seventy-two disciples and present at the Last Supper. In the 13th century compendium of lore, the Golden Legend, the legendary Martial appears with many miracles, casting out fiends and raising the dead and conducting mass baptisms. In the midst of a revival of his cult in the 14th century, 73 miracles were recorded between 1378 and 1388 in the Miracula sancti Martialis anno 1388 patrata. As late as 1854, Mons. Buissas, Bishop of Limoges, petitioned Pope Pius IX to bestow on Martial the honors of a disciple of Christ, but was turned down. The full discovery of Ademar's tissue of forged documents, including an imaginary church council and a papal letter, was not revealed until the 1920s, and continued for several generations to be resisted in conservative Catholic circles. Saint Martial also became associated with Saint Valerie of Limoges, a legendary martyr of the 3rd or 4th centuries, who is said to have carried her head to him after decapitation. Veneration His help was invoked during an epidemic of widespread ergot poisoning in Limoges in 994. Martial was particularly honored in Bordeaux, where his pastoral staff was kept in the Basilica Saint-Seurin and used in processions to invoke his aid during outbreaks of pestilence. He is also venerated in Italy, where Colle di Val d'Elsa Cathedral is dedicated to him. The Cloisters has a 12th-century stained-glass window of "Saint Martial Founding the Cathedral of Saint-Pierre". St. Martial's chapel at the Papal palace in Avignon was used for deliberations during conclaves. Saint-Martial Temple, a gothic church in Avignon was completed in 1402. In Brazilian folklore, it is celebrated with bonfires on the day of its liturgical feast (30 June) which closes the Festas Juninas in Maranhão. In São Luís, in 2007, a monument was erected in his honor, given the popularity of his festivities, held in the city since 1928, and which annually gather thousands of people, in the Festejo de São Pedro e São Marçal, with the celebrations of the bumba-meu-boi. Gallery Notes External links 3rd-century deaths 3rd-century bishops in Gaul Bishops of Limoges 3rd-century Christian saints Gallo-Roman saints Year of birth unknown