CASSIAN of IMOLA, St. — The place of birth and the time of death are unknown, and the details concerning the circumstances of his martyrdom are likewise very uncertain. Prudentius (Peristephanon, IX) attests to having seen in Imola a painting depicting a naked man surrounded by boys who were raging against him with styluses, and that the custodian of the place explained that this was the martyr Cassian, a schoolmaster, killed in that manner by his own pupils on the order of the magistrate because he had refused to sacrifice to idols.
This type of martyrdom seems to have been modeled on that of St. Mark of Arethusa or on the account of the death of the traitor schoolmaster spoken of by Livy (Ab Urbe condita, V, 27). It is certain, however, that in the 5th century the veneration of the martyr Cassian existed in Imola, with a church dedicated to him, and his commemoration was made on 13 August. Two groups of Passions remain of Cassian: one entirely dependent on Prudentius, the other on the Gesta ss. Cassiani, Ingenuini et Albuini (BHL 241, 1627, 4273).