Saints for Sale

There has always been a thriving illicit market for certain people's bodies - especially those of Christian saints. Catholics in particular have a long tradition of venerating the bones, hair, cloth or other remnants that once belonged to holy people. Particularly in the Middle Ages, having a relic meant great publicity for the particular church or cathedral that held it and increased traffic and "tourism" to the area overall.

As you can imagine, authentic relics were rare, so most objects were forged. Some bones were not necessarily even human. However, authenticity often took a back seat to the more basic idea of relics as points of focus for worship.

Today, despite eBay restrictions on the sale of human remains, the age-old relics trade continues online. Certainly there is a contingent of Catholics who are unhappy with the cavalier auctioning of (possibly) holy saints.