Workshop of Piero della Francesca Saint Apollonia, before 1470
Samuel H. Kress Collection
National Gallery of Art
Washington, DC
Apollonia was born in Egypt in the 3rd
century, and died in the year 249. She was an elderly deaconess, living in Alexandria, who lived in a refuge for
Christians. She was martyred for not
renouncing her faith during the reign of Emperor Philip. The account
of the life of St. Apollonia was written by St. Dionysius to Fabian,
Bishop of Antioch. One night, angry pagans began a riot and violently attacked
believers of the faith. Apollonia had
all her teeth knocked out after being hit in the face by a Christian
persecutor. After she was threatened with fire unless she renounced
her faith, Apollonia said a prayer and jumped into the flames voluntarily—which St. Augustine adamantly defended as an act of heroic faith and
not suicide, which would be unsaintly.
She is considered the patron of dental diseases and is often invoked by
those with toothaches. Ancient art depicts her with a golden tooth
at the end of her necklace. Also in art, she is seen with a pincers
holding a tooth. Parts of her jaw and many of her teeth are
presently housed in churches across Europe. Her feast day is February 9th.
web site content, design, maintenance, and funding by Steven T Bunn, DDS no commercial sponsorship or advertising
Disclaimer: The materials on my web site are not intended as a substitute for professional dental / medical advice, and accordingly you should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease without consulting with a qualified healthcare provider. I may change or update information contained on this web site without notice to represent recent developments in health care.
It is important to understand the risks of communicating with you electronically since information will be transmitted over the public Internet, such as a third-party intercepting a message, or the message not getting through. Responses are intended to be timely; however, Dr. Steve Bunn is not liable for the lack of response or delayed responses.
Topics appropriate for email vs. a face-to-face visit include those subjects which are not time sensitive or emergency situations. If you are faced with an emergency, make an appointment with your appropriate healthcare provider or go directly to the emergency room instead of asking for advice via email.
