Biography
Priscus of Auxerre
About Priscus of Auxerre
Priscus, also remembered under the name Prix, belongs to a group of Christian martyrs associated with Besançon and Auxerre. The Catholic Church in Norway’s biographical notice describes him and his companions as Christian citizens of Besançon who suffered martyrdom at Auxerre.
The French Catholic Nominis entry preserves a local tradition that Prix was a Christian soldier from the Besançon area who fled persecution. He settled with companions at Cociacus in the wooded Auxerre region. In that account, Roman authorities killed the members of their Christian community. A companion escaped carrying Prix’s head, but was himself killed near Auxerre.
The story connects their memory with Saint-Bris and Saints-en-Puisaye and with a procession at a local spring. Nominis also warns that legend has overtaken the details of their lives. It lists a local feast on 26 May. Their dates and the individual circumstances of the martyrdom remain uncertain.
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