Magi: The Three Kings

Orthodox Altar, The Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem

The Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 2: 1 - 12) is the only one of the four canonical gospels in the Bible to mention The Magi, the three wise men or three kings who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  

Nevertheless, the Magi (kings Melchior, Gaspar and Balthasar) are very popular figures in traditional accounts of the nativity celebrations of Christmas and they are an important part of Christian tradition.  The Encyclopedia Britannica states: "according to Western church tradition, Balthasar is often represented as a king of Arabia, Melchior as a king of Persia, and Gaspar as a king of India."

 Above: "The Magi Journeying" ("Les Rois Mages en Voyage") by James Tissot (1836 - 1902).  Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper (Brooklyn Museum, European Art Collection)  Source: Wikimedia Commons.


Traditionally, the term Magus comes from the Latin word for "Master" or "Wise Man."  Magi is the plural form.  The three Magi were thus three masters or three majestic wise men from the East, often thought to be Zoroastrian priests or experts in astronomy, who predicted from the stars that a great king and savior was about to be born.

On finding the baby Jesus, the three wise men gave him three symbolic gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. "The three gifts had a spiritual meaning : gold as a symbol of kingship on earth, frankincense (an incense) as a symbol of deity, and myrrh (an embalming oil) as a symbol of death."

According to Wikipedia, the wise men were not present on the night that Christ was born. Rather, they arrived on the twelfth day of Christmas, twelve days after the Christ's birth.  On the night that the wise men presented their gifts (celebrated in the Christian church as the feast of Epiphany or Twelfth Night) they were "warned in a dream that Judean king Herod intended to kill the child."  They decided to return home by a different route. "This prompted Herod to resort to killing all the young children in Bethlehem, an act called the Massacre of the Innocents, in an attempt to eliminate a rival heir to his throne. Jesus and his family had, however, escaped to Egypt beforehand."

Descendants of the Magi

The legendary Christian ruler of Central Asia, Prester John was reportedly a descendant of one of the Magi.  There is also a tradition that the Central Asian Naimans and their Christian Kerait relatives were descended from the Biblical Magi.  This heritage passed to the Mongol dynasty of Genghis Khan.

Tombs and Relics

Wikipedia:  "There are several traditions on where the remains of the Magi are located, although none of the traditions is considered as an established fact or even as particularly likely by secular history."

Marco Polo claimed that he was shown the three tombs of the Magi at Saveh south of Tehran in the 1270s:

In Persia is the city of Saba, from which the Three Magi set out and in this city they are buried, in three very large and beautiful monuments, side by side. And above them there is a square building, beautifully kept. The bodies are still entire, with hair and beard remaining.

—Marco Polo, The Book of the Million, Book I.

More remarkably, the British have claimed that the remains of the Wise Men were discovered by St. Helena, whom they believe to be a British Princess.  According to the Wikipedia article on St. Helena (empress),  Flavia Iulia Helena Augusta was a daughter of the British King Coel. Born ca. 220 A.D., Helen became the consort of the Roman emperor Constantius Chlorus and the mother of the emperor Constantine the Great, an important figure in the history of Christianity.

"She is traditionally credited with a pilgrimage to Syria Palaestina, during which she discovered the True Cross of Jesus's crucifixion."  St. Helena has been credited as well with the discovery of the bones of the Biblical Magi or Three Wise Men.

"Reputedly they were first discovered by Saint Helena on her famous pilgrimage to Palestine and the Holy Lands. She took the remains to the church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople; they were later moved to Milan (some sources say by the city's bishop, Eustorgius I).

 Above: The Shrine of the Three Kings, Cologne Cathedral, Germany.  Source: Wikimedia Commons. Donated by Arminia (own photo) 26 October 2004.

The relics of the Three Wise Men were taken from Milan to their current resting place, a Shrine of the Three Kings at Cologne Cathedral, by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I in AD 1164.

Altarpiece of the Three Magi, Cologne Cathedral

From the Wikipedia article on Cologne Cathedral:

"The most celebrated work of art in the cathedral is the Shrine of the Three Kings, commissioned by Philip von Heinsberg, archbishop of Cologne from 1167 to 1191 and created by Nicholas of Verdun, began in 1190. It is traditionally believed to hold the remains of the Three Wise Men, whose relics were acquired by Frederick Barbarossa at the conquest of Milan in 1164. The shrine takes the form a large reliquary in the shape of a basilican church, made of bronze and silver, gilded and ornamented with architectonic details, figurative sculpture, enamels and gemstones. The shrine was opened in 1864 and was found to contain bones and garments."

The Milanese celebrate their part in the tradition by holding a medieval costume parade every 6 January.

Spanish customs

The Three Wise Men receiving children at a shopping centre in Spain. Letters with gift requests are left in the letterbox on the left-hand side.

According to Wikipedia: "Western Christianity celebrates the Magi on the day of Epiphany, January 6, the day immediately following the twelve days of Christmas, particularly in the Spanish-speaking parts of the world. In these areas, the Three Kings ("los Reyes Magos de Oriente", also "Los Tres Reyes Magos" and "Los Reyes Magos") receive letters from children and so bring them gifts on the night before Epiphany. In Spain, each one of the Magi is supposed to represent one different continent, Europe (Melchior), Asia (Caspar) and Africa (Balthasar).

According to the tradition, the Magi come from the Orient on their camels to visit the houses of all the children; much like Santa Claus with his reindeer, they visit everyone in one night. In some areas, children prepare a drink for each of the Magi. It is also traditional to prepare food and drink for the camels, because this is the only night of the year when they eat."