Gemellus of Ancyra
Saint Gemellus | |
|---|---|
 Martyrdom of St. Gemellus. From the Menologion of Basil II. | |
| Martyr | |
| Died | 362 AD Ancyra or Edessa |
| Feast | December 10 |
Saint Gemellus of Ancyra (Greek: Γέμελλος Άγκυρας) is venerated as a Christian martyr and saint. According to tradition, he was martyred by crucifixion at Ancyra (present-day Ankara), in Asia Minor, during the reign of Julian the Apostate.[1]
He was a native of Paphlagonia.[2]
He is said to be the last Christian martyr who was killed by crucifixion.[1] Hearing that the Emperor Julian was at Ancyra, Gemellus had traveled there to criticize the emperor for his apostasy,[2] and was tortured and killed at Ancyra[1] (or, according to one source, at Edessa[2]).
A church dedicated to Saint Gemellus was located at Sykeon, a village on the Siberis River in Asia Minor.[3]
References
- ^ a b c Michael Walsh, A New Dictionary of Saints: East and West (Liturgical Press, 2007), 222.
- ^ a b c Sir William Smith, A dictionary of christian biography, literature, sects and doctrines: being a continuation of "The dictionary of the Bible", Volume 1 (Little, Brown & Co., 1880), 623.
- ^ Sir William Mitchell Ramsay, The historical geography of Asia Minor (John Murray, 1890), 244.
