Holy Grail

The Holy Grail was a Biblical artifact said to have supernatural powers.

History
The Grail was believed to be the cup that Jesus Christ used during the Last Supper which was then entrusted to Joseph of Arimathea. It was said that the Grail could give to whomever drank from it eternal life.

The Grail was discovered centuries later, by King Arthur. After the fall of Camelot, it was believed to be delivered by Sir Galahad to a monastery at Iona. The monastery however was sacked by Vikings. .

The Grail was found in the Canyon of the Crescent Moon after the First Crusade by a company of Knights from France, three brothers who swore to protect it. They lived in the cup's sanctuary for nearly 150 years. One of the brothers was chosen to stay behind while the other two returned to Europe, leaving behind a first marker near Ankara about its location. Sir Richard's shield carried another but he died on the return trip, and was buried along with his marker in a tomb in Venice. The third brother returned home and in the 13th century, told his story to a Franciscan monk, who recorded about the whereabouts of the holy relic somewhere "in a canyon deep in a range of mountains" and made a painting about it which was kept in castle Gasthof Trubselig, in Klasenheim.

The Brotherhood of the Cruciform Sword was a secret society who perhaps knew the location and true history of the Grail. They swore to keep it safe from discovery and misuse.

Modern times
Indiana Jones's father, Professor Jones Sr., was obsessed about the Grail after a vision he had in 1898. He made thorough researches and travels for its study and kept several notes about it in his Grail diary.

G. Codirolli while in the ruin of Kaffa, discovered the testament of the Franciscan monk who met the third brother and brought it to Jones.

Professor Jones was hired by antiquities collector Walter Donovan to search for the Grail but ended up captured by the Nazis. Donovan, who was in league with them, also obsessed over the Grail and planned to acquire it and later give it to the Nazis for their own use.

The Grail was located in a mountain-side temple in the Canyon of the Crescent Moon, in the Middle East. In order to reach the cup, the person was required to overcome three challenges. The first was the "Breath of God", the second the "Word of God", and the third being the "Path of God". Afterwards, the person had to defeat the guardian of the Grail in single combat in order to succeed in being guardian. Finally, the person would have to choose which cup was the Grail, for it was placed on a large table amongst other cups. If the person chose right, they would be granted eternal life but cannot leave the temple with the Grail for that is the price of immortality. If the person chose incorrectly, they would have their life taken away.



Indiana recovered the grail in order to heal the gunshot wound that Donovan inflicted upon Henry Jones Sr. After Henry was healed, Elsa Schneider tried to take the grail from the temple. This caused a large earthquake, and the grail fell onto a small ledge in a ravine. Elsa, who had nearly fallen herself, was saved by Indiana and greedily tried to grab the grail below with her free arm. Indiana could not maintain his grip for long and despite his protests, Elsa overreached to grasp the chalice and her hand slipped from its glove where she fell to her death. Indiana nearly tumbled into the abyss himself, but was caught by his father. Indiana, like Elsa, tried to reach the cup, but was persuaded by Henry to let it go.

As a result, the grail was ultimately lost following the events of the adventure, but the experience gave both Indiana and his father the chance to rekindle their rocky relationship.

Behind the scenes
In The Last Crusade adventure game, it is possible to catch the Grail with the whip, and then surrender it back to the Grail Knight. This can be done even before Elsa tries to catch it, and that way, she can live till the end of the game.

The prop Holy Grail currently resides in the Hollywood Museum (housed in the Max Factor building) in Los Angeles, California.

Appearances

 * Young Indiana Jones and the Ghostly Riders
 * The Mata Hari Affair
 * The Day of Destiny
 * The Secret Treaty
 * The Rule of Russia
 * Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb
 * Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
 * Indiana Jones and the Spear of Destiny