The façade of the Cathedral where the Holy Chalice from the Last Supper is preserved. (http://www.catedraldevalencia.es)

Three hundred fifty one kilometers from the capital of Spain lies the quaint medieval city of Valencia, the third greatest city of Spain. It was in this charming city that this writer together with a group of Filipino scholars decided to spend Holy Week in order to observe the local customs and traditions and the manner in which the Valencianos celebrate the “Semana Santa.”

The visitors emerging from Valencia’s central station will immediately notice that the city has the strange medieval atmosphere that makes the towns in “Castilla Vieja” unique.  The Spaniards’ passionate love of life, their strong religious fervor, their devotion to religious rites, their sense of the tragic and the mystical, are all closely bound up with the living past, and it is in this that constitutes the unique charm and fascination of Spain.

Even the scenery—be it in Andalucia, Sevilla, Avila, or Valencia—is timeless and eternal. The romantic old castles and towers, mighty strongholds used by El Cid Campeador in defending Valencia from the Moors, are still there, reminders of a gallant epoch. 

The impressive Roman Aqueducts and the “Teatro Romano” in Sagunto stand today as monuments to Roman grandeur. Although the majesty and pomp that once made the city one of Spain’s greatest centers have become obliterated by time, traces remain in its decaying temples, churches, old palaces, cobblestoned alleys, romantic patios and courtyards exuding fantasy and history.

The part of the city which, undoubtedly, attracts tourists is the magnificent cathedral—a harmonious ensemble of Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque elements.  Every day crowds of visitors trek the narrow and labyrinthine passage leading to this imposing edifice. However, only a few people are aware that inside the cathedral, the original chalice used by Jesus Christ during the Last Supper, has been preserved through the centuries. In the main chapel, a precious reliquary, wrought in gold and precious stones, contains the chalice which tradition identifies with Palestine, in the lifetime of the Savior.  For us Filipinos celebrating Holy Week in Valencia, the discovery of Christ’s chalice proved an exhilarating experience.

“How this Holy Chalice was brought to Spain from Rome is a long story,” the curator told us. “It would be even bold to suspect,” the curator explained, “that such a precious relic could have been lost, without charging with inexplicable carelessness the pater familias, owner of the Holy Chalice, whose house was the site of the Last Supper; as well as the Apostles who kept other relics from Our Lord, hardly less valuable, such as the table of the Consecration, the Cross of the Redemption, the Holy Shroud, the sepulcher and the crown of thorns, etc.”

Furthermore, the curator explained that “Suiri, bishop of Cordoba, along with other historians, affirm that the Holy Chalice was brought to Rome by St.Peter upon the death of the Virgin Mary. The Popes used the chalice during church ceremonies until St. Sixtus II ascended the Papal throne.

At that time, to avoid it being profaned or destroyed during the persecution of Christians by Emperor Valerian, St. Lorenzo, two days before his martyrdom in 258, sent it with a letter to Huesca (Spain), his native town. There it was venerated until 713, when the bishops and Christians of that diocese, fleeing the Mussulman invasion, took refuge at San Juan de la Peña monastery, bringing the relic with them.”

“Then King Martin the Kind offered the Monastery of San Juan de la Peña a golden chalice, in exchange for the holy relic. The deed of the barter is found in the Metropolitan Archives.”

“The chalice was delivered on September 26, 1399, to the Palace of Aljaferia, by Berenguer Sarta, royal secretary and public solicitor, who was personally received by the king. Alfonso V the Magnanimous brought it to Valencia, probably in 1424, with many other relics venerated in the capital. It was entrusted to the cathedral on March 18, 1437, according to the notarial document of Jaime Monforte.”

“On July 21, 1936, three hours before the Communists assaulted the town (and subsequently burned the Metropolitan Cathedral), the Holy Chalice was spirited away and sent to Valencia. On June 19, 1937, it was transferred to safeguard it further, to Carlet, where it remained until April 1, 1939, when the Recovery Committee of National Artistic Treasures handed it over to the city.”

It was my good fortune to have had a close look at the Holy Chalice. It is 17 cm. high; the bowl is 9 cm. in diameter, and the base is ellipsoid, 14 cm. by 16. cm.  It is made of agate, or rather, oriental carnelian. Its Corinthian design, as well as the material out of which it is made, identifies it with Palestine, in the lifetime of the savior; the pearls (there are 28 in all, each the size of a pea), rubies, and emeralds which decorate it were added later.

(The author is a retired associate professor of the College of Commerce & Business Administration of the University of Santo Tomas. He was awarded by the Spanish government a study travel-grant in 1962-63 to take up post graduate studies in Madrid; and again in April of 1998 by the Agencia Española de Cooperacion Internacional (AECI) for another special course for Spanish professors at the Universidad Internacional Menendez Pelayo in Santander, Spain.)