St. Helena Discovers the Three Crosses

Predella of the Polyptych of the Madonna and Child
Ducal Palace, Urbino, Italy

In this panel of the predella Judas, the man with the halo raising his arms in prayer, has directed St. Helena to the pit where the the crosses of Jesus and the two thieves had been cast. Now the workmen bring all three crosses up from the pit – using shovels, ropes, and pulleys that are hardly different from what would be used today.

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Also see the predella's panels illustrating the summoning of the Jews, Judas's descent into the well, and the testing of the three crosses.
Read more about images of St. Helena.

Photographed at the site by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.