One of the clearest witnesses to the crucifixion of Jesus is the familiar “crime plaque,” which reads “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.” After investing a lot of resources and energy in research, many experts and scholars generally believe that the guilt plaque preserved in the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem in Rome is the authentic one when Pilate sentenced Jesus more than 2,000 years ago.
(Vatican News Network)According to the fifth-century historian Eusebio di Cesarea in his Life of Constantine (From the life of Costantini), the mother of Emperor Constantine, Helen, went to the Holy Land from 326 to 328 to make a pilgrimage to the place where the Lord died and was resurrected. Afterwards, she took various holy relics and soil from Jerusalem back to Rome to store in her palace Sessoriano. She built a chapel on it to house the relics she brought back from the Holy Land: among them a fragment of a cross, a few nails and the Titulus Crucis. This chapel formed the first centerpiece of the Roman Basilica of the Holy Cross, whose name suggests that the builders wanted to replicate a smaller version of the sanctuary in Rome. This small holy place is also named “Jerusalem” (Hierusalem) to express the meaning of its eternal city.
“Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews”
The “Charge of Guilt” is a walnut board with three lines of inscription written from right to left in three languages: Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. The inscription reads: “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews”, known by the abbreviation “INRI”. It was hung on the cross by order of the proconsul Pilate: he was to state the grounds for the conviction, according to the norms of Roman law, of the charge against Jesus’ self-proclaimed king of the Jews. Such an approach applies only to some “special” convicted persons. In addition, these three languages will only appear on important cards at the same time. This sign, along with the crown of thorns and staff of reeds, constitutes a high-level mockery of Christ. The fact that the charge card is recorded in all the Gospels (Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38; Mt. Emphasize its historical authenticity.
holy relic of ancient reverence
In order to obtain the first proof of the “blame of guilt”, in addition to the unanimous proof of the four Gospels, we should go back to the end of the fourth century. In her book The Journey, the Western pilgrim Egeria recounts seeing the Holy Cross during her pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 383. At that time the cross was publicly displayed for people to admire. Chapter 37, verse 1 of the book reads: “…a box of gilded silver contained the sacred wood of the cross. The box was opened, and the cross was taken out, and the wood of the cross and the inscription of the charge were placed on the table. ’” In 570, Antoninus of Piacenza spoke of it again, and there are also written accounts, similar to the records related to the Gospel of Matthew (cf. Itinerarium, Corpus Christianorum, S. Latina, 175 , 130). From the point of view of time, this can confirm that the holy object came to Rome after St. Helen’s pilgrimage to the Holy Land. This is not surprising, since the cross is inextricably linked to St. Helene, both in historical sources such as the “Life of the Saint” and in works of art, such as in the Basilica of San Franciscan Nepier in Arezzo, Italy. This history is described in the frescoes of Piero della Francesca.
One very important detail attesting to the special attention paid to this relic is that it was not until February 1, 1492 that the actual “Guilty Card” was rediscovered. It was sealed in a lead box with three stamps stamped with the seal of Cardinal Gerardo Caccianemici, the future Pope Lucio II (1144-1145). The lead box was buried at the top of the vaulted wall at the altar site of the temple. Therefore, the point in time when the relic was placed here can be traced back to the construction of the transept of the Basilica. So, why is this little wooden sign placed there? The top of the arched wall invites to contemplate its profound symbolism: this position is in the center of the Basilica, at the highest point of its building.
The Debate About Authenticity
The authenticity of the “Guilty Plaque” is extremely controversial, and the debate in this regard has already begun: on the one hand, through the results of radiocarbon analysis carried out in 2002, it was denied that it was an original object, and it was believed to be from between the 10th and 12th centuries. Another assertion is that it is authentic, or at least a copy of the original “blame card” from the time of the Lord’s death, based on some obvious evidence, such as the writing of the ancient script of the first century.
During the study some discrepancies were found between the “guilt cards” and the Gospel accounts, thereby highlighting that it was written “first hand”. The difference is this: the “Guilt Card” reads “Nazarinus” in Latin, not “Nazarenus” in the Gospels. As we all know, people who make fakes never make such mistakes. Those who support the authenticity of the “Charge Card” also point out that the analysis of radiocarbon 14 dating method (C14) must meet a series of conditions, but these conditions are invalid for the “Charge Card” because the “Charge Card” also has countless touches and kisses. It bears biological traces of the pilgrims, and part of the inscription of the “guilt card” has even been worn away.
Some other studies also believe that the “crime card” is not complete, but a part of a longer tablet, and the rest of the “crime card” happened to be left in Jerusalem together with a part of the cross, and was later lost. On the contrary, some scholars believe that the “crime card” of the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Rome is intact and has a complete meaning. This runs counter to the assumption that the “guilt card” is incomplete.
solemn burial
Ms. Maria Luisa Rigato, a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, is one of the main scholars who support the authenticity of the “crime card”. Based on the analysis of paleography, she reiterated the authenticity of the “crime card”, and believed that the letters written on the card were completely consistent with the letters used in the first century. The scholar also put forward a very instructive and logical conjecture: the “crime card” was placed in the tomb of Jesus. Judging from clues such as the stones enclosing the tomb, the tomb is large and of the type of chamber. The body of Jesus was anointed with precious perfume. The shroud is a precious cloth which certainly would not be used for the common dead. According to Professor Rigato, this is a high-class tomb, which corroborates the authenticity of the “crime card” placed on the cross by Pilate.
Reliquary Chapel
Until 1930, the relics were housed in the Underground Chapel of St. Helens.In Baldassarre Peruzzi, Giuliano da Sangallo（Giuliano da Sangallo）、The chapel was restored and renovated several times with the help of great artists such as Pomarancio and Rubens. The soil brought back by St. Helen from Mount Calvary was spread in front of the chapel. Due to the inaccessible location and humid environment, later generations had to move the holy object to another place. The chapel now enshrining the reliquary is the original dressing room, located at the end of the aisle on the left side of the sanctuary, designed by Florestano Di Fausto. Inaugurated in 1930 and completed in 1952, the chapel preserves the relics related to the Way of the Cross: namely, three fragments of the cross that Jesus bore, the guilt tablet, a nail and part of the crown of thorns. Later, some small relics were added.
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