Why is St. Joseph portrayed as holding lilies in his hands?

A lily is a symbol of purity, so St. Joseph holds a lily to represent his holiness and his celibate marriage to the Blessed Virgin. read more

They found out Joseph was not there and when he came and laid his staff upon the ground it sprouted Lilies as a sign from God that he was the chosen husband of Mary. That is from an apocryphal text called"The Legend of Joseph the Carpenter" although not held as dogma or necessary for the faith or required, it influenced the depictions of Joseph in art. read more

A lily is a symbol of purity, so St. Joseph holds a lily to represent his holiness and his celibate marriage to the Blessed Virgin. Other saints are also shown with a lily denoting purity, as well. I've seen statues of St. Anthony of Padua and St. Philomena carrying lilies to denote their innocence. read more