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In 1294 Clare of Montefalco entered a coma-like state of ecstasy and survived only through the diligent care of her fellow nuns. When she woke, she testified that she had met Christ in the guise of a pilgrim carrying the cross. He informed Clare that her heart proved strong enough in faith for him to “rest” his burden there. Thereafter Clare described having chronic pain in her chest until her death. Corporeal visionary experiences that involved carrying Christ’s presence in the heart were particularly common to female monastic visionaries beginning in the twelfth century, particularly in Italy and Germany. In Clare’s case, her vision left bodily traces. When Clare died, the sisters of her monastery performed an unofficial autopsy on her heart and discovered a crucifix made of flesh. The instruments of the passion, including a small scourge and three nails made of nerve fiber, were removed from the same heart three days after the discovery of the fleshly crucifix. After significant controversy and an official inquisition immediately following Clare's death, the local bishop determined that the relics were authentic. However, her canonization process in 1318-1319 was not successful; ultimately she was declared a saint in 1881.