2-999-587 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Saint Helena, c1575. St. Helena (ca. 247-ca. 327) was the mother of Emperor Constantine the Great (ca. 288-337), who, according to tradition, christianized the Roman Empire. Helena is shown holding the True Cross (the cross on which Christ was crucified), which she is said to have discovered in Jerusalem. Her elaborate headdress and idealized, slightly masculine facial features reveal the artist's study of Michelangelo's so-called "teste divine" ("divine heads"), admired for their great beauty.