en
appearance of drops of blood on the Host which he had just
consecrated--an incident which formed the subject of Raphael's
well-known picture in the Vatican, and in connection with which Pope
Urban IV. instituted the festival of Corpus Christi. On the Lucanian
coast, near the little fishing town of Agrapoli, not far from Paestum,
there is shown on the limestone rock the print of a foot which is said
by the inhabitants to have been made by the Apostle Paul, who lingered
here on his way to Rome. In the famous church of Radegonde at
Poitiers, dedicated to the queen of Clothaire I.--who afterwards took
the veil, and was distinguished for her piety--there is shown on a
white marble slab a well-defined footmark, which is called "Le pas de
Dieu," and is said to indicate the spot where the Saviour appeared to
the tutelary saint of the place. Near the altar of the church of St.
Genaro de Poveri in Naples, Mary's foot is shown suspended in a glazed
frame. In the middle of the footprint there is an oval figure with the
old initials of mother, water, matter. The footprint of Mary is very
common in churches in Italy and Spain, where it is highly venerated.

The significance of these footmarks has been the subject of much
controversy. Some have regarded them as symbols of possession--the
word "possession" being supposed to be etymologically derived from the
Latin words _pedis positio_, and meaning literally the position of the
foot. The adage of the ancient jurists was, "Quicquid pes tuus
calcaverit tuum erit." The symbol of a foot was carved on the marble
slab that closed the _loculus_ or tomb, to indicate that it was the
purchased property of the person who reposed in it. This view,
however, has not been generally received with favour by the most
competent authorities. A more plausible theory is that which regards
the sepulchral footmarks in the Catacombs as votive offerings of
gratitude, ordered by Christians to be made in commemoration of the
completion of their earthly pilgrimage. It was a common pagan custom
for persons who had recovered from disease or injury, to hang up as
thankofferings in the shrines of the gods who were supposed to have
healed them, images or representations, moulded in metal, clay, or
wood, of the part that had been affected. In Italy, votive tablets
were dedicated to Iris and Hygiea on which footmarks were engraved;
and Hygiea received on one occasion tributes of this kind which
recorded the gratitude