Boniface VIII (1294–1303), the founder of the Holy Years, had a flair for pomp and circumstance. Several times he appeared before the pilgrims in imperial robes crying “I am Caesar. I am emperor.” According to reports his papal crown contained forty-eight rubies, seventy-two sapphires, forty-five emeralds, and sixty-six large pearls. He could afford to be generous with pardons for spiritual pilgrims. At the Church of St. Paul, according to one chronicler, generous celebrants kept two priests busy night and day “raking together infinite money.
