Feast day: January 17
When did St. Anthony the Great live: in the third and fourth century
Biography of St. Anthony the Great:
St. Anthony the Great was born in Egypt as the son of wealthy Christian farmers and is also known as Anthony of Egypt. His parents died when he was about 20 years old. After having heard a bible verse at church, he decided to give everything to the poor, sent his younger sister to the nuns and began his life as a hermit in the wilderness. First he lived in a hut close to his town, then moved to a grave-chamber and finally established himself in the desert on the mountain Kolzim, close to the Gulf of Suez. He had many visions and was tempted several times by the devil. It is said that many who visited him were healed.
Patronage: basket makers, skin diseases, gravediggers, brush makers, pigs, butchers and against fire, black death and headaches
Statues and woodcarvings from Val Gardena representing St. Anthony the Great- portrayal, imagery and emblem: Saint Anthony is shown as a hermit wearing a simple gown and holding a cross. There is a pig and a small fire at his feet.