Consecration

The episcopal consecration of Adam Stefan Sapieha, Pie Armand Pierre Sabadel O.F.M. Cap. and Gaetano De Lai by Pope Pius X in the Sistine Chapel, December 17, 1911[photos source]. In accordance with custom and due to the length of such a ceremony, the Pope conferred episcopal ordination during a Low Mass; nevertheless, he was vested in the full set of pontifical vestments. On the Epistle side one can see the ferula resting against the predella of the altar: until the time of Paul VI, this was one of the rare occasions on which it could be seen in use during Papal Chapels.