Dalmatius of Pavia

Saint Dalmatius of Pavia, known in Italian devotion as San Dalmazzo, is traditionally said to have been born at Forum Germarzorum, today San Damiano Macra, in the valleys of northern Italy. Though the details of his life are veiled by time, early Christian memory treasured him as a holy churchman and evangelizer, especially in Pedona, now Borgo San Dalmazzo, where his preaching helped kindle faith among the people. A fuller account of his life was written centuries later, likely by a Lombard monk drawing on local oral tradition. Some ancient traditions, especially beyond Italy, came to honor him as a martyr who sealed his witness with blood, possibly in the mid-third or early fourth century. When Pedona suffered devastation during Muslim raids in the tenth century, his relics were reverently carried to Quargnento, preserving his cult through troubled days. He is invoked with special affection in Borgo San Dalmazzo, Castellinaldo, Cogliate, Fiorano Canavese, Paderno Ponchielli, and Quargnento. His feast day is December 5.