Description: Helena (324 - 328/330 AD). AE4, Treveri mint, 337-340 AD. FL IVL HELENAE AVG; diademed and draped bust right / PAX PVBLICA; Pax standing left holding branch in right hand and scepter in left, cross in left field, TRS in ex.

Diameter: AE16 mm

Weight: 1,32 g

Grade: aVF/aVF

Attribution: RIC 42; C 5

Commentary: one of the earliest depictions of typical Latin cross; grey patina, some deposits on reverse

History: Helena, probably by order of Constantine, was the first "relic hunter", searching the Near East for the artefacts of Judean and Christian religion and allegedly discovering the True Cross in Jerusalem.

Article Number: 039-03-03-41652