AMPULLA. - A small vessel with a narrow neck and a body of varying shape, intended to hold the wine and water for the Holy Mass, the holy oils, aromatic essences, and the like.
1. LITURGY
In the early centuries of the Church, when the faithful provided the matter for the Eucharist through their offerings and Communion under both kinds was practiced, the vessels (amulae) intended to hold the wine were quite large: mostly of silver, or even gold, sometimes finely chased and adorned with precious stones. The *Liber Pontificalis* contains a list of these vessels that Constantine donated to various basilicas. Today, two ampullae of crystal or glass are prescribed so that their contents may be easily verified. Those of metal are tolerated if they are precious, provided they are clearly distinct from one another.For the holy oils and chrism, vessels with wide mouths, mostly of metal, are still widely used.
The ampulla of Reims (the so-called "holy ampulla") is famous; according to Hincmar, it contained the chrism used for the baptism and consecration of Clovis, the first king of the Franks. Kept near the tomb of St. Remigius, it was destroyed during the French Revolution.
2. ARCHAEOLOGY
Various types of ampullae are known, made of glass, terracotta, or ivory, often found affixed to the lime sealing of underground cemetery sepulchres or placed inside near the head of the deceased.
Tin ampulla - Bobbio (6th century). Below: a flowered cross between two angels; above: the Redeemer in a mandorla against a starry background; around: busts of the twelve apostles and the inscription: *Oil of the Wood of Life, from the holy places of Christ*.
Underground or placed inside near the head of the deceased. The early scholars of the Roman catacombs, such as Bosio, Boldetti, Lupi, and Marangoni, believed that they had contained the blood of martyrs (v. AMPOLLA DI SANGUE), holy water, consecrated wine, or perfumes. All the ampullae found in recent excavations by the Pontifical Commission of Sacred Archaeology in the cemeteries of Commodilla, Pamphilus, Praetextatus, Novatian, and the Via Latina show traces of having held liquid oily substances, the fragrant liquids mentioned by Prudentius (PL 13, 888). In a single gallery of the cemetery of Pamphilus, ten were found, some with slanted openings to facilitate filling (E. Josi, *Il Cimitero di Panfilo*, in *Riv. arch. crist.*, 3 [1926], p. 138).
Ampullae of terracotta, glass, and metal were used by the faithful to bring home oil that burned in the sanctuaries of the Holy Places and martyrs or a little earth taken from the same places. This practice is attested as early as St. John Chrysostom (*In Martyres homilia*: PG 50, 664) and Gregory of Tours (*Miracula s. Martini*: PL 71, 914 ff., 955). In such cases, the ampulla is called εὐλογία.
The best-known ampullae of this category are the following: the Bobbio ampulla, found in 1910 in the crypt of St. Columbanus, contained a series of tin ampullae decorated with scenes inspired by monumental, musical, and fresco subjects that adorned the basilicas of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, such as the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Nativity, the shepherds at Bethlehem, the Magi, the Baptism of the Lord, Calvary, the women at the tomb, Christ appearing at the tomb, and Christ in glory.
In the treasury of Monza Cathedral, 28 glass phials from Rome are preserved, containing oil taken by a certain John from the tombs of Roman martyrs and brought to Queen Theodolinda during the time of St. Gregory the Great (590-604); 16 metal ampullae for oil collected in the holy places of Palestine, also with scenes of the same type as those from Bobbio and not later than the beginning of the 7th century.
From the sanctuary of the martyr St. Menas come the many yellowish terracotta ampullae now scattered in various museums. There, the martyr is depicted in military dress and nimbus, between two camels prostrate at his feet. Many bear the inscription ΕΥΛΟΓΙΑ ΤΟΥ ΑΓΙΟΥ ΜΗΝΑ or Ο ΑΓΙΟΣ ΜΗΝΑΣ.