CRUSADERS. Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. Amaury, 1163-1174. Denier (Silver, 17 mm, 0.80 g, 12 h). AMALRICVS REX Cross with pellets in two angles. Rev. ✠ DE IERVSALEM Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. CCS 23. Metcalf, Crusades 171. Light areas of weakness, otherwise, good very fine.


The reverse of this coin depicts the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of Christianity’s holiest sites. Originally constructed by the architect Zenobios under the direction of Constantine the Great (r. 307–337), the sanctuary consisted of two separate chambers: one covering the site where Helena, Constantine’s mother, believed Christ to have been buried, and the other over Golgotha, the reputed site of Christ’s crucifixion. The church was consecrated on December 13, 335, but suffered severe damage in 614 when the Sasanian Shah, Khosrau II, captured Jerusalem and took the True Cross.

Rebuilt by Heraclius in 630, the church endured further damage from earthquakes and fires throughout the 8th, 9th, and 10th centuries, culminating in its complete demolition on October 18, 1009, by order of the Fatimid caliph, al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah. Outraged, the Byzantine Empire entered negotiations with al-Hakim’s successor, Ali az-Zahir, resulting in a scaled-down reconstruction of the church. In exchange, the Byzantines agreed to reopen a mosque in Constantinople and release 5,000 Muslim prisoners of war.