The
papal crown, a costly covering for the head, ornamented with precious stones and pearls, which is shaped like a bee-hive, has a small cross at its highest point, and is also equipped with three royal diadems. On account of the three diadems it is sometimes called triregnum. The tiara is a non-liturgical ornament, which, therefore, is only worn for non-liturgical
ceremonies, ceremonial
procession to church and back, ceremonial
papal processions, such as took place upon stated occasions until
Rome was occupied by the
Piedmontese, and at solemn acts of
jurisdiction, as, for example, solemn
dogmatic decisions. The
pope, like the
bishops, wears a
mitre at pontifical
liturgical functions. The tiara is first mentioned in the "Vita" of
Pope Constantine (708-715) contained in the
"Liber Pontificalis". It is here called camelaucum; it is then mentioned in what is called the "Constitutum Constantini", the supposed
donation of the
Emperor Constantine, probably
forged in the eighth century. Among the prerogatives assigned to the
pope in this document there is especially a white ornament for the head called phrygium, which distinguished him; this naturally presupposes that, at the era the document was written, it was customary for the
pope to wear such a head-covering. Three periods may be distinguished in the development of the tiara. The first period extends to the
time when it was adorned with a royal circlet of diadem; in this period the
papal ornament for the head was, as is clear from the "Constitutum Constantini" and from the ninth Ordo of
Mabillon (ninth century), merely a helmet-like cap of white material. There may have been a trimming around the lower rim of the cap, but this had still in no way the
character of a royal circlet. It is not positively known at which
date the
papal head-covering was adorned with such a circlet. At the
time the
Donation of Constantine appeared, that is in the eighth century, the
papal head-covering had still no royal circlet, as is evident from the text of the document. In the ninth century also such circlet does not seem to have existed. It is
true that the Ninth Ordo calls the
papal cap regnum, but in the description that the Ordo gives of this cap we hear nothing at all of a crown, but merely that the regnum was a helmet-like cap made of white material. The monumental remains give no clue as to the period at which the
papal head-covering became ornamented with a royal circlet. Up into the twelfth century the tiara was not only seldom represented in art, but is is also uncertain whether the ornamental strip on the lower edge is intended to represent merely a trimming or a diadem. This is especially
true of the representation of the tiara on the
coins of
Sergius III (904-911) and
Benedict VII (974-983), the only representations of the tenth century and also the earliest ones. Probably the
papal head-covering received the circlet at the
time when the
mitre developed from the tiara, perhaps in the tenth century, in order to distinguish the
mitre and tiara from each other. In any case the latter was provided with a circlet by about 1130, as is learned from a statement of
Suger of St. Denis. The first
proven appearance of the word tiara as the designation of the
papal head-covering is in the life of
Paschal II (1099-1118), in the
"Liber Pontificalis".
The second period of the development of the tiara extends to the pontificate of
Boniface VIII (1294-1303). There are a large number of representations of the tiara belonging to this period, and of these the Roman ones have naturally the most value. The diadem remained a simple although richly-ornamented
ring up into the second half of the thirteenth century; it then became an antique or tooth-edged crown. The two lappets (caudæ) at the back of the tiara are first seen in the pictures and
sculpture in the thirteenth century, but were undoubtedly customary before this. Strange to say they were black in color, as is evident both from the monumental remains and from the inventories, and this color was retained even into the fifteenth century. When the tiara is represented in
sculpture and
painting as a piece of braiding, this seems to arise from the fact that in the thirteenth century the tiara was made of strips braided together. Of much importance for the tiara was the third period of development that began with the pontificate of
Boniface VIII. It is evident from the
inventory of the
papal treasures of 1295 that the tiara at that era had still only one royal circlet. A change, however, was soon to appear. During the pontificate of
Boniface VIII a second crown was added to the former one. Three
statues of the
pope which were made during his lifetime and under his eyes, and of which two were ordered by
Boniface himself, leave no
doubt as to this. Two of these
statues are in the
crypt of St. Peter's, and the third, generally called
erroneously a
statue of
Nicholas IV, is in the
Church of the Lateran. In all three the tiara has two crowns. What led
Boniface VIII to make this change, whether merely
love of pomp, or whether he desired to express by the tiara with two crowns his opinions concerning the double
papal authority, cannot be determined. The first notice of three crowns is contained in an
inventory of the
papal treasure of the year 1315 or 1316. As to the
tombs of the
popes, the monument of
Benedict XI (d. 1304) at
Perugia shows a tiara of the early kind; the grave and
statue of
Clement V as Uzeste in the Gironde were mutilated by the
Calvinists, so that nothing can be learned from them regarding the form of the tiara. The
statue upon the
tomb of
John XXII is adorned with a tiara having two crowns. The earliest representation of a tiara with three crowns, therefore, is offered by the effigy of
Benedict XII (d. 1342), the remains of which are preserved in the museum at
Avignon. The tiara with three crowns is, consequently, the rule upon the monuments from the second half of the fourteenth century, even though, as an anachronism, there are isolated instances of the tiara with one crown up into the fifteenth century. Since the fifteenth century the tiara has received no changes worthy of note. Costly tiaras were made especially in the pontificates of
Paul II (d. 1464),
Sixtus IV (d. 1484), and above all in the pontificate of
Julius II, who had a tiara valued at 200,000 ducats, made by the jeweller Caradosso of
Milan.
Various hypotheses, some very singular, have been proposed as to the origin of the
papal head-covering, the discussion of which here is unnecessary. The earliest name of the
papal cap, camelaucum, as well as the
Donation of Constantine, clearly point to the Byzantine East; it is hardly to be
doubted that the model from which the
papal cap was taken is to be found in the camelaucum of the
Byzantine court dress. The adoption by the
popes of the camelaucum as an ornament for the head in the seventh or at the latest in the eighth century is sufficiently explained by the important position which they had attained just at this period in
Italy and chiefly at
Rome; though they could not assume a crown, as they were not sovereign, they could wear a camelaucum, which was worn by the dignitaries of the
Byzantine Empire.
Publication informationWritten by Joseph Braun. Transcribed by Tim Drake.
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XIV. Published 1912. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Nihil Obstat, July 1, 1912. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor. Imprimatur
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