The coronation of Pope Pius XII in 1939. The ceremonial owed its origins to Byzantine court ritual

The origins of the Papal Tiara remain somewhat clouded in mystery. The word tiara itself occurs in the classical annals to denote a Persian headdress, particularly that of the "great king." A camelaucum which was similar in shape to papal tiaras, was part of court dress in Byzantium. Given that other rituals associated with the Papal Coronation, notably the use of the sedia gestatoria, were copied from Byzantine and eastern imperial ceremonial, it is likely that the tiara is also of Byzantine origin. This work is copyrighted. ... This work is copyrighted. ... The Venerable Pope Pius XII, born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (March 2, 1876 – October 9, 1958), reigned as Pope and sovereign of Vatican City from March 2, 1939 to 1958. ... Persia and Persian can refer to: the Western name for the state of Iran. ... Byzantium was the original name of the modern city of Istanbul. ... Pope Pius XII, in coronation robes and wearing the 1877 Papal Tiara, is carried through St. ... Pope John Paul I being carried on the Sedia Gestatoria The sedia gestatoria is the portable throne on which Popes are sometimes carried. ...

First mention

What is known is that a form of papal tiara is first mentioned in the "Vita" of Pope Constantine (eighth century) contained in the "Liber Pontificalis". In the text it was called the camelaucum. It subsequently was mentions in the supposed Donation of Constantine which is generally believed now to have been forged in the 8th century. Constantinus (d. ... The Donation of Constantine (Latin, Constitutum Donatio Constantini) is a forged Roman imperial edict, purportedly issued by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in AD 324, and granting Pope Sylvester I and his successors sovereignty and spiritual authority over Rome, Italy, and the entire Western Roman Empire. ... (7th century — 8th century — 9th century — other centuries) Events The Iberian peninsula is taken by Arab and Berber Muslims, thus ending the Visigothic rule, and starting almost 8 centuries of Muslim presence there. ...

Pope Bonaface wearing an early tiara.

scanned from old book File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... scanned from old book File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

Papal headgear

Popes since ancient times had worn some sort of head covering. By the 9th century it would appear that this took the form of a helmet-shaped white head-cap. Pope Gregory the Great (r. 590-604) is shown in contemporary artwork wearing such a headpiece. When exactly it developed its first lower tiara is unclear, though the Catholic Encyclopaedia speculates that it was in or around the 10th century, perhaps to distinguish the ceremonial papal head covering from the ecclesiastical one, the Mitre, which appeared around this era. The first explicit mention of the word tiara associated with the papacy appears in the account of the life of Pope Paschal II (r1099-1118) in the Liber Pontificalis. ( 8th century - 9th century - 10th century - other centuries) Events Beowulf might have been written down in this century, though it could also have been in the 8th century Reign of Charlemagne, and concurrent (and controversially labeled) Carolingian Renaissance in western Europe Viking attacks on Europe begin Oseberg ship burial The... Gregory I Pope Saint Gregory I or Gregory the Great (called the Dialogist in Eastern Orthodoxy) (c. ... A Reign is a period of time a person serves as a monarch or pope. ... Events September 3 - St. ... Events Saint Laurence becomes Archbishop of Canterbury. ... ( 9th century - 10th century - 11th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000. ... The mitre or miter is a traditional, ceremonial head-dress of bishops in the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion and Eastern Orthodoxy. ... Paschal II, né Ranierius (d. ... A Reign is a period of time a person serves as a monarch or pope. ... Events Siege of Jerusalem during the First Crusade: July 8 - 15,000 starving Christian soldiers march around Jerusalem as its Muslim defenders mock them. ... Events Knights Templar founded Baldwin of Le Bourg succeeds his cousin Baldwin I as king of Jerusalem John II Comnenus succeeds Alexius I as Byzantine emperor Gelasius II succeeds Paschal II as pope Births December 21 - Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury Taira no Kiyomori, Japanese general Deaths January 21 - Pope...

A decorated circlet or ornamental band which may be the origins of the first tier of the tiara, is shown on coins of Pope Sergius III (r. 904-911) and Pope Benedict VII (r. 974-983) Pope Sergius III, scion of Benedictus, of a noble Roman family, reigned in two intervals between 897 and April 14, 911, during a period of feudal violence and disorder in central Italy, where the Papacy was a pawn of warring aristocratic factions. ... A Reign is a period of time a person serves as a monarch or pope. ... Events Accession of Sergius III Destruction of Changan, the capital of Tang Dynasty and the largest city in the ancient world. ... This article is about the year 911 A.D. For other uses, see 911 (disambiguation). ... Pope Benedict VII (died 983) belonged to the noble family of the counts of Tusculum. ... Events Antipope Boniface VII succeeds Pope Benedict VI. The Byzantine Empire retakes Syria including Aleppo from the Abbasids. ... Events Hugh Capet, a distant relative of the last Carolingian king of the Franks, is crowned King of France, beginning the Capetian dynasty and, arguably, modern French history. ...

Second tier

Pope Nicholas I is thought to have been the first to unite the princely crown with the white headcovering. However the common belief that Pope Boniface VIII (r. 1294-1303) around 1300 added the second crown, is disputed. While an inventory of the papal treasures in 1295 suggests that the tiara had at that stage only one tier, Pope Innocent III (r. 1198-1216) is represented wearing a two tiered crown in a painting that predates Boniface. Nicholas I,(c. ... Boniface VIII, né Benedict Gaetano ( 1235 - October 11, 1303) was Pope of the Roman Catholic Church from 1294 to 1303. ... A Reign is a period of time a person serves as a monarch or pope. ... Events Catholicos of Armenia returns to Sis Pope Boniface VIII becomes Pope Births Charles IV of France Deaths John I of Brabant Roger Bacon – English philosopher and scientist Kublai Khan Categories: 1294 ... Events On the 20 April, Pope Boniface VIII founds the University of Rome La Sapienza Edward I of England reconquers Scotland (see also: William Wallace, Wars of Scottish Independence) The Khilji Dynasty conquers Chittor Births Saint Birgitta, patron saint of Europe Deaths October 11 - Pope Boniface VIII Categories: 1303 ... Events Beginning of the Renaissance. ... Innocent III, né Lotario de Conti ( 1161–June 16, 1216), was Pope from January 8, 1198 until his death. ... Events End of the reign of Emperor Go-Toba of Japan Emperor Tsuchimikado ascends to the throne of Japan January 8 - Pope Innocent III ascends Papal Throne Frederick II, infant son of German King Henry VI, crowned King of Sicily Births August 24 - Alexander II of Scotland (d. ... Events Prince Louis of France, the future King Louis VIII, invades England in the First Barons War Henry III becomes King of England. ...

18th century papal tiara
The oldest survival tiara in the papal collection.

What is certain, from statues of Boniface made during his lifetime and which he saw (and so did not dispute the accuracy of), is that he wore a two-tiered tiara, so the two-tiered tiara dates no later than his reign. Two of these statues of Pope Boniface are in the crypt of St. Peter's Basilica. Why the second tiara was added is not formally stated in any documents, but historians such as James-Charles Noonan suggest that it may have been symbolic of growing papal claims to both temporal and spiritual power, the two tiers in the papal crown contrasting with the single tier of standard monarchical crowns. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The Basilica of Saint Peter, portrayed by Viviano Codazzi in a 1630 painting, is the largest church in Christendom and often used by the Pope. ... By the expression temporal power is commonly indicated the political and governmental activity of the Popes of the Roman Catholic Church, as distinguished from their spiritual and pastoral activity (also called eternal power). ... A monarch is a type of ruler or head of state. ...

Third tier

The first notice of three crowns appears in an inventory of the papal treasures of the year 1315 or 1316. An effigy of Pope Benedict XII, which is on display in Avignon shows him wearing a three-tiered tiara. Events August 13 - Louis X of France marries Clemence dAnjou. ... Events Pope John XXII elected to the papacy. ... Benedict XII, né Jacques Fournier ( 1280s – April 24, 1342), was pope from 1334 to 1342. ... Coat of arms of Avignon Avignon (pronounced in IPA, Provençal: Avignoun) is a commune in southern France with some 88,300 inhabitants in the city itself and 155,500 in the Greater Avignon area. ...

The lappets (two decorated strips of cloth which hang at the back of a tiara) are shown in paintings from the 13th century but may well have existed before then. (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ...

Chronology uncertain

Constructing a certain chronology for the evolution of the three tiers on the papal tiara is problematical, given the lack of definitive records and conflicting evidence in contemporary artistic representation of popes. While it is certain that the three tiers had been introduced by the 14th century as late as the 15th century some representations were still appearing in art which showed the existence of a single-tiered tiara. (13th century - 14th century - 15th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 14th century was that century which lasted from 1301 to 1400. ... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ...

References

• Catholic Encylopaedia (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14714c.htm)
• Noonan, James-Charles. (1996). The Church Visible: The Ceremonial Life and Protocol of the Roman Catholic Church. New York: Viking. ISBN 0670867454.

Papal Tiara series

Coronation | Inauguration | Papal Tiara | Decoration of the Papal Tiara | List of Tiaras | Origins of the Papal Tiara | Vicarius Filii Dei Download high resolution version (800x1294, 286 KB) This work is copyrighted. ... Pope Pius XII, in coronation robes and wearing the 1877 Papal Tiara, is carried through St. ... Pope John Paul I at the first papal inauguration, in September 1978. ... 1834 Tiara of Pope Gregory XVI The Papal Tiara, also known as the Triple Tiara, in Latin as the Triregnum, or in Italian as the Triregno,[1] is the three-tiered jewelled papal crown of Byzantine and Persian origin that is the symbol of the papacy. ... 16th century Papal Tiara, the oldest surviving tiara in the papal collection. ... Pope John XXIII moments after his coronation in 1958. ... Vicarius Filii Dei, Vicar of the Son of God in Latin, is a title mentioned in the Donation of Constantine as belonging to Saint Peter. ...