Relic of a saint is found in rubbish
RESTING PLACE SOUGHT FOR BONE OF POPE ST CLEMENT
BONE of Pope St Clement has been found in London, 2,000 years after his death.
An environmental waste clearance company found the apostle’s relic during a routine waste haul in central London.
EnviroWaste.co.uk found the bone in a red and gold, wax-sealed case, during a routine collection in central London last year, but workers didn’t realise what they had until it was appraised several days later.
The company is now calling on members of the public to help find an appropriate final resting place for the bone.
Pope St. Clement is considered to be the first apostolic father of the church, the third successor to St Peter and the fourth Pope. He was known as St Clement of Rome and was Pope from 92 to 101 AD.
It is said he died in 110 AD at the age of 75, making the bone nearly 2,000 years old.
To find a final resting place for the bone, EnviroWaste.co.uk has created a contact page for members of the public to nominate an appropriate place of their choice: www.envirowaste.co.uk/ blog/articles/bone-st-clement-foundcentral-london/
EnviroWaste.co.uk uses a multi-pick up system, meaning waste collectors visit several sites during waste hauls, so pinpointing the exact location it was found is almost impossible, however due to the route schedule on the month in question, they know it would have been in the central London area.
James Rubin, owner of Enviro Waste said: “You can imagine our amazement when we realised our clearance teams had found bone belonging to a Pope – it’s not something you expect to see, even in our line of work.
“We often come across some weird and wonderful things on clearances, but we were definitely not expecting to find a bone fragment of an apostle.
“We know this is an important piece of history and are keen to find the most appropriate place for its final resting place, which is why we’re asking for help from members of the public.”