Tiara of Pope Paul VI
Encyclopedia
Papal Tiara
The Papal Tiara, also known incorrectly as the Triple Tiara, or in Latin as the Triregnum, in Italian as the Triregno and as the Trirègne in French, is the three-tiered jewelled papal crown, supposedly of Byzantine and Persian origin, that is a prominent symbol of the papacy...
worn to date. It was donated by the see
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
when its cardinal, Giovanni Montini, was elected Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
in the 1963 papal conclave
Papal conclave, 1963
The Papal conclave of 1963 was convoked following the death of Pope John XXIII on June 3 of that same year in the Apostolic Palace. After the cardinal electors assembled in Rome, the conclave to elect John's successor began on June 19 and ended two days later, on June 21, after six ballots. The...
. It was this tiara that was used to crown Pope Paul VI in 1963, which was the last papal coronation to date. Previously, the Palatine Tiara
Palatine Tiara
The Palatine Tiara is the most widely used Papal Tiara in the possession of the Vatican. It was donated to Pope Pius IX in 1877 by the Holy See's Palatine Guard to commemorate his jubilee as a bishop...
had been used in coronations since 1877.
Distinctive design
Pope Paul's tiara was distinctive in many ways. As with some other papal tiaras, it was made of a solid silver exterior over a felt lay. Unlike other tiaras it was almost totally devoid of jewelGemstone
A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...
s, with the three crowns represented by three rings that ran around the tiara, on which sat a handful of small jewels in isolation, in addition to the aquamarines set in the center of each of the fleur-de-lis which make up the gold circlet at the base of the tiara.
Weight
Though lacking in jewels, Pope Paul's tiara weighs 10 lbPound (mass)
The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...
(4.5 kg
Kilogram
The kilogram or kilogramme , also known as the kilo, is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units and is defined as being equal to the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram , which is almost exactly equal to the mass of one liter of water...
) in contrast to the 2 lb (0.9 kg) weight of the previously-used Palatine Tiara
Palatine Tiara
The Palatine Tiara is the most widely used Papal Tiara in the possession of the Vatican. It was donated to Pope Pius IX in 1877 by the Holy See's Palatine Guard to commemorate his jubilee as a bishop...
.
Tiara given to the United States
Pope Paul wore his tiara a number of times in 1963, before, in a dramatic act in November 1963, laying it on the altar of St. Peter's BasilicaSt. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian as ' and commonly known as Saint Peter's Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City. Saint Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church in the world...
in a gesture of humility to symbolise the papacy's surrender of any claim to temporal power. He never wore it again. It was announced that the tiara would be sold and the proceeds of the sale given to charity. However, Francis Spellman, Cardinal Archbishop of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
intervened and arranged instead for the tiara to be bought by the Catholic Church in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1968.
It is now on permanent display in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is a prominent Latin Rite Catholic basilica located in Washington, D.C., honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary as Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, the Patroness of the United States...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
"Surrender" of tiara praised and condemned
Pope Paul's decision to decline to wear his papal tiara won both praise and condemnation. Liberals and Progressives praised the act as being in step with the "sign of the times" and marking a rebirth of a new, more informal papacy. In contrast Conservatives criticised the act as a betrayal of the traditional papacy. Fringe groups associated with sedevacantistSedevacantism
Sedevacantism is the position held by a minority of Traditionalist Catholics who hold that the present occupant of the papal see is not truly Pope and that, for lack of a valid Pope, the see has been vacant since the death of either Pope Pius XII in 1958 or Pope John XXIII in 1963.Sedevacantists...
and conclavist
Conclavism
Conclavism is the belief and practice of some who, claiming that Pope Benedict XVI, Pope John Paul II and other recent occupants of the papal see are not true popes, elect someone else and propose him as the true pope to whom the allegiance of Catholics is due....
organisations suggested that only an antipope
Antipope
An antipope is a person who opposes a legitimately elected or sitting Pope and makes a significantly accepted competing claim to be the Pope, the Bishop of Rome and leader of the Roman Catholic Church. At times between the 3rd and mid-15th century, antipopes were typically those supported by a...
would "surrender" the symbol of the papacy in a photo-opportunity, with some groups using Pope Paul's actions as evidence that he was not the true pope.
Tiara not abolished
Pope Paul, while choosing not to wear his tiara, nevertheless never abolished the use of papal tiaras, explicitly requiring in his 1975 Apostolic ConstitutionApostolic constitution
An apostolic constitution is the highest level of decree issued by the Pope. The use of the term constitution comes from Latin constitutio, which referred to any important law issued by the Roman emperor, and is retained in church documents because of the inheritance that the canon law of the...
Romano Pontifici Eligendo
Romano Pontifici Eligendo
Romano Pontifici Eligendo was the Apostolic Constitution governing the election of popes that was promulgated by Pope Paul VI in 1975. It instituted a number of far-reaching reforms in the process of electing popes.- Ban on cardinals over eighty voting :...
that his successor be crowned. However his successor, Pope John Paul I
Pope John Paul I
John Paul I , born Albino Luciani, , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and as Sovereign of Vatican City from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history, resulting in the most recent Year of Three Popes...
, after a major argument, refused to wear any tiara. Neither Popes John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
nor Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
opted to wear a papal tiara, though the option remains that Benedict or his successors could do so if they so choose.
Footnotes
- The Montana-based sedevacanist true Catholic Church, among others, makes that claim.
- Romano Pontifici Eligendo (1975), No. 92.
- Universi Dominici Gregis (1996), No. 92.