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History remembers Helena (c. 248–329 AD) as a heavenly saint, but modern scholarship suggests a far more earthly, human drama: a study in survival and the psychological drive for restorative justice. Born at the bottom of the social pyramid — a low-status
stabularia (stable-maid), or perhaps even a slave — Helena lived within the context of ancient Rome by her ancillary association with powerful men. When her partner, Constantius, discarded her in 289 AD to marry into the imperial family and join the Tetrarchy, he didn't just end a romance; he effectively erased Helena’s status and relegated their son, Constantine, to the position of an illegitimate outsider. For twenty years, Helena lived in the shadows. Meanwhile, her son was raised at the court of senior Augustus Diocletian, essentially held hostage to ensure Constantius’ loyalty. This shared pathos would ultimately forge a bond that transcended the usual mother-son relationship and catalyzed the transformation of the Roman Empire.
Evidence of this bond is found in Constantine’s efforts in rehabilitating his mother Helena. In 312 AD, she was recalled back into public life by her son Constantine, after the latter secured sole control over the Western portion of the Roman Empire. Interestingly, Helena’s rehabilitation occurred in parallel with Constantine’s eventual adoption of Christianity, which was legalized shortly after Helena’s recall with the 313 AD Edict of Milan (it specified that all religions were legitimate to practice, poly- and monotheistic). Around 318, as Constantine began the removal of pagan symbols within the imperium, coins were struck honoring Helena using the epithet of HELE-NA N F, denoting the status as
Nobilissima Femina, or Most Noble Woman.
Also paralleling Helena’s rehabilitation were other key, monumental developments. In 324 AD, Constantine finally managed to gain control over the Roman Empire in its entirety. It was also around this time that Helena ws named Augusta, an honor that had not been bestowed to an Emperor’s mother in a century.
Evidence of Helena’s status is confirmed on coinage such as this nummus struck in Siscia around 328–329 AD. The obverse portrait of Helena, far younger than her actual age of about seventy, manifests her physiognomic linkage to Constantine. The accompanying epithet FL HELENA AVGVSTA denotes Helena’s further linkage with Constantine; she now is member of the imperial club within its top echelon. As further advertisement of this supreme status, Helena is depicted wearing an imperial diadem. Such an honor was previously reserved only for the highest echelons of the Tetrarchy. This symbolism explicitly advertises that Helena has now overrode her low-born origins.
Further indicative of Helena’s rehabilitation can be found on the coin’s reverse. Depicted here is the figure of Securitas, the personification of security. The selection of Securitas for this coin may be an acknowledgement of the peace that Constantine and Helena finally found in their reunion after a lifetime of instability. Likewise, the war-torn Empire could finally be at peace, and the reverse inscription of SECVRITAS REIPVBLICE promotes the security of the republic. This imagery was a masterstroke of propaganda. This imagery suggests that the stability of the Empire is guaranteed no longer by the Emperor’s sword, but by the watchful eye of the Rome’s matriarch.
This coin, along with millions of others contemporaneously produced, broadcast to Romans everywhere that the woman the system had discarded was, in fact, now the Empire’s matriarch. Indeed, Helena’s rehabilitation was total and highly visible. While Constantine focused on the frontiers and his new capital in the East, Helena became his most trusted surrogate in Rome. She wasn't just a figurehead; she was a political powerhouse tasked with important operations such as overseeing massive imperial construction projects. For a woman who once endured subordination and was perhaps a slave, she was now the most prominent person in the eternal city, overseeing day-to-day operations in Rome while the Emperor was away.
Beyond being honored on coinage and overseeing construction projects in Rome, Helena became famous for her association with Rome’s growing fascination with monotheism. Particularly famous were her travels in the late 320s to Palestine, purportedly to seek out important Judeo-Christian relics and claim them for the Roman Empire. The expedition’s excavations and related searches purportedly uncovered a variety of interesting religious items, such as remains of a tunic, a cross, pieces of rope, and even some nails, all reportedly originating from Christ’s crucifixion. Furthermore, wishing to provide her son with divine support in running the Roman Empire, Helena purportedly had one of the nails placed in Constantine’s helmet and another in the bridle of his horse.
While the story of Helena’s quest for the True Cross is inspiring, modern scholarship had revealed this interpretation as anachronistic as was the very concept of a pilgrimage at that time. Instead, Helena was sent to serve as an imperial "weather eye," keeping watch over the volatile Eastern territories recently scarred by civil war. She traveled not as a penitent, but as her son’s most trusted surrogate, authorized to settle political debts and implement religious reforms. It was a staggering responsibility for a woman in her late 70s and it would prove to be her final achievement.
Helena died shortly thereafter, likely in Serdica, in the presence of her son. Constantine returned her remains to Rome to be interred in a massive mausoleum that functioned as both a tomb and a basilica. Even in death, Constantine continued to use Helena’s image as a tool of imperial communication, strategically employing her memory to stabilize the dynasty during times of crisis.
In the end, Helena’s life serves as the ultimate historical reversal. She outlasted the husband who discarded her and the social system that shunned her. She did more than join the imperial fold. She helped to redefine it. Unlike the Roman matriarchs before her, Helena’s deification came not through pagan apotheosis, but through Christian canonization. While it is not incorrect to remember her as a saint, her life's path was that of a maid who became a matriarch: the bearer of an Emperor and the nurturer of a transformed Empire.
Additional Reading: J Hillner,
Helena Augusta: Mother of the Empire, 2022.
Coin Details: ROMAN EMPIRE, Helena, AE Nummus, Struck in Siscia 328-329 AD, NGC Grade: MS, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 4/5, Obverse: Diademed, mantled bust right, wearing necklace, FL HELENA AVGVSTA, Reverse: Securitas standing left, lowering branch in right hand and raising hem of robe with left, SECVRITAS REIPVBLICE, mintmark epsilon SIS double-crescent in exergue, References: RIC VII Siscia 218; Sear 16610; LRBC 741.
Image: Sony ɑ 7R Ⅴ camera / Sony FE 90mm f/2.8 Macro G OSS lens.