Saints Constantine and Helena

Saints Constantine the Great (c. 272–337 AD) and his mother Helena (c. 250–330 AD) are venerated together as the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles, honored for their pivotal role in establishing Christianity as the faith of the Roman Empire.

Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan in 313 AD, granting religious tolerance throughout the empire and ending the persecution of Christians. He convened the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea in 325 AD and founded Constantinople as the new Christian capital of the empire. He was baptized shortly before his death and is commemorated as a saint in the Orthodox Church.

Saint Helena, his mother, undertook a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in her old age and is credited with discovering the True Cross of Christ in Jerusalem, as well as identifying and building churches over the holy sites of the Nativity and the Ascension. Her feast day, celebrated together with Constantine, is May 21.

Browse our handcrafted Orthodox icons and devotional items honoring Saints Constantine and Helena, made in our Ohio workshop using traditional Byzantine embroidery techniques.