The Cave of Saint Blaise (Albanian: Shpella e Shën Vlashit) is a small cave in Laç, Albania. It is thought to have been the place where Saint Blaise lived, and remains a popular pilgrimage site.[1]
According to Robert Elsie, this Saint Blaise is not to be confused with Saint Blaise of Armenia, but is a local person, who was tortured in Durrës and died in Ragusa.[2]
He is regarded as a continuation of the pre-Christian deity Veles, who guarded the flocks of the early Slavs.[3] In Yaroslavl, the first church built on the site of Veles's pagan shrine was dedicated to St Blaise, for the latter's name was similar to Veles and he was likewise considered a heavenly patron of shepherds.[4]
The cave is close the Saint Anthony Church, dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua and built in 1556.