The vernicle
The Veil of Veronica; vera icon
- Known today as
- The cloth with which Veronica was said to have wiped Christ’s face on the way to Calvary, leaving his image; and the copies and badges made of it.
- Kind
- Sacramental, in 2 older authorities
- Earliest authority here
- Chaucer
Revised October 1, 2026: An authority added from a text read in full. Version 1, first published September 28, 2026.
The vernicle: what was it used for?
Pilgrims to Rome, where the relic was shown at St. Peter’s, wore its image as a badge; prayers before it carried rich indulgences.
The vernicle: what does modern science say?
A veil is still kept at St. Peter’s and shown on Passion Sunday.
What Medicine Makes of It
- The Marks on the BodyStigmata, the witch’s mark, and what the mind does to the skin.
The vernicle: what lore surrounds it?
The name was read as vera icon, “true image.” Chaucer’s Pardoner, back from Rome, “had a vernicle sewn upon his cap.”
The vernicle: what did the older authorities say?
- Chaucer
- The Pardoner wears a vernicle sewn on his cap as the badge of his journey to Rome.
- The Catholic Encyclopedia
- The Catholic Encyclopedia derives Veronica from the image itself: “to distinguish at Rome the oldest and best known of these images it was called vera icon (true image), which ordinary language soon made veronica … By degrees, popular imagination mistook this word for the name of a person and attached thereto several legends which vary according to the country.” In Italy she cures Tiberius “by making him touch the sacred image”; in France she marries Zacheus and goes to Rocamadour; near Bordeaux she lands at Soulac; “in many places she is identified with the Haemorrhissa who was cured in the Gospel.” St. Charles Borromeo “excluded the Office of St. Veronica from the Milan Missal.”
Sources
- [21] Herbermann, C. G., et al. (eds.) (1907–1912). The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Online at newadvent.org. Articles: Agnus Dei (H. Thurston); Amulet (M. Hassett); Ash Wednesday (H. Thurston); Bells (H. Thurston); Holy Oils (H. Leclercq); Paschal Candle (H. Thurston); Scapular (J. Hilgers). Read in part · the text read
- Chaucer, G. The Canterbury Tales, General Prologue. Book, seen in reviews
- The Catholic Encyclopedia (New York, 1907–1914), “Veronica, Saint.” newadvent.org/cathen/15362a.htm Standard reference work
Verification
- Checked
- October 1, 2026
- Passes
- Every dated or regulatory claim checked by category across the database
- Each quotation from the older authorities checked word for word against the text, read in full
- Sources
- 3 cited: 1 read in part, 1 standard reference work, 1 book, seen in reviews.
- Corrections
- None were needed.
What was checked, how, and what was found is set out on the Verification page. A checked source is one whose record was found; it does not make the entry medical advice.
Cite This Entry
Version 1 · first published September 28, 2026 · last revised October 1, 2026
- Chicago
“The vernicle.” In Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1. The Thinking Press, 2026–. Last modified October 1, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/vernicle.
- MLA
“The vernicle.” Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema, version 1, The Thinking Press, 1 Oct. 2026, thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/vernicle. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.
- APA
The vernicle. (2026, October 1). In B. C. P. Statema (Ed.), Materia medica (Version 1). The Thinking Press. Retrieved October 8, 2026, from https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/vernicle
Club members keep entries on a shelf with private notes, print the plates as cards, and receive an entry by email each week. Create a free account before January 1, 2027 and all of it is yours for good. About the Club
See Also
Also in The Catholic Encyclopedia
Wax ex-votos in The Catholic Encyclopedia · The thurible in The Catholic Encyclopedia · Witch ball in The Catholic Encyclopedia · Tetragrammaton in The Catholic Encyclopedia · everything The Catholic Encyclopedia names →
Drawing on the same sources: Chaucer
Nearby in the alphabet
Vine ash (Ash of burnt vine wood) · Verdigris (the green rust of copper) · Vinegar (Soured wine) · Verbena (Verbena officinalis) · Vinegar of the four thieves (Vinegar steeped with herbs and garlic) · Valerian (Valeriana officinalis) · Violet, lettuce, sow-thistle (garden lettuce (Lactuca sativa), sow-thistle (Sonchus oleraceus)) · Unicorn’s horn (Monodon monoceros)
Historical description, not medical advice.