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THE PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART/ART RESOURCE, NY

CONSTANTINE’S SIGN. According to Eusebius (the Christian historian and bishop), the emperor Constantine had a vision while marching at midday. A cross appeared in the sky, and a voice said, “With this, you will conquer.” That night, Constantine had a dream that confirmed the symbol and his victory through it. Consequently, Constantine changed his army standard to the Chi-Rho (the first two letters of “Christ”), to which he credited the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in A.D. 312. The painter Peter Paul Rubens portrays this scene in The Emblem of Christ Appearing to Constantine from 1622.