Odour of Sanctity

Overview

• The "odour of sanctity" is the tradition that holiness is, quite literally, fragrant: at the death of a saint, or from their relics afterward, others have reported an inexplicable sweet aroma, often likened to myrrh, roses, or incense.

Summary

The Church has long held that sanctity can make itself known through a sweet, inexplicable fragrance — the same tradition that gives rise to the myrrh-streaming relics and icons of Orthodox practice. The earliest and most-cited instance is the Martyrdom of Polycarp (c. 155): as the aged bishop was burned, the eyewitnesses report that he appeared "not like flesh which is burnt, but as bread that is baked," and that "we perceived such a sweet odour, as if frankincense or some such precious spices had been smoking there."[^1] The same sign recurs throughout the lives of the saints.

Sources

[^1]: The Martyrdom of Polycarp, ch. 15 — the sweet odour "as if frankincense or some such precious spices" at the martyr's burning.