Saints Justa and Rufina (Ruffina) () are venerated as

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

s. They are said to have been martyred at

Hispalis Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Seville h ...

(

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

) during the 3rd century. Only St. Justa (sometimes "Justus" in early manuscripts) is mentioned in the ''

Martyrologium Hieronymianum The ''Martyrologium Hieronymianum'' (meaning "martyrology of Jerome") or ''Martyrologium sancti Hieronymi'' (meaning "martyrology of Saint Jerome") is an ancient martyrology or list of Christian martyrs in calendar order, one of the most used and ...

'' (93), but in the historical martyrologies. Rufina is also mentioned, following the legendary ''Acts''.Kirsch, Johann Peter. "Sts. Rufina." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 28 October 2021 The two saints are highly honored in the Mozarabic Liturgy.

Legend

Their legend states that they were sisters and natives of Seville who are said to have lived in the neighborhood of Triana. Justa was born in 268 AD, Rufina in 270 AD, of a poor but pious Christian family. They made fine

earthenware Earthenware is glazed or unglazed Vitrification#Ceramics, nonvitreous pottery that has normally been fired below . Basic earthenware, often called terracotta, absorbs liquids such as water. However, earthenware can be made impervious to liquids ...

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

for a living, with which they supported themselves and helped many of the city's poor. Like many other merchants, they sold their pottery from booths set up out of doors where people could see their wares. During a

pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

festival, they refused to sell their wares for use in these celebrations. In anger, locals broke all of their dishes and pots. Justa and Rufina retaliated by smashing an image of

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

. They were immediately arrested. The city's prefect, Diogenianus, ordered them to be imprisoned. Failing to convince them to renounce their faith, he had them

tortured Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons including punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions restrict torture to ac ...

on the

rack Rack or racks may refer to: Storage, support and transportation * Amp rack, a piece of furniture in which amplifiers are mounted * Autorack or auto carrier, for transporting vehicles in freight trains * Baker's rack, for bread and other bake ...

and with iron hooks. They were then forced to walk barefoot to the

Sierra Morena The Sierra Morena is one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain. It stretches for 450 kilometres from east to west across the south of the Iberian Peninsula, forming the southern border of the ''Meseta Central'' plateau and providi ...

; when this did not break their resolve, they were imprisoned without water or food. Justa died first. Her body, thrown into a well, was later recovered by the Bishop Sabinus. Diogenianus believed that the death of Justa would break the resolve of Rufina. Rufina refused to renounce her faith and was thus thrown to the lions. However the lions in the

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (American English, U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meani ...

refused to attack Rufina, remaining as docile as house cats. Infuriated, Diogenianus had Rufina's neck broken and her body burned. Her remains were recovered by Sabinus and buried alongside her sister.

Veneration

Their cult in Seville was ancient and strong, and soon spread elsewhere in Spain.

La Seo Cathedral The Cathedral of the Savior () or La Seo de Zaragoza is a Catholic cathedral in Zaragoza (also known as Saragossa), in Aragon, Spain. It is part of the World Heritage Site ''Mudéjar Architecture of Aragon''. The cathedral is located on the Pla ...

(

Zaragoza Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...

) contains a

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

dedicated to Justa and Rufina.

Agost Agost (; ) is a Valencian town and municipality located in the province of Alicante, Spain, at a distance of about from Alicante, the capital of the province. Due to its relative distance from the Mediterranean Sea, Agost was not directly affect ...

, in

Valencia province Valencia ( , ), officially València (), is a province of Spain, in the central part of the autonomous Valencian Community. Of the province's 2.7 million people (2024), almost one-third live in the capital, Valencia, which is also the capita ...

, is the location of a hermitage dedicated to these saints (''Ermita de Santa Justa y Rufina''), built in 1821.

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Or ...

also has a church dedicated to them. There is a shrine to the saints in

Alicante Alicante (, , ; ; ; officially: ''/'' ) is a city and municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean port. The population ...

where a three-day fiesta is held in their honor in July.

Patronage

Justa and Rufina are the patron saints of the cities Seville and

Orihuela Orihuela (; ''Corpus Toponímic Valencià''. Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua. 2009, València.) is a city and municipality located at the foot of the Sierra de Orihuela mountains in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. The c ...

, where there is a parish Church of Saints Justa and Rufina built on the site of a Visigoth church that was later used as a mosque. They are also the patrons of potters. According to tradition, they are protectors of the

Giralda The Giralda ( ) is the bell tower of Seville Cathedral in Seville, Spain. It was built as the minaret for the Great Mosque of Seville in al-Andalus, during the reign of the Almohad dynasty, with a Renaissance-style belfry added by the Catholics ...

and the

Cathedral of Seville The Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See (), better known as Seville Cathedral (), is a Catholic cathedral and former mosque in Seville, Andalusia, Spain. It was registered in 1987 by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, along with the adjoining Alc� ...

, and are said to have protected both during the

Lisbon earthquake of 1755 The 1755 Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon earthquake, impacted Portugal, the Iberian Peninsula, and Northwest Africa on the morning of Saturday, 1 November, Feast of All Saints, at around 09:40 local time. In combination with ...

Feast day

Their feast day is 19 July. During the Middle Ages their feast was celebrated in the Iberian Peninsula on 17 July, as attested by calendars of the time, such as for example by that in the Antiphonary of León.

Iconography

They are often depicted as young women with their heads uncovered (indicating their status as unmarried), with clay pots, palms (representing martyrdom), and a lion licking Rufina's bare foot. As patrons of Seville, they are often pictured flanking the

In art

Justa and Rufina were a popular subject for Spanish artists. A 1540

retable A retable is a structure or element placed either on or immediately behind and above the altar or communion table of a church. At the minimum, it may be a simple shelf for candles behind an altar, but it can also be a large and elaborate struct ...

is the earliest known piece of artwork depicting these two saints. A painting of the saints was done by

Francisco Camilo Francisco Camilo (Madrid 1610–Madrid 1671) was a Spanish painter, the son of an Italian immigrant who had settled in Madrid. When his father died, his mother remarried, and Camilo became the stepson of the painter Pedro de las Cuevas.William ...

in 1644.

Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 1746 – 16 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, an ...

, Murillo, and Zurbarán also painted these saints. A 1989 painting is a modern interpretation of these saints. Image:Santas Justa y Rufina (Hernando de Valladares).jpg, Santas Justa y Rufina (Hernando de Valladares ( es).) Image:Santa Rufina.jpg, Saint Rufina, by

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptised 6 June 15996 August 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the Noble court, court of King Philip IV of Spain, Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He i ...

Image:Francisco de Zurbarán 049.jpg, Saint Rufina, by Zurbarán File:Pacheco, Santa Justa.jpg, Saint Justa by

Francisco Pacheco Francisco Pérez del Río (bap. 3 November 1564 – 27 November 1644), known by his pseudonym Francisco Pacheco, was a Spanish painter, best known as the teacher of Alonso Cano and Diego Velázquez, as well as the latter's father-in-law. His ...

File:Francisco Pacheco, Santa Rufina.jpg, Saint Rufina by Francisco Pacheco

References

External links

Altar of SS. Justa and Rufina in the Cathedral of Seville
{{authority control Ancient Christian female saints History of Seville Sister duos Spanish potters 3rd-century Christian martyrs Groups of Christian martyrs of the Roman era Virgin martyrs Saints from Hispania 268 births 270 births 287 deaths