Martyr Philumen of Ancyra

Saint Philumen was a grain merchant in Ancyra, Galatia (Asia Minor). Denounced by envious rivals before the regional governor Felix, he openly confessed faith in Christ.

For this the saint was tortured: he was suspended, scraped with iron hooks, and thrown into fire, from which he emerged unharmed by God's grace. Unable to break his resolve, his torturers drove nails through his head, hands, and feet and dragged him along the ground until he died.

His martyrdom took place around 274 under Emperor Aurelian.

IMPORTANT NOTE: this ancient saint should be distinguished from the namesake Hieromartyr Philoumenos (Hasapis) of the Holy Sepulchre — hegumen of the monastery at Jacob's Well near Nablus, murdered by extremists in 1979 and glorified by the Patriarchate of Jerusalem in 2009 (feast November 16/29 — a different date). The image in our database (a miniature depicting a martyr's procession accompanied by a soldier in a mountainous landscape) is stylistically consistent with ancient-type Byzantine book illustration rather than a modern photograph, supporting the attribution to the ancient Philumen of Ancyra.

His feast is kept on November 29/December 12.