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“Most intriguing was the discovery of a sarcophagus,
perfectly preserved, which held the bodies of two young people:
Sabino, a Roman soldier, and Serapia, a girl from Terni, as revealed
in the inscription: the year, 275 A.D., she a Christian, and he
a pagan.
(from the Legend of Sabino and Serapia in Settimio Bernarducci,
Fiori di San Valentino: Sabino e Serapia, Arrone: Edizioni
Thyrus, 2003:59)
The legend of the marriage of Sabino and Serapia by Saint Valentine
in defiance of the emperor Aurelian is the centrepiece of the
tradition of Saint Valentine of Terni. It is a story of the triumph
of love over cultural differences, and today couples from many
places come to Terni every February 14 to take or renew their
marriage vows.
   
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Basilica di San Valentino
Terni, Italy.
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