The Chi Rho (â§, English pronunciation /ËkaÉȘËroÊ/; also known as chrismon[1]) is one of the earliest forms of the
Christogram, formed by superimposing the first two (capital) lettersâ
chi and
rho (ΧΥ)âof the Greek ΧΥÎΣ΀ÎÎŁ (
rom:
Christos) in such a way that the vertical stroke of the rho intersects the center of the chi.[2]
In pre-Christian times, the Chi-Rho symbol was also used to mark a particularly valuable or relevant passage in the margin of a page, abbreviating chrÄston (good).[3] Some coins of
Ptolemy III Euergetes (r. 246â222 BC) were marked with a Chi-Rho.[4]
Although formed of Greek characters, the device (or its separate parts) is frequently found serving as an abbreviation in Latin text, with endings added appropriate to a Latin noun, thus XPo, signifying Christo, "to Christ", the
dative form of Christus,[5] or ÏÏÌ icola, signifying Christicola, "Christian", in the Latin lyrics of Sumer is icumen in.
Origin and adoption
According to
Lactantius,[6] a
Latin historian of
North African origins saved from poverty by the Emperor
Constantine the Great (r. 306â337), who made him tutor to his son
Crispus, Constantine had dreamt of being ordered to put a "heavenly divine symbol" (
Latin: coeleste signum dei) on the
shields of his soldiers. The description of the actual symbol chosen by Emperor Constantine the next morning, as reported by Lactantius, is not very clear: it closely resembles a Tau-Rho or a staurogram (), a similar Christian symbol. That very day Constantine's army fought the forces of
Maxentius and won the
Battle of the Milvian Bridge (312), outside
Rome.
Eusebius of Caesarea (died in 339) gave two different accounts of the events. In his church history, written shortly after the battle, when Eusebius had not yet had contact with Constantine, he does not mention any dream or vision, but compares the defeat of Maxentius (drowned in the
Tiber) to that of the biblical
pharaoh and credits Constantine's victory to divine protection.
In a memoir of the Roman emperor that Eusebius wrote after Constantine's death (On the Life of Constantine,
c. 337â339), a miraculous appearance is said to have come in
Gaul long before the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. In this later version, the Roman emperor had been pondering the misfortunes that befell commanders who invoked the help of many different gods, and decided to seek divine aid in the forthcoming battle from the One God. At noon, Constantine saw a cross of light imposed over the
sun. Attached to it, in Greek characters, was the saying "ÎÎœ ÏÎżÏÏáżł ÎÎŻÎșα!" ("In this, conquer!").[7] Not only Constantine, but the whole army saw the miracle. That night,
Christ appeared to the Roman emperor in a dream and told him to make a replica of the sign he had seen in the sky, which would be a sure defence in battle.
Eusebius wrote in the Vita that Constantine himself had told him this story "and confirmed it with oaths" late in life "when I was deemed worthy of his acquaintance and company." "Indeed", says Eusebius, "had anyone else told this story, it would not have been easy to accept it."
Eusebius also left a description of the
labarum, the military standard which incorporated the Chi-Rho sign, used by Emperor Constantine in his later wars against Licinius.[8]
An early visual representation of the connection between the
Crucifixion of Jesus and his resurrection, seen in the 4th century
sarcophagus of
Domitilla in Rome, the use of a wreath around the Chi-Rho symbolizes the victory of the
Resurrection over death.[11]
After Constantine, the Chi-Rho became part of the official
imperial insignia.
Archaeologists have uncovered evidence demonstrating that the Chi-Rho was
emblazoned on the
helmets of some Late Roman soldiers. Coins and medallions minted during Emperor Constantine's reign also bore the Chi-Rho. By the year 350, the Chi-Rho began to be used on Christian
sarcophagi and
frescoes. The usurper
Magnentius appears to have been the first to use the Chi-Rho monogram flanked by
Alpha and Omega, on the reverse of some coins minted in 353.[12] In
Roman Britannia, a tesselated
mosaic pavement was uncovered at Hinton St. Mary, Dorset, in 1963. On stylistic grounds, it is dated to the 4th century; its central roundel represents a beardless male head and bust draped in a pallium in front of the Chi-Rho symbol, flanked by
pomegranates, symbols of eternal life. Another Romano-British Chi-Rho, in
fresco, was found at the site of a villa at
Lullingstone (illustrated). The symbol was also found on Late Roman Christian signet rings in Britain.[13]
In 2020, archaeologists discovered in
Vindolanda in northern England a 5th-century chalice covered in religious iconography, including the Chi-Rho.[14][15]
Insular Gospel books
In
InsularGospel books, the beginning of Matthew 1:18, at the end of his account of the
genealogy of Christ and introducing his account of the life, so representing the moment of the
Incarnation of Christ, was usually marked with a heavily decorated page, where the letters of the first word "Christi" are abbreviated and written in Greek as "XPI", and often almost submerged by decoration.[16] Though the letters are written one after the other and the "X" and "P" not combined in a monogram, these are known as Chi-Rho pages.
Famous examples are in the
Book of Kells and
Book of Lindisfarne.[17] The "X" was regarded as the crux decussata, a symbol of the cross; this idea is found in the works of
Isidore of Seville and other
patristic and Early Medieval writers.[18] The Book of Kells has a second Chi-Rho abbreviation on folio 124 in the account of the
Crucifixion of Christ,[19] and in some manuscripts the Chi-Rho occurs at the beginning of Matthew rather than mid-text at Matthew 1:18. In some other works like the
CarolingianGodescalc Evangelistary, "XPS" in sequential letters, representing "Christus" is given a prominent place.[20]
Monogramme of Christ (the Chi Rho) on a plaque of a
sarcophagus, 4th-century AD, marble, Musei Vaticani, on display in a temporary exhibition at the Colosseum in Rome, Italy
^von Reden 2007, p. 69: "The chi-rho series of Euergetes' reign had been the most extensive series of bronze coins ever minted, comprising eight denominations from 1 chalkous to 4 obols."
^Lactantius. On the Deaths of the Persecutors, Chapter 44.
^The well known sentence
In hoc signo vinces is simply a later Latin translation of Eusebius's Greek wording.
^Eusebius Pamphilius: Church History, Life of Constantine, Oration in Praise of Constantine, Chapter 31.
^Kenelm Henry Digby, Mores Catholici, Or, Ages of Faith vol. 1 (1844),
p. 300.
^A. L. Millin, Voyage dans le Milanais (1817),
p. 51.
^Harries 2004, p. 8.
Sarcophagus with Scenes of the Passion (probably from the Catacomb of Domitilla), Rome, mid-fourth century. Marble, 23Êș x 80Êș. Museo Pio Christiano, Vatican, Rome.
^In the Latin
Vulgate the verse was "Christi autem generatio sic erat cum esset desponsata mater eius Maria Ioseph antequam convenirent inventa est in utero habens de Spiritu Sancto" ("Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit")
Grigg, Robert (December 1977). ""SymphĆnian AeidĆ tÄs Basileias": An Image of Imperial Harmony on the Base of the Column of Arcadius". The Art Bulletin. 59 (4): 469â482.
doi:
10.2307/3049702.
JSTOR3049702.