Cecilia, as a virgin and martyr, has no historical evidence before the 6th century. Her feast was already being celebrated in the year 545 in the basilica that bears her name. However, all of these early references depend on a Passio (a martyrdom story) written later than the year 486, modeled after Victor of Vita, and clearly legendary.
The author of this text identified the supposed founder of the titulus Caeciliae in Trastevere with another woman of the same name—also unknown—who was buried in the catacombs of Saint Callistus. He attributed to her both the crown of martyrdom and the glory of virginity, linking her story with the martyrs Valerian and Tiburtius from the nearby catacombs of Pretextatus.
When the supposed body of Cecilia was examined in 1599, official records note how quickly the tomb was opened and sealed again. The neck of the body showed no trace of the beheading described in the Passio.
From the description of Cecilia’s wedding banquet in that same Passio comes the famous antiphon Cantantibus organis (“while the organs played”), which later led to her being honored as the patron saint of sacred music. Most likely, this patronage, the poetic image created by her legend, and above all the deep popular devotion to her, are the reasons why the calendar has kept her feast to this day.
