St. Odo of Canterbury, Patron saint of dealers in antiques and old clothes, c.1910 (colour...

Illustration from a series of the patron saints of different trades and professions produced as promotional cards to accompany the sale of 'Chocolat Aiguebelle'; Saint Odon, Patron des marchands fripiers, ceux qui font le métier d'acheter et revendre de vieux meubles et de vieux habits; St. Odo of Canterbury (d.948) was an English saint, born in East Anglia of Danish invader parents; in 941 he was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury; also called Odo the Good; usually an episode in the life of a saint explains her or his role as patron of a particular trade or work but with St. Odo, there seems to be no very obvious connection; possibly the fact that Saint Odo was known to collect the relics of other saints is relevant or the reason has been lost in the mists of antiquity; the Chocolaterie d'Aiguebelle was established in 1869 by Trappist monks at their abbey of Aiguebelle in the Drôme area; between 1893 and 1895 a factory was built in the nearby town of Donzère and became an important supplier of chocolate products until 1978, when production ceased and the factory closed; however a branch had been established in 1942 in Morocco and as the Compagnie Chérifienne de Chocolaterie continues today to make chocolates under the brand name of Aiguebelle; the promotional trade cards produced by Aiguebelle in the late 19th and early 20th century were of exceptional quality;