This is the most characteristic gesture that pilgrims perform in the Basilica of St. Anthony. As well as evincing the need for a tangible contact with the Saint, this is a gesture of trust and confidence, accompanied by the silent prayer of the heart.
Attention to the Saint is not solicited by statues or images of him, which in any case are present in the Basilica, but the Saint’s own Tomb.
Hand on the Tomb
