ABSTRACT
The extraordinary diffusion of the cult of relics, first of a New Testament matrix then the bodies of saints and martyrs, along with the religious, political and social practices connected to it, soon attracted the attention of imperial power and of the Christian religious authorities. Using the normative instruments of imperial legislation and the newly established ecclesiastic law, the Roman Empire and the church aimed, in different and unsystematic ways, to regulate the traffic and trade in relics, along with the uses and abuses made of them, and, finally, to find ways to certify their authenticity.
