St. Thomas Visits St. Patrick
St. Thomas Aquinas made his first ever U.S. tour 750 years after his death. His skull, normally located in Toulouse France, visited 16 sites throughout the Dominican Province of St. Joseph (eastern USA) from November 29th to December 18th. The tour is part of the 2-year long jubilee commemorating three major anniversaries: the 700th anniversary of his canonization on July 18, 1323, the 750thanniversary of his death on March 7, 1274, and 800th anniversary of his birth.
Two ACHS graduates act as honor guards bracketing kneeling worshipers at St. Patrick's communion rail viewing the reliquary.
A team of researchers, led by forensic expert Cicero Moraes, used the partial remains of Aquinas' skull to digitally reconstruct his face. Initial reconstructed used photographic and structural data, Since the skull did not have teeth or a jaw, the team had to project these structures based on measurements taken from CT scans of the skulls of living individuals. To ensure accuracy, the team used a method called anatomical deformation, in which the skull and facial structures of a living donor were adjusted to match Aquinas' skull dimensions. Now, after 750 years, modern forensic science has given the world a glimpse of Aquinas’ likely appearance.
Carlo Crivelli's 15th century painting of St. Thomas.The saint died 200 years before the painting was completed.
Front view of Thomas Aquinas' skull
Members of the Dominican Order enter St, Dominics Church in Washington, DC carrying the skull of Thomas Aquinas. If you look closely at the reliquary windows, you can see his skull in side-view.
The photo below shows the reliquary being venerated in St. Patrick Church in Columbus, Ohio during December 2024 by worshipers. 3000 individuals honored the saint over a two-day period.
St. Thomas Aquinas' profile created using imaging data of his skull.
