Januarius

Januarius (Latin: Ianuarius; Italian: Gennaro), also known as Januarius I of Benevento, was Bishop of Benevento and is a martyr and saint of the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Churches. While no contemporary sources on his life are preserved, later sources and legends claim that he died during the Great Persecution which ended with Diocletian's retirement in 305.

Januarius is the patron saint of Naples, where the faithful gather three times a year in Naples Cathedral to witness the liquefaction of what is claimed to be a sample of his blood kept in a sealed glass ampoule.

Life

Little is known of the life of Januarius, and what follows is mostly derived from later Christian sources, such as the Acta Bononensia (BHL 4132, not earlier than 6th century) and the Acta Vaticana (BHL 4115, 9th century), and from later-developing folk tradition.

Legend

According to various hagiographies, Januarius was born in Benevento to a rich patrician family that traced its descent to the Caudini tribe of the Samnites. At a young age of 15, he became local priest of his parish in Benevento, which at the time was relatively pagan. When Januarius was 20, he became Bishop of Naples and befriended Juliana of Nicomedia and Saint Sossius whom he met during his priestly studies. During the 1 ¹⁄₂-year-long persecution of Christians by Emperor Diocletian, he hid his fellow Christians and prevented them from being caught. Unfortunately, while visiting Sossius in jail, he too was arrested. He and his colleagues were condemned to be thrown to wild bears in the Flavian Amphitheater at Pozzuoli, but the sentence was changed due to fear of public disturbances, and they were instead beheaded at the Solfatara crater near Pozzuoli. Other legends state either that the wild beasts refused to eat them, or that he was thrown into a furnace but came out unscathed.

Verdeca

Verdeca is a white Italian wine grape variety that is primarily grown in the Colli Piacentini region of Emilia-Romagna in central Italy and Apulia in southern Italy where ampelographers believe that the grape may have originated. In Apulia, it is one of the main grapes in the Denominazione di origine controllata wines of Locorotondo DOC and Martina Franca DOC along with Bianco d'Alessano. In Campania, it is grown on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius where it used as a blending variety with Falanghina, Coda di volpe and Greco in both the white wines and the sweet dessert wine of the region, Lacryma Christi. It is also a minor component used in the some vermouth production.

DOC wines

Verdeca is a minor blending component in several DOCs central and southern Italy but some of the more notable DOCs the grape can be found in include:

San Gennaro (disambiguation)

San Gennaro usually refers to St Januarius, bishop of Naples.

San Gennaro may also refer to: