Four centuries after her passing in 1582, the exhumed remains of Saint Teresa of Avila continue to captivate both scholars and devoted Catholics. In August, her body was uncovered from a Spanish church, revealing an extraordinary state of preservation that left experts in awe.
Photographs depict the saint’s remains resting in a silver coffin within a marble enclosure, stirring deep emotion among faithful onlookers who witnessed the 440-year-old relic.
Discalced Carmelite nuns, monks, and priests carefully opened her coffin to examine relics of her heart, hand, and arm. They compared the current condition of her body to a photograph taken in 1914, noting striking similarities.
“The uncovered parts, which are the face and foot, are the same as those they were in 1914,” Father Marco Chiesa said.
This rare event marked only the third public veneration ceremony since Saint Teresa’s death. The Diocese of Ávila confirmed that her body remains “completely incorrupt,” just as it was when first examined in 1750.
