The Holy Grail has been considered one of the most important mythical relics for many centuries. According to legends, he grants the suffering eternal youth, healing from ailments, wisdom. The search for this artifact continues to this day, but no one can definitely say what the Grail is. How people imagined the shrine - further in the review.
Mosaic depicting the Last Supper. | Photo: cdn.theatlantic.com
According to the most popular legend, the Holy Grail is a cup that stood on the table near Jesus Christ at the Last Supper, and into which the Jewish elder Joseph of Arimathea collected the blood of the Savior when he was crucified. The elder was imprisoned, but the Grail gave him food for 42 years until the emperor Vespasian rescued Joseph. The Jew went to Britain with the cup.
After the death of Joseph of Arimathea, successors were needed who were ready to guard the relic. They were Titurel and his associates, who called themselves "Knights of the Holy Grail." All who came to worship the Grail received healing, youth and abundance in food.
Holy grail. Dante Gabriel Rossetti. | Photo: ru.wikipedia.org
Many are interested in the question of why the Holy Grail ended up in Britain. This was partly due to the myths and legends of local tribes. Some scholars associate the cup with a pagan cornucopia. The ancient peoples who inhabited Ireland mentioned the cauldron of Dagda. The Britons passed from mouth to mouth the legend of the sorcerer Merlin, who brought with him a cup that opens access to the knowledge of the whole world. The Welsh, who lived in the territory of modern Wales, told legends about the vessel of the goddess Seridwen, which contained the wisdom of the ages.
Illustration from the Lancelot Grail manuscript by Michel Ganthee, written in 1470. | Photo: ancient-code.com
If we turn to the written sources telling about the Holy Grail, it is worth mentioning the chronicle of William of Malmbury and the Grand Saint Graal manuscript. The first manuscript tells of the disciples of one of the apostles who arrived with a cup under the command of Joseph of Arimathea in 63 AD in Britain. The second written source dates back to the 12th century and practically retells the same legend about the relics being moved to the British Isles.
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Illustration for the legends about the Holy Grail. | Photo: dev-cdn.watch.aetnd.com
In the Middle Ages, the legends of the Holy Grail became very popular. The impetus for this was the position of the Catholic Church. The Vatican demanded that in each temple there should be some thing that belonged to the saint, or part of his remains.
The most desired items were items associated with Jesus Christ. Relic hunters obtained parts of the cross on which they crucified the Savior, nails, a crown of thorns, Longinus's spear, and the Shroud of Turin. The only thing they couldn’t find was the chalice used for communion during the Last Supper. Many people went in search of her, but with 100% certainty no one could say whether the vessel was found in the same way.
Chalice of Antioch. | Photo: forum.artinvestment.ru
Today there are several "claimants" for the right to be called the Holy Grail. The most famous vessel is the chalice of Antioch, found in 1910. The outer shell is ornate images of the apostles and Jesus Christ, and a simple silver goblet is hidden inside. Recent research has shown that the chalice of Antioch cannot be the Holy Grail, since it was not made until the 6th century. Another relic, allegedly declared by the Vatican as true, is in Valencia in the Cathedral of St. Mary.
Chalice in the cathedral of Valencia. | Photo: ru.wikipedia.org
Many historians agree that the Grail is not a cup at all, but a collective concept. According to one version, it is a stone with wonderful properties, according to others - a silver dish. Some even identify the storehouse of the Lord's blood with the Virgin Mary.
Many works have been written about the Holy Grail by both medieval authors and contemporaries. One of them was Dan Brown's novel "The Da Vinci Code", which entered the top 10 best-selling books in history.