Image via Wikipedia
When Ferdinand Magellan landed in Cebu almost five centuries ago, he gifted Rajah Humabon and Hara Amihan relics after their conversion to Christianity. After their baptism, Humabon was given the name Carlos, while the name Juana was bestowed to Amihan. The Potuguese explorer gave Juana the Sto. Niño while Carlos was given the Ecce Homo sculpture.
On Aug. 20, 1572, around 50 years after the first Spanish expedition left, Spaniard Juan de Castilla found Ecce Homo at the burial grounds of Rajah Carli. Ecce Homo is latin for “Behold the Man” words uttered by Pontius Palate when he presented Jesus to the crowd after his violent scouring and the crowning of thorns. The sculpture was made of ivory. It was kept at the Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino from 1572 until 1965.
The religious icon was brought to Manila in 1965 as part of the 400th anniversary of the country’s Christianization. The relic is very important since it is one of the first symbols of the Filipino’s conversion. The Ecce Homo stayed in Manila for 46 years under the care of the Augustinian community in Manila. The Ecce homo now still has a head made of ivory but the body is made of wood after it was restored.
The icon was finally returned to Cebu last August 20. The Ecce Homo is placed in a glass urn in the main altar of the basilica for public veneration and there are plans to construct a marble niche with bullet proof glass just like the one used for Sto. Niño. The feast day of the Ecce Homo is August 20.
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