10/24/2026
This reliquary inside Notre-Dame de Paris holds the Crown of Thorns, one of Christianity’s most important relics. During public veneration, the Crown is displayed within the golden circle at its center.
According to Christian tradition, the Crown of Thorns was placed on Jesus’s head before the crucifixion. In 1239, King Louis IX of France, later known as Saint Louis, acquired the relic from Constantinople for an enormous sum, reportedly close to half of France’s annual expenditure at the time.
The Crown was considered so important that Saint Louis commissioned Sainte-Chapelle specifically to house it.
Today, the relic is kept in this striking reliquary behind the choir of Notre-Dame. A reliquary is an object designed to house and protect a sacred relic, and this one references the Crown’s long history in the Byzantine Empire. Bronze thorns surround the gilded center where the relic can be placed for public veneration.
Most visitors to Notre-Dame will see only the reliquary itself. The Crown of Thorns is brought out and displayed publicly only on select occasions throughout the year.
