St. Mark (the Evangelist) is traditionally considered the author of the second Synoptic Gospel in the New Testament. The only unquestionably reliable information about his life is in Philemon 24, where a certain Mark is mentioned as one of St. Paul’s fellow workers who sends greetings from Rome to the Christians of Colossae (near modern Denizli, Turkey), but the identity of this person is not indicated.
St. Mark’s symbol is the lion. He is venerated as the patron saint of Venice and is considered the founder of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria (Egypt).