All the faces of ST. Helena for International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day saw a major homage to the figure of Helena, who, in her long life, played many roles: she was mother of the celebrated Emperor Constantine, Empress and Augusta of a vast empire and finally saint, linked to the cult of the “true cross”.

Bracco Foundation, in collaboration with the Diocesan Museum and the Municipality of Milan, organised the meeting “Helena, a woman of faith, culture and power” in Palazzo Reale, Milan: the first of two initiatives in the context of the international exhibition Constantine 313 A.D., of which Bracco Foundation is Main Partner, to look into the nature of this great historical figure and the context in which she lived.

A traveller of classic antiquity, charismatic and extraordinary, she passed through history leaving a distinctive heritage which, after 1700 years, still has much to tell the contemporary world. Speaking of this were Elisabetta Soglio with Diana Bracco, Gemma Sena Chiesa, Francesca Zajczyk; and also Elena Calandra, author of the book “Helena, in the shadow of power”, published by Electa and Bracco Foundation. The meeting was hosted by the Constantine 313 A.D. exhibition which recounted, with works and archaeological finds, the Milan of that period: the city which with the Edict of Constantine became a symbol of the integration of faiths and races.