The Chapel of Saint Helena is a 12th-century

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

church in the lower level of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, constructed during the

Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem ( la, Regnum Hierosolymitanum; fro, Roiaume de Jherusalem), officially known as the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem or the Frankish Kingdom of Palestine,Example (title of works): was a Crusader state that was establish ...

. The Armenians call it the Chapel of St. Gregory the Illuminator, after the saint who brought Christianity to the Armenians.

Description

In the southeast of the chapel there is a chair which was reputed to be a seat that was sat in by Helena, the mother of the

Emperor Constantine Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterrane ...

when she was looking for the

True Cross The True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, althoug ...

. There are two

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

s in the church, one dedicated to Saint Helena and one to the

penitent thief The Penitent Thief, also known as the Good Thief, Wise Thief, Grateful Thief, or Thief on the Cross, is one of two unnamed thieves in Luke's account of the crucifixion of Jesus in the New Testament. The Gospel of Luke describes him asking Jesus ...

on the cross.

History

2nd- and 4th-century remains

During 1973–1978 restoration works and excavations were made in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. To the east of the Chapel of St. Helena, the excavators discovered a void containing a 2nd-century drawing of a Roman ship, two low walls which supported the platform of Hadrian's 2nd-century temple, and a higher 4th century wall built to support

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's Forum (Roman), forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building ...

; the Armenian authorities have recently converted this archaeological space into the Chapel of Saint Vartan, and created an artificial walkway over the quarry on the north of the chapel, so that the new chapel could be accessed (by permission) from the Chapel of St. Helena.

12th-century construction

The chronicler

William of Tyre William of Tyre ( la, Willelmus Tyrensis; 113029 September 1186) was a medieval prelate and chronicler. As archbishop of Tyre, he is sometimes known as William II to distinguish him from his predecessor, William I, the Englishman, a former ...

reports on the renovation of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the mid-12th century. The

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

investigated the eastern ruins on the site, occasionally excavating through the rubble, and while attempting to reach the cistern where the True Cross was believed to have been found, they discovered part of the original ground level of Hadrian's temple enclosure; they decided to transform this space into a chapel dedicated to Helena, widening their original excavation tunnel into a proper staircase.

20th-century decoration

The large decorative floor mosaic is made by the 20th-century Israeli artist Hava Yofe. Part of it depicts churches in historical Armenia. Despite the images being obviously modern in their representational style, some guides tell visitors the mosaic is antique. In 2017–2019, the chapel underwent renovations which include a new white marble altar railing and new tile flooring.

Gallery

File:Holy Land 2016 P0589 St. Helena's Chapel Atair.jpg, The altar File:PikiWiki Israel 13412 Chappel of Helena in the holy sepulchre.JPG, View of the chapel from the right side File:Mosaic of Saint Helena. Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem 058 - Aug 2011.jpg, Floor mosaic File:Holy Sepulchre ship.JPG, Drawing of a ship and inscription "DOMINE IVIMVS"

References

Footnotes Citations {{coord, 31, 46, 42.4, N, 35, 13, 47.1, E, region:IL_type:landmark, display=title 12th-century churches Oriental Orthodox congregations established in the 12th century 12th-century establishments in the Kingdom of Jerusalem Armenian Apostolic churches in Jerusalem Chapels in Jerusalem Church of the Holy Sepulchre