Stigmata, in Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus Christ: the hands, wrists, feet, near the heart, the head, and back.
Hands with stigmata, depicted on a Franciscan church in Lienz, Austria
St Catherine fainting from the stigmata by Il Sodoma, Church of Saint Pantaleon, Alsace, France
Saint Francis of Assisi contemplating the wounds of stigmata as part of the Imitation of Christ
Saint Francis Receiving the Stigmata by Giotto
In Catholic tradition, the Five Holy Wounds, also known as the Five Sacred Wounds or the Five Precious Wounds, are the five piercing wounds that Jesus Christ suffered during his crucifixion. The wounds have been the focus of particular devotions, especially in the late Middle Ages, and have often been reflected in church music and art.
Icon of the Crucifixion, showing the Five Holy Wounds (13th century, Saint Catherine's Monastery, Mount Sinai)
Christ after his Resurrection, with the ostentatio vulnerum, showing his wounds, Austria, c. 1500
Alphonsus kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament, Carlow Cathedral.
Sister Mary Martha Chambon