3rd–4th century
Holy Martyr Euphrasia of Nicomedia
A Christian woman from a distinguished family of Nicomedia who was martyred under Maximian, choosing, according to tradition, death over dishonour.
Biography
Euphrasia came from a distinguished family of Nicomedia and lived under Emperor Maximian. When she was denounced as a Christian, she was told to renounce her faith and sacrifice to idols, but she remained unshaken.
She was then handed over to a man to be dishonored, but, according to tradition, she tricked him into believing she possessed a remedy that made the body invulnerable to swords, urging him to strike her on the neck to prove it.
In this way Euphrasia preserved her purity, paying with her life for the ruse and receiving the crown of martyrdom.