3rd century
The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus
Seven youths of Ephesus, Maximilian among them, who according to tradition hid in a cave during the persecution of Decius and awoke about two centuries later, under Theodosius II.
Biography
The Seven Youths - Maximilian, Iamblichus, Martinian, Dionysius, Antoninus, Constantine and Exakoustodianus - lived under Emperor Decius. During the persecution of Christians, they gave away their possessions to the poor and hid in a cave near Ephesus to avoid renouncing their faith.
According to tradition, when their pursuers drew near, they prayed to God to let them die rather than be captured, and in the morning they fell asleep without waking; the emperor had the cave's entrance sealed with a great stone.
About 194 years later, under Theodosius II, a boy who tried to buy bread with a coin from the time of Decius revealed the cave's entrance, and all seven were found alive - a wonder that, according to tradition, confirmed the Resurrection of the dead. Their story spread widely in many languages and later entered the Quran as well.