a church body that contains the text and directions for the liturgy of its official religious services. Christianity Roman Rite In the Roman Rite of the Catholic C ...

s of the Church, which mention only Mark and Marcellianus (in first place) among the saints for 18 June. Their mention in the

General Roman Calendar The General Roman Calendar is the liturgical calendar that indicates the dates of celebrations of saints and mysteries of the Lord (Jesus Christ) in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, wherever this liturgical rite is in use. These cele ...

on that date from before the time of the Tridentine Calendar was removed in the 1969 revision, because nothing is known about them except their names, the fact of their martyrdom, and that they were buried on 18 June in the cemetery of

Santa Balbina Santa Balbina is a Roman Catholic basilica church in located in the Aventine rione, adjacent to the Baths of Caracalla in Rome. History A church at the site initially was built in the 4th century over the house of consul Lucius Fabius Cilo. ...

on the

Via Ardeatina The Via Ardeatina (Ardeatine Way) was an ancient road of Rome leading to the town of Ardea, after which it is named. Ardea lay 24 miles (39 kilometers) distant from Rome.L. Quilici and S. Quilici Gigli, R. Talbert, Sean Gillies, Tom Elliott, and ...

.''Calendarium Romanum'' Libreria Editrice Vaticana (1969), p. 127. Their legend states that they were martyred at

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

under the Emperor Diocletian towards the end of the third century, most likely in the year 286. They are mentioned in most of the ancient

martyrologies A martyrology is a catalogue or list of martyrs and other saints and beati arranged in the calendar order of their anniversaries or feasts. Local martyrologies record exclusively the custom of a particular Church. Local lists were enriched by na ...

, including the

Roman Martyrology The ''Roman Martyrology'' ( la, Martyrologium Romanum) is the official martyrology of the Catholic Church. Its use is obligatory in matters regarding the Roman Rite liturgy, but dioceses, countries and religious institutes may add duly approved ...

, and their martyrdom is described in the ''Acts of St Sebastian'', which, though ancient, is largely legendary.

Legend

According to tradition, Mark and Marcellian were

twin Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...

brothers from a distinguished family. They lived in Rome and became

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

s in the early Church. When they refused to sacrifice to the Roman gods, they were arrested. Their parents, Tranquillinus and Martia, visited them in prison, urging them to renounce their being Christians.Clugnet, Léon. "Sts. Mark and Marcellian." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 30 Dec. 2014
/ref> However, Sebastian convinced them not to abandon their faith. Sebastian converted Tranquillinus and Martia, as well as Tiburtius, the son of Agrestius Chromatius, allegedly

prefect of Rome The ''praefectus urbanus'', also called ''praefectus urbi'' or urban prefect in English, was prefect of the city of Rome, and later also of Constantinople. The office originated under the Roman kings, continued during the Republic and Empire, an ...

.Both Chromatius and Fabianus are not inserted in the historical list of prefects of Rome. Nicostratus, another official, and his wife Zoe, were also converted. According to the legend, Zoe had been a mute for six years. However, she made known to Sebastian her desire to convert to the Church. As soon as she had, her speech returned to her. Nicostratus then brought the rest of the prisoners; these were sixteen people who were also converted by Sebastian.Ebenezer Cobham Brewer, ''A Dictionary of Miracles: Imitative, Realistic, and Dogmatic'' Chatto and Windus (1901), 11. Chromatius and Tiburtius became converts, and Chromatius set free all his prisoners, resigned his position, and retired to

Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...

. Mark and Marcellian were concealed by

Castulus Saint Castulus (died 286) is venerated as a martyr. According to tradition, he was the chamberlain (or officer, valet) of Emperor Diocletian and the husband of Saint Irene of Rome. Biography A convert to the Christian religion, he sheltered C ...

, a Christian officer, but they were betrayed by an

apostate Apostasy (; grc-gre, ἀποστασία , 'a defection or revolt') is the formal religious disaffiliation, disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of emb ...

, Torquatus. The twins were again taken into custody. Chromatius's alleged successor Fabianus condemned them to be bound head downwards to two pillars with their feet nailed to them. Mark and Marcellian hung there for a full day until they were pierced with

lance A lance is a spear designed to be used by a mounted warrior or cavalry soldier (lancer). In ancient and medieval warfare, it evolved into the leading weapon in cavalry charges, and was unsuited for throwing or for repeated thrusting, unlike s ...

s. The twins were buried in the

, near the

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

of Domitilla. Meanwhile, Zoe was hung to the branch of a tree and a fire was kindled underneath her feet, and she was killed. Nicostratus and five others were drowned in the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest List of rivers of Italy, river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where ...

. Tiburtius was thrown into a ditch and buried alive.

Veneration

The bodies of Marcus and Marcellianus were moved, probably during the ninth century, to the Church of

Santi Cosma e Damiano The basilica of Santi Cosma e Damiano is a titular church in Rome, Italy. The lower portion of the building is accessible through the Roman Forum and incorporates original Roman buildings, but the entrance to the upper level is outside the Foru ...

. They were discovered there in 1583 during the reign of

Pope Gregory XIII Pope Gregory XIII ( la, Gregorius XIII; it, Gregorio XIII; 7 January 1502 – 10 April 1585), born Ugo Boncompagni, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 May 1572 to his death in April 1585. He is best known for ...

. The bodies remain there in a

tomb A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...

, near an ancient painting of the two martyrs with a third person, who appears to be the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

. In 1902, their

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's Forum (Roman), forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building ...

in the catacombs of

Saint Balbina Balbina of Rome ( la, bahl-BEE-nə), sometimes called Saint Balbina and Balbina the Virgin is venerated as a virgin martyr and saint of the Catholic Church. Legend The story of Balbina is introduced in the legendary Acts of Sts. Alexander and ...

was rediscovered.

Notes

{{catholic, title=Sts. Mark and Marcellian

External links

St. Mark & MarcellianSaint of the Day, June 18
at ''SaintPatrickDC.org'' Italian twins 286 deaths 3rd-century Christian martyrs Italian saints Year of birth unknown Saints duos Christians martyred during the reign of Diocletian