The Holy Girdle, also known as the Girdle of Thomas, Holy Girdle of Mary, Holy Zoonoro, (or) Zunoro, and Holy Belt of Saint Mary the mother of Jesus, is a relic of the Blessed Virgin Mary which is one of the important relics of Syriac Orthodox Church and venerated by Oriental Orthodox communion. The word Zunoro is also translated as "belt", "sash" or "girdle". It is the Oriental Orthodox equivalent of the Girdle of Thomas in the Catholic Church, and the Cincture of the Theotokos in the Eastern Orthodox Church, now located at Mount Athos.
Holy Belt of Mary
Icon depiction the Theotokos giving her girdle to Thomas the Apostle. Below is a styllized representation of Mary's Tomb, with flowers lying on the sarcophagus.
Saint Mary Church of the Holy Belt
Holy girdle of St. Mary's Cathedral, Kundara
The Girdle of Thomas, Virgin's Girdle, Holy Belt, or Sacra Cintola in modern Italian, is a Christian relic in the form of a "girdle" or knotted textile cord used as a belt, that according to a medieval legend was dropped by the Virgin Mary from the sky to Saint Thomas the Apostle at or around the time of the Assumption of Mary to Heaven. The supposed original girdle is a relic belonging to Prato Cathedral in Tuscany, Italy and its veneration has been regarded as especially helpful for pregnant women. The story was frequently depicted in the art of Florence and the whole of Tuscany, and the keeping and display of the relic at Prato generated commissions for several important artists of the early Italian Renaissance. The Prato relic has outlasted several rivals in Catholic hands, and is the Catholic equivalent of the various relics held by Eastern Christianity: the Cincture of the Theotokos of the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Holy Girdle of the Syriac Orthodox Church.
Palma Vecchio, Assumption of Mary, who is removing her belt as Thomas (above the head of the apostle in green) hurries to the scene
Filippo Lippi, Madonna della Cintola, 1455–1465, Prato
Maso di Banco, Descent of Mary's Girdle to the Apostle Thomas, 1337-1339, Berlin. The girdle hangs down from the virgin's hand.
Nardo di cione, Madonna del parto and donor, 1355-1360