The silver reliquary of San Castrense is kept in the Chapel of San Castrense in the Monreale Cathedral. It is dated 1637 and was commissioned by Cardinal Cosimo de Torres, nephew of Ludovico II de Torres; in fact, the cardinal’s coat of arms was placed in the box. Baroque in style and rectangular in shape, it bears the inscription “San Castrense, eternal bulwark of the city of Monreale”. The reliquary is crowned by a silver statue of the Saint.
It was the Archbishop of Capua Alfano who brought the Saint’s precious body to Palermo as a wedding gift to King William II, who was about marry Joan of England. His head, however, remained in the city of Capua.
