France · 13th Century
Douai
On Easter Sunday 1254 in the Church of Saint Amatus in Douai, a priest was distributing Holy Communion when he accidentally dropped one of the consecrated Hosts on the ground. Immediately he bent down to pick up the Holy Eucharist, but the Host rose into the air and came to rest on the purificator. A little later, a wonderful Child appeared there, which all the faithful and religious present in the celebration could contemplate.
About this miracle
Bishop Thomas de Cantimpré of Cambrai, a Dominican Father, doctor of theology and eyewitness to the miracle, came immediately to Douai to verify the facts in person. When he looked at the Host, he saw the face of Christ crowned with thorns with two drops of Blood that descended on His forehead. He immediately knelt and, crying, began to thank God. This eyewitness account was recorded in his work 'Bonum universale de Apibus.'
The miraculous Host was preserved through centuries and hidden during the French Revolution. In October 1854, the Pastor of the Church of St. Peter discovered underneath the Christ in the Altar of the Dead a small wooden box containing a small Host, with a letter certifying it to be 'the real and true Host of the holy miracle' that had been saved from profanation in January 1793. Although more than 800 years have elapsed, it is still possible to admire the Host of the miracle. Every Thursday in the Church of Saint Peter of Douai, many faithful gather in prayer before this miraculous Host.
Scientific analysis
The Host remains white but with damaged edges after more than 800 years. It was hidden during the French Revolution to protect it from profanation and was rediscovered in October 1854 underneath the Christ in the Altar of the Dead in a small wooden box with a letter certifying its authenticity and documenting that it had been saved in January 1793.