thumb|Holy Nail [[reliquary in the Treasury of Trier Cathedral]]

Relics that are claimed to be the Holy Nails with which Jesus was crucified are objects of veneration among some Christians, particularly Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox. In Christian symbolism and art, they figure among the or Instruments of the Passion, the objects associated with the Passion of Jesus. Like the other Instruments, the Holy Nails have become an object of veneration among many Christians and have been pictured in paintings.

The authenticity of these relics is doubtful. The Catholic Encyclopedia wrote:

It is not clear whether Jesus was crucified with three or with four nails, and the question has been long debated. The band that was supposed to have been formed from a nail is actually 99% silver.

Nails venerated as those of Jesus's crucifixion

thumb|Holy Nail in [[Santa Maria della Scala (Siena)|Santa Maria della Scala in Siena]]

There are a number of extant nails venerated as those used in the crucifixion of Jesus:

  • In the Basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme in Rome (spike of a nail).
  • In the Holy Lance of the German imperial regalia in the Hofburg Palace in Vienna.
  • In the Iron Crown of Lombardy in the Cathedral of Monza.
  • In the treasury of Trier Cathedral.
  • In Bamberg Cathedral (middle part of a nail).
  • In the form of a bridle, in the apse of the Cathedral of Milan (see Rito della Nivola).
  • In the form of a bridle, in the cathedral treasury of Carpentras.
  • In the monastery of San Nicolò l'Arena in Catania (head of a nail).
  • In the cathedral of Colle di Val d'Elsa, near Siena.
  • In the Milevsko monastery in the Czech Republic, discovered in 2020 in hidden vault.

Notes

References

  • Holy Nails article in the Catholic Encyclopedia.
  • Saints Alive! Relics of Constantine, and his mother, St. Helen