France · 17th Century
Pressac
On April 2, 1643, a devastating fire affected the parish church of Pressac. The fire was so intense that it completely fused a chalice in which a consecrated Host had been placed. Only the foot of the chalice remained, and a tin bubble had formed on it, beneath which the Host was found completely intact.
About this miracle
The Host, which should have been destroyed by the flames that melted the metal chalice, withstood the fire and the fusion of the metal surrounding it. Above what was left of the chalice, a bubble of tin had formed, and beneath this protective bubble, the Host remained whole and untouched. The vicar, Simon Sauvage, came to the place of the miracle and carried the damaged chalice to the main altar for all to see. The Host, light red around the edges, was consumed the next morning during the Divine Office of Good Friday (April 3, 1643).
The Abbot of Availles-Limouzine, François du Theil, recorded all of the testimony and gave it to the Bishop of Poitiers, Henri Louis Chastagnier de la Roche-Posay, who authorized the cult of the miracle with a solemn act. Today, there is a stained glass window made in 1863 by the Guérithault brothers, students of Ingres, in the parish church of Saint-Just in Pressac, which represents the miracle of 1643, preserving the memory of this extraordinary event for future generations.
Scientific analysis
The intense heat of the fire was sufficient to completely melt and transform the metal chalice into 'drops of tin', yet the consecrated Host remained physically intact underneath the protective tin bubble that formed. The Host showed slight thermal effects (light red around the edges) but was not consumed or destroyed by the heat that was sufficient to completely fuse the metal vessel.