A native of Lebanon and the son of a Roman general, Thalelaeus was a Christian doctor of Anazarbus (in south central Turkey) who treated his patients free of charge. A decree against Christianity issued during the brief reign of the Roman emperor Numerian (283-284) prompted Thalelaeus to flee for safety to an olive grove, but he was nonetheless captured and taken to the coastal town of Aegae. After suffering torture, Thalelaeus was strung up in a noose and then cast into the sea, but he managed to survive, swimming back to shore. He was thereupon beheaded.
