Abstract

The text where Eusebius gives a description of the Holy Sepulchre is not clear in all its details. This article addresses some of the open questions: was Constantine looking for the tomb of Christ, when he decided to build this church in Jerusalem? Was the so-called Anastasis part of the Constantinian programme or was it a later addition? Some details of the description of the “martyrion”, or the basilica, need also some further explanation. Finally, why does Eusebius not say anything about the True Cross and the Rock of the Calvary? The proposed answers for the main question are: Constantine was not looking for the tomb; the Anastasis was built at the same time, but may be as the last part of the programme. The True Cross was not yet discovered and, in the course of the work, the Rock of the Calvary was identified as such, but did not get an architectural frame.

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