Helena was born in Asia Minor around 246 or 248 AD, possibly in the city of Drepanum (near modern day Hersek, Turkey), which was named Helenopolis in her honor after her death in 330. She married the emperor Constantius Chlorus in 270, when he was in the region, and gave birth to Constantine sometime thereafter. They divorced in or around 289, however, when Constantius married the daughter of Maximian, probably for political reasons. Helena and her son were sent to Nicomedia, where Constantine became a member of the court of Diocletian from 293-305.Drijvers, J.W., Helena Augusta (Leiden 1992) 11. In 306 Constantine was proclaimed emperor, and Helena moved to his court. Some years later, from 326 to 328 she went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and this is where the legendary Helena comes to the forefront. Fourth century sources tell us of how Helena took down the temple of Venus, built by Hadrian in the 130s, which was built on the supposed grave of Jesus Christ. She found the remains of three crosses in the process, one of which turned out to be the cross of Christ, the True Cross. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was built on the site of the discovery afterwards. Helena then took the cross and other relics with her back to Rome in 328, where they remain until the present day. Two years later, around or in 330, Helena died, but her legacy would remain.