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'''The Holy Lance''' is the instrument used by the [[Roman]] soldier to pierce the side of [[Jesus]] while on the cross.

'''The Holy Lance''' (also known as the '''Spear of Destiny''', '''Holy Spear''', '''Lance of Longinus''', '''Spear of Longinus''' or '''Spear of Christ''') is the instrument used by the [[Roman]] soldier to pierce the side of [[Jesus]] while on the cross.

The lower section of the Holy Lance was reportedly taken to [[Constantinople]] before 900 and then in 1492 taken to [[Rome]], where it remains at St. Peter's.

There are three accounts of what happened to the lance. The best known is the Constantinople relic, also known as the Vatican Lance. It was found in Constantinople by St. Antoninus of Piacenza in 520 AD. By the 8th century, it had ended up in Paris. After the [[French Revolution]], the Lance was moved to the Vatican, and has not left Rome since.

The broken point of the Holy Lance was reportedly taken to Constantinople also, but then brought to Paris in 1241. Like other religious artifacts, it was lost or destroyed during the [[French Revolution]].

The second relic, the Vienna Lance, belonged to the Holy Roman Emporers. When the French Revolutionary army was approaching Nuremberg, it was moved to Vienna for safe-keeping. In World War 2, it was taken by [[Adolf Hitler]], and at the end of World War 2, it was returned to Austria by General [[George S. Patton]]. It is currently held in the Schatzkammer, in Vienna.

 

The third, the Echmiadzin lance, was discovered by the First Crusade in Echmiadzin, [[Armenia]]. There is no conclusive proof for what happened to the lance after this, but some believe that it fell into the hand of the Turks and is, in fact, the same lance that the Vatican currently holds.

[[category:Christianity]]

[[category:Christianity]]