Holy Cross Coin Pendant

One of the most sacred relics of the Christian Church was the Holy Cross that for much of its history was kept safely in Jerusalem. But early in the 7th century AD, the relic was taken as booty by a persian army which sacked the city. The recovery of the Holy Cross was no easy task, but with great persistence and skill the Emperor Heraclius led an army which not only reclaimed the cross, but also destroyed the Sassanian Kingdom, whose soldiers had been powerful enough to wrest it from Jerusalem only a generation earlier.

Heraclius celebrated his miraculous deed by placing on the back of his gold coins the image of a long cross set upon a three-step base with an accompanying inscription that declared ‘victory to the emperors.’ his successors continued this practice and the long cross became the standard included in most designs for the gold coinage of the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire.