Saint Mark's relics

Coptic theologian Abu al-Barakat Ibn Kabar wrote that "his martyrdom was at the end of Baramuda, Nisan 27, in the reign of Tiberius, and it is said that [his body] was still buried in the eastern church on the shore of Alexandria up to the time when it was taken by craft by some Franks (al-Farang), those of Venice, where it is now.

[3] Saint Mark's relics are recorded in Venice as early as the ninth century in both the will of Doge Giustiniano Participazio (in office 827–829) and the travelogue of a Frankish monk on return from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

The relics, placed into a basket and covered in pork, are then successfully smuggled past the Muslim customs officials and embarked on the Venetians' ship, which is preserved from shipwreck during the voyage by Saint Mark who appears and warns the sailors of the imminent danger.

Traceable to Martino da Canal's thirteenth century Cronique des Veniciens, the legend in its definitive form narrates that Saint Mark, after his mission to northern Italy and the evangelization of Aquileia, returns to Rome.

Passing through the Venetian Lagoon, he beaches his boat for the night, and he has a vision on the very site of the future city of Venice in which an angel appears, greeting him "Peace to you Mark, my Evangelist" ("Pax tibi Marce evangelista meus").

A prophecy follows announcing that his body will one day find rest in Venice ("Hic requiescet corpus tuum") and that it will be venerated by a virtuous and pious people who will build a glorious and eternal city.

Although it is found no earlier than Martino da Canal's thirteenth-century Cronique des Veniciens, it may derive from the actual public exposition of Saint Mark's relics prior to their entombment in the new crypt.

[14][15][note 2] As narrated, the body of Saint Mark is hidden to prevent theft during work on the church, and after years all knowledge of its hiding place, known only to the Doge and a few trusted officials, is lost.