On the reverse of the coins, several different inscriptions boldly identify the face that appears on them. Whilst doing so may have been no more than an act of piety, it also allowed them to promote their holiest relic throughout the ancient world. For the next 123 years, successive emperors chose to depict Christ on their circulating coins instead of their own portraits, which is why they are collectively described as anonymous. The mass circulating bronze coin of Emperor John I Tzimiskes marked the first in a series of what has become known as anonymous Byzantine folles. Many paintings of Christ were destroyed, and no coins were struck bearing his image for over a Century until the debate was resolved. During the Eighth Century, a fierce debate raged through the Eastern Church about whether it was heretical to make images of the Son of God. However, political instability in the region may have restricted future access to the cloth, and later designs appear to have been copies of the first strikes. Both the gold solidus and the smaller gold tremissis (one third the weight of the solidus) incorporate many intricate details present in the mysterious image. On that occasion, the coin engravers may have made the 800 mile trip to Edessa to see the Mandylion for themselves. The first coins to depict Christ were struck almost three centuries earlier during the reign of Emperor Justinian II (AD 692–695). Could this be the origin of the halo, or nimbus that became a popular symbol of holiness in medieval art? It is interesting to note that artists who painted the face often framed it within a circle. From the Sixth Century onwards, artists increasingly depicted him with the distinctive facial features that appear on the cloth – long hair with a centre parting, large owl-like eyes, a long prominent nose, a full moustache and a slightly forked beard.Ĭontemporary paintings made of the Mandylion suggest that it was kept in a wide rectangular frame with a hole cut into the centre through which the bearded face could be viewed. Since the New Testament provide no clues about Christ’s physical appearance, pilgrims flocked to Edessa to observe what they believed to be His true likeness. One contemporary account described the image as “ a moist secretion with no paint or artistic craft transferred with no artistic intervention on the cloth”. The rediscovery of the Edessa Cloth (or Mandylion) sparked considerable excitement throughout the Christian world. Workers repairing the city walls in AD 525 stumbled upon it in a niche high above one of the main gates. However, when the King died, the city reverted to paganism, and the cloth was hidden to protect it. According to local legend, it had been presented to King Abgar of Edessa by Jesus’ disciples when he became the first ruler to convert to Christianity. The cloth had arrived in Constantinople amidst much rejoicing on 15th August 944 after being acquired from the city of Edessa (today, Urfa in Southern Turkey). Although it was considered too holy to go on public display at the time, our coin engraver would almost certainly have been granted the privilege of entering the Pharos chapel of Constantinople’s Imperial Palace for a special viewing in order to capture a good likeness. Constantinople had recently taken ownership of the holiest relic in Christendom, a mysterious image of Christ ‘ not made by human hands’ but miraculously transferred onto a cloth, it was said, by Christ himself. The Emperor’s decision to depict Christ on his coinage instead of his own portrait may have been prompted by an exciting new acquisition. Earlier emperors had depicted Christ on gold and silver coins, but this was the first time that his likeness would appear on a mass-produced circulating coin. It is my view that the image of Christ that appears on Byzantine coinage provides compelling evidence for the Shroud’s authenticity and a plausible solution to one of history’s greatest enigmas – the location of the mythical Holy Grail itself.Īt some time during the short but distinguished reign of Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimiskes (AD 969- 976), an artist working at the Constantinople Mint was entrusted with the task of engraving an image of Jesus Christ for a new bronze follis. Whether the linen once wrapped the dead body of Jesus Christ or is the work of a more recent medieval forger, the mystery of how the image is imprinted remains unsolved, even with twenty-first-century technology. Irrespective of your religious beliefs, any student of history or science will find much to captivate them in the faint image of a crucified man that appears on the ancient cloth. Since I was a small boy, I have been fascinated by the Shroud of Turin, where the paths of history, science and faith combine in one unique artefact. Byzantine bronze follis struck AD 969-976 and the face on the Shroud of Turin
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