Saint Coloman

Coloman was an Irish pilgrim, and in 1012 he was on his way to the Holy Land. When he reached the area around Stockerau, not far from Vienna, he was taken for a Hungarian or Bohemian spy — he didn’t speak the language, he came from far away, and those were years of war on that border. They captured him, beat him and hanged him. Then they left the body hanging for a long time, as was the custom, as a warning. This is where the part that gave rise to his cult begins. The story says the body stayed intact for eighteen months, without decaying and without the birds touching it. Another version adds that the gallows itself put out roots, branches and leaves, and became a tree: that tree is said to be kept to this day at Kreuzenstein Castle, near Vienna. The local people read in these events a sign that they had killed an innocent man, and began to venerate him on their own, building shrines and chapels. Two years later the body was taken to Melk, where a tomb was built for him: Melk would become one of the most famous abbeys in Europe. He is one of the patron saints of Austria, invoked for livestock and for travelers. If your name is Colmano, today is your name day.