All language subtitles for Expedition.Unknown.S02E10.True.Cross.of.Christ.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-BurCyg.en

♪♪

These Are Pieces
Of The Original True Cross?

Look At
The Size Of This Place.

Maybe The Tunnel
To The True Cross.

Nobody's Been Back There
For A Thousand Years, Probably.

Hershkovitz: You Wield One
Of The Most Important Artifacts

Ever Found
In The World.

Ah, Interesting!
What Is It?

It Feels Like There's A Cavity
Under It.

Whoa!

Ah,
Look At That!

♪♪

The Cross Of Jesus Christ.

It Is The Most Recognized
Religious Icon On Earth.

A Relic
With Mystical Healing Powers

And A Symbol Of Christianity

For Over A Billion Believers
Worldwide.

The True Cross
Is An Archaeological Treasure

Without Equal,

But Its Journey Through History

Has Been So Clouded
With Intrigue And Legend

That Today,
Its Fate Is Unknown.

So Does The Cross --
Or Pieces Of It -- Still Exist?

And If So, Can They Be Found?

There Are Many
Who Claim To Possess Fragments

From This Holiest Of Relics,

But It's Unclear
If Any Are Authentic.

But Now Startling Evidence
Is Emerging From The Holy Land

That Could Bring The Cross

From The Realm Of Faith
To The World Of Science.

And Recently,
A Turkish Archaeologist

Announced A Stunning Find,

Potentially Pinpointing
The Location

Of A Lost Piece Of The Crucifix.

For 2,000 Years,
Scholars, Theologians,

And Armies Have Sought
The True Cross Of Jesus.

It Is A Quest
Of Biblical Proportions.

And Now, For The First Time, We
May Have A Prayer Of Succeeding.

My Name Is Josh Gates.

With A Degree In Archaeology
And A Passion For Exploration...

I Have A Tendency To End Up
In Some Very Strange Situations.

Good Lord!

[ Laughs ]

My Travels Have Taken Me
To The Ends Of The Earth

As I Investigate
The Greatest Legends In History.

We're Good To Fly.
Let's Go.

This Is...

--Captions By Vitac--
Www.Vitac.Com

Captions Paid For By
Discovery Communications

♪♪

Welcome To Israel.

Aka The Promised Land.

Temperature Today,
195,000 Degrees.

Roughly.

Searching For
The True Cross Of Jesus

May Seem On The Surface Like
A Really Daunting Challenge,

But It Is Also A Missing Object.

And Like Any Missing Object,

The Best Place To Look For It
Is The Last Place It Was Seen.

♪♪

My Quest Is Taking Me Into
The Ancient City Of Jerusalem,

The Site
Of The Crucifixion Of Jesus.

[ Speaking Native Language ]

What He Said.

The City Walls
Stand 40 Feet Tall.

They Guard A Precious Parcel
Of Land Steeped In Religion

And Coveted By Empires
For Thousands Of Years.

The Old City Of Jerusalem.

There Is Nowhere In The World
Like It.

It's One
Of Those Exotic Destinations

That Looks Exactly
The Way You Think It Should.

It Is A Crush Of Humanity.

It Is A Cacophony Of Sound,

And A Nexus
For The World's Great Religions.

So There's Nothing Unusual
About Seeing An Orthodox Jew

Passing A Devout Muslim,

Or Shops Selling
Crucifixes Mixed With Yarmulkes.

Jerusalem Packs A Historic Punch
In Very Close Quarters.

Three Of The Holiest Sites

Of The Three Major
Western Religions

Are All Sitting In A Space
Smaller Than Central Park.

And It Isn't
An Easy Coexistence.

♪♪

To Followers Of Judaism,
No Shrine Carries More Weight

Than The 2,000-Year-Old Western,
Or Wailing, Wall.

♪♪

It Is The Only Remaining
Foundation Of A Temple Platform

That Was Once Home
To The Ark Of The Covenant.

Looming Just Overhead
Is The Dome Of The Rock,

One Of The Most Revered
Locations In The Islamic World.

That's Where Doctrine Says

Mohammed Made His Ascent
To Heaven.

And Just A Few Steps Away
Is My Destination.

♪♪

This Is The Church
Of The Holy Sepulchre,

Though It Feels
Less Like A Church

And More Like A Small City
In Here.

It Is Absolutely Massive.

It Has A Long
And Mysterious History,

And It Is Also The Single
Holiest Site In The World

For Christians.

The Church Is Home
To The Former Tomb Of Jesus,

As Well As The Slab His Body
Was Laid On After He Died.

But There's Something Else Here,
Too.

According To The New Testament,
The Romans Crucified Jesus

And Two Thieves
On A Hill Named Golgotha.

History Then Loses Sight
Of The Cross.

But Then, In The 4Th Century,
The Roman Emperor Constantine --

Who Had Converted
To Christianity --

Sends His Mother, Helena,
To The Holy Land.

Her Mission Is To Find
Artifacts Related To Jesus.

♪♪

Armed With Nearly Unlimited
Funds And Power,

She Leads An Excavation

Under The Rubble
Of The Hill Of Golgotha.

Legend Has It
That She Finds A Buried Cross

And Tests It By Asking A Sick
Woman To Touch The Wooden Relic.

When It Miraculously Cures Her,

Helena
Declares The True Cross Found.

But Today, You Won't Find
The Hill Of Golgotha On Any Map.

That's Because The Church
Of The Holy Sepulchre

Was Built Right On Top Of It.

When We Think Of The
Crucifixion, We Think Of A Hill.

And Believe It Or Not,
Though It Doesn't Look Like It,

I'm Actually
Standing On That Hill.

And This Is The Place Where,

Reportedly, Jesus
And Two Thieves Where Crucified.

And 300 Years
After That Crucifixion,

Helena Shows Up

And Begins Constructing A Church
On Top Of The Hill.

The Church Completely Encases
The Site Of The Crucifixion

And The Place Where Helena
Unearthed The True Cross.

To Find Out More About The Fate
Of The Cross

And Whether Helena's Story
Is A Myth,

I've Been Granted An Audience

With An Archbishop
Of The Greek Orthodox Church,

Who Maintains The Site.

♪♪

It's Very Nice
To Meet You.

This Is One Of The Most
Spectacular Rooms

I Think
I've Ever Been In.

I Think When Many People
Who've Never Been Here

Think About
The Crucifixion

Or The The Tomb Of Jesus,
They Picture An Outdoor Space.

They Picture A Hill,
They Picture A Cave.

For A First-Time Person
Seeing It, It's Very Surprising.

Do We Know How Long It
Took Helena To Find The Cross?

A Year Of Searching?

And Once She Finds The Holy
Cross, What Does She Do With It?

But Did Helena Really Find
The Hill Where Jesus Was Buried?

I Ask If There Are Any Off-Limit
Sections Of The Church.

Is It Possible
To See Those Places?

To Help Me Understand
The History

Behind The Helena Story,
The Archbishop

Leads Me To Where She Claimed
To Find The Cross In 326 A.D.

♪♪

Underneath The Holy Sepulchre,

We Wind Through Seldom Seen
Ancient Passages

And Secret Tunnels Dug
Into The Hillside Of Golgotha.

It Just
Goes On And On.

Making Our Way
To The Execution Site Of Jesus.

♪♪

Are We Underneath
The Crucifixion Site, Here?

You Know,
When You're Up Inside The Church

And You See
The Crucifixion Site,

It's Very Hard
To See It As A Hill.

You Don't Realize The Church Has
Just Been Planted On Top Of It.

Where Did
She Find The Cross?

So A Little Bit
Further Down The Hill?

The Geology Here
Corroborates The Helena Legend.

But What About The Small Piece
Of The Cross

That She Supposedly Left Behind
In Jerusalem?

Well, The Archbishop
Has An Answer For That, Too.

It's Right Here In The Church.

♪♪

Gates:
In Jerusalem,

On The Search For
The True Cross Of Jesus Christ,

I've Been Granted Special Access

To The Church
Of The Holy Sepulchre.

The Archbishop Here Is About To
Show Me A Few Staggering Relics.

♪♪

These Crosses Are Made
Out Of Brass And Wood,

But The Real Treasure Is Behind
A Layer Of Embedded Glass.

Inside Are Small Shards
Of What The Church Claims

To Be The Crucifixion Cross
Of Jesus Christ.

Gates:
These Are Extraordinary.

These Are Pieces
Of The Original True Cross?

Wow.

Have You Ever Tested
The Wood Inside The Cross

To Find Out Age
Or Carbon Dating Of Any Kind?

Or Has It Always
Been Inside The Cross?

And Would You Ever
Have It Tested?

Like The Other Relics Here,
This Is An Article Of Faith.

So For The Church,

To Even Test It
Would Be To Undermine Its Power.

Are There Any Samples
That Are Not Behind Glass?

You Do?

And Is It Possible
To See That?

Yeah?

Just To Be Able To These
Two Crosses Is Incredible,

But To Know That There's
A Loose Piece, As Well,

Is Really...Astounding.

♪♪

The Archbishop
Produces A Small Container

And Reveals A Fragment
Of Holy Wood.

I'm Stunned When He Offers
To Bless Me With It.

♪♪

Bishop,
Thank You Very Much.

I Do Feel Blessed.
Thank You Very Much.

The Experience
Of Seeing And Being Touched

By A Small Sliver
Of What Could Be The True Cross

Is An Overwhelming Experience.

But These Tiny Pieces
Will Never Leave The Church

And Can Therefore
Never Be Tested.

Writings From Helena's Time

Describe
How She Discovered The Cross

And Broke It Up Into Pieces.

In The Ensuing Centuries,
Bits Of The Supposed True Cross

Started Turning Up In Churches
From Europe To Africa To Asia,

Including The Pieces Inside The
Church Of The Holy Sepulchre.

If They Were All Put Together,

There Would Be Enough Wood
To Fill A Ship,

Which Means That Many Of
These Pieces Can't Be Authentic.

Instead, I Need To Look
For Some Part Of The Cross

That Can Be Tested And Dated.

To Do That, I Leave Jerusalem
And Drive To Tel Aviv.

[ Tropical Music Playing ]

If Jerusalem Is Serious,
Religious, And Political,

Tel Aviv Feels Playful,
Cosmopolitan, And Carefree.

Citizens Here Are Less About
Temples And Rituals

And More About Sun And Sand.

Welcome To Israel's Other City.

Tel Aviv Is Home To About
3 1/2 Million People.

In Fact, Nearly 40% Of
All Israelis Call Tel Aviv Home,

It Would -- Hey, Hey!

Hello?

Come On.

No Respect.

Maybe I Should Have
Worn My Speedo.

♪♪

One Of The Really Strange Things
About The Cross Of Jesus,

When You Think About It,
Is That This Is Probably

The Most Recognizable Symbol
In The World, You Know?

Each Of Us Probably See

Some Representation
Of This Cross Every Single Day.

On Tv, On A Sign, On A Church.

And Yet, What Do We
Really Know About This Cross?

Do We Know How Big It Was?

Do We Know What It Was Made Of?
Do We Know Where It Went?

I'm Headed Now To Meet
With An Expert

Who Might Know More Than Anyone
About The True Cross Of Jesus.

♪♪

I'm In Town
To Meet With Israel Hershkovitz,

A Professor
Of Anatomy And Anthropology.

He's An Expert On Crucifixions

And Believes The Reality
Behind The True Cross

Is Very Different
Than The Story We've Been Told.

In Thinking
About The Crucifixion, The Thing

That Just In Researching It
That Really Surprised Me Is

How Little Evidence There Is For
Roman Crucifixions In General.

The Romans Were Crucifying
A Lot Of People.

Much Of What We
Know About Crucifixions

Comes From
Artists' Interpretations,

Many Of Which Were Painted

Centuries After
The Death Of Jesus.

Right.

I Mean, Almost Every Painting
Of Jesus Shows That.

Yeah.

There's Just One Problem --
It Doesn't Work.

Nails In Wrists, Hands, Or Feet
Can Barely Support A Body,

And Victims Quickly Pass Out.

Right, The Whole Point
Is That It's Supposed
To Last A Long Time.

Also, Huge Vertical Crosses

Would Have Been Difficult
To Hoist Up,

Especially When You Consider
That Romans Were Crucifying

As Many As 500 People A Day.

This Is A Dramatic Revelation.

If The Romans
Nailed Or Tied People

To Simpler X-Shaped Crosses,
As Many Historians Now Contend,

That Means
The Traditional T-Shape

Displayed In Every
Christian Church Could Be Wrong.

It Also Means
That I May Be Looking

For Remnants Of An Artifact

With A Totally Different Shape
Than I Anticipated.

Is There Any Evidence
Of A Crucifixion?

One?

One?

Okay,
And What Is That?

♪♪

That Is Amazing.

Mm-Hmm.

This Heel Bone
Is A Big Deal.

It Is The Only Physical Remnant
Of A Roman Crucifixion,

And The Nail's Location
In The Heel Suggests

The Foot Was Perched
In An Open Position

And Likely On An X-Shaped Cross.

That's Wood?

What Type Of Wood?

It's Olive Wood.

I've Just Come Face-To-Face
With A Legit

2,000-Year-Old Piece
Of Crucifixion Wood.

That Gives Me Hope
That Historical Fragments

Of The True Cross Of Jesus

Could Also Have Survived
To The Present Day.

Well, Thank You So Much
For Showing It To Me.

I Really Appreciate It.

♪♪

Armed With New Knowledge,

I Set Out To Find A Piece
Of The Wood

That Both Fits The Helena Legend

And Can Be
Scientifically Tested.

And I Just Caught Wind
Of A Promising Discovery

Made By A Restoration Team
At A Church In Bethlehem.

If That Name Sounds Familiar,

That's Because It's Also
The Birthplace Of Jesus.

To Check It Out, I'm Headed For
Israel's West Bank Territory.

♪♪

After A Few
Military Checkpoints...

♪ Keep Driving,
Just Keep Driving ♪

...I Arrive In The Ancient City
Of Bethlehem.

♪♪

♪ Oh, Little Town Of Bethlehem ♪

♪ Da-Da-Dada-Da-Da ♪

♪ Da-Da-Dada-Da-Da ♪

♪ Oh, Little Town Of Bethlehem ♪

Why Can't I Think Of Any
Of The Other Words To That Song?

Not A Lot Of Ox, Or Sheep,

Or Wise Men, Or Heavenly Angels
Floating Around,

But It Does Have A Manger.

In The Middle Of Town
Is The Church Of The Nativity.

♪♪

Like The Holy Sepulchre
In Jerusalem,

Helena Commissioned This Church

During Her Trip
To The Holy Land.

Duck Through A Low Arch,

And You'll Find Yourself
In The Manger

That Most Of Us Know
From Christmas Carols.

And A Recent Discovery
In This Building

Has Me Wondering
If There's A Hidden Link

To The True Cross Here, As Well.

I'm Josh.
Nice To Meet You.

I'm Paolo.Nice To Meet You, As Well.

Thanks For Seeing Me.
I Really Appreciate It.

Paolo Guazzini Is Part Of A Team
Restoring The Nativity's Roof

And Interior Frescos.

Is This For Me?It Is.

It's Dangerous
In Here?

A Little Bit.
All Right.

-I Like A Little Bit Dangerous.
-Okay.

Let's Go.

♪♪

Parts Of This Building
Are Nearly 2,000 Years Old.

It's A Layer Cake Of History,

And Paolo's Team
Discovered Something Incredible

Beneath Years Of Dirt And Dust.

This Was Covered?

Really?

And So, What Is The Angel Doing
In The Mosaic?

The True Cross?

All Right,
Here We Go.

It's Hard Not To Take
The Symbolism Personally.

I Want To Be Moving
Toward The Cross, Too.

But Paolo Found One More Thing

That Makes Me Think
We're Not Too Far Off.

This Is Very,
Very Interesting.

This Is What We Found
Below The Plaster.

Three Crosses.

Gates: Incredible.

♪♪

♪♪

Gates: I'm Inside The Church
Of The Nativity In Bethlehem,

Staring
At A Mysterious Cross Symbol

A Restoration Team
Has Just Discovered.

Gates: How Old Do We Think
These Bricks Are?

They're Really Cool.

These Symbols Were
Underneath The Plaster Layer?

That's Right.

So Whoever Took The Time
To Carve These...

Yeah.

...They Knew That They Were
Going To Be Hidden.

Right. Right.

Could It Be That The
Three Crosses Represent Jesus

And The Two Thieves
Who Were Crucified With Him?

We Are Waiting For An Answer
From The Specialist.

We Are Studying The Relation
Between This Cross

And The Entire Story
Of The Church.

I Mean, It Is Possible
That This Was Meant To Be

A Marker For Something.
Yes.

In A Church
As Venerated As This,

One Can't Just Smash
Through A Crusader-Era Wall.

But In Time, Archeologists
May Scan The Wall To See What,

If Anything,
Is Hidden Behind It.

So Watch This Space.

Keep Me Posted.

Let Me Know
If You Find Anything.

Of Course.
I Will Tell You. I'll Tell You.

Especially Anything
Cross-Shaped.

Yeah. [ Laughs ]

The Church Of The Nativity

Remains One
Of Helena's Lasting Legacies.

But Her Story -- And The Journey
Of The True Cross --

Doesn't End Here.

After Her Tour Of The Holy Land,

Helena Spends A Large Piece
Of The True Cross

To The City Named For Her Son --

The Christian Emperor
Of Rome, Constantine.

So I'm Flying 750 Miles North
To Constantinople,

Or As We Know It Today,
Istanbul.

♪♪

Home To 14 Million, It Is
The Largest City In Turkey.

An Urban Jewel.

The Ancient And Modern Here
Don't Blend So Much As Collide.

Traffic Spills
Down Antiquated Streets.

Shoppers Clog Historic Bazaars.

And Regal Mosques Loom Quietly
Above The Hustle And Bustle.

This Is The Bosphorus,
This Channel Of Water

That Cleaves Istanbul
Into Two Pieces.

On One Side Europe,
On The Other Side, Asia.

And It Is This Division,
This Piece Of Real Estate,

That Has Made Istanbul

One Of The Most
Valuable And Strategic Pieces

Of Real Estate In History.

♪♪

And In My Experience,

The Mixture Of Unique Geography,
Rich Cultures,

And Tumultuous History
Can Only Mean One Thing.

Seriously Good Food.

I Start Things Off
With A Regional Specialty

Described Perfectly By Its Name.

Turkish Delight.

♪♪

This Is Effectively Sugar
Covered In Sugar.

Oh.

If You Stand Here,
They Just Feed You.

I Can't Resist.

Gates: I May Have Eaten
My Dessert First,

But That Doesn't Mean I'm Full.

Muscles.

This Is Pickles
In Pickle Juice.

Oh, That's Good.

Boiling Hot Mini-Donut?

Yep, That's Happening.

Of Course, I'll Need Some Coffee
To Top Off Those Donuts,

And For My Money, No One
Does That Better Than The Turks.

Turkish Coffee, One Of The Last
Great Inefficient Beverages

Of The World.

Miniature Copper Pots,
Burning Hot Cinders.

In An Age When You Can Get A Cup
Of Coffee Made By A Machine...

It's Completely Illogical
And Unbelievably Delicious.

♪♪

So Good.

Hot, Thick...Strong.

With Caffeine And Sugar

Pulsing Through My Veins,
I've Got More Than Enough Energy

To Get Back To Chasing The True
Cross' Path Through Istanbul.

At First Blush,
It May Not Make Much Sense

To Be Looking For The Most
Deeply Revered Christian Relic

In A Thoroughly Muslim Country.

But This City Wasn't Always
Brimming With Mosques.

It Was Once A Second Capital
For A Christian Rome.

♪♪

Around The Year 330 A.D.,

The Roman Emperor Constantine
Makes A Historic Decision

To Establish A New Capital
In The East,

And He Chooses This City.

People Just Started Calling
The City After The Emperor,

And Constantinople Was Born.

A Lot Of Old Constantinople
Is Still Here.

It's Just Hiding Underground.

♪♪

This Is The Basilica Cistern,

A Magnificent Forest Of Stone
Columns In Perpetual Darkness.

A Place Where Medusa Heads
Were Used As Decorations.

1,500 Years Ago, These Caverns

Supplied Constantinople
With Drinking Water.

And Throughout The City,
There Are Stairways And Passages

That Lead Down To Other Ruins
Of This Christian Capital.

But The Biggest Relic
From Constantinople

Is Sitting In Plain Sight.

♪♪

The Ayasofya.

Built In The 6Th Century,
It Stood For 1,000 Years

As The Largest Cathedral
In The World.

In 1204, A Historian Wrote

That He Saw Two Pieces
Of The True Cross Here,

As Thick As A Man's Leg.

Then, In 1453,

The Ottomans Took Over
And Brought Islamic Rule.

Rather Than Level The Place,

They Covered Up
The Christian Imagery

With Stunning Arabic Shields
And Converted It Into A Mosque.

Some Believe Priests May Have
Hidden The Most Important

Christian Relic Of The Ayasofya
Somewhere Nearby.

And One Historian
Thinks He Knows Where.

♪♪

Gates: Hello.
Hello.

How Are You?Good.

Nice To Meet You.Nice To Meet You.

Goksel Gulensoy

Has Been Exploring
Istanbul's Underworld For Years.

In Terms Of Things
Like The True Cross,

In Terms Of Holy Relics,
Do You Think It's Possible

That The Cross,
Or Pieces Of It,

Survive Today
Here In The City Still?

Interpreter:
I Will Share A Secret With You.

There Could Be Biblical Relics

Hidden In Passageways
Right Beneath Us.

Underneath Us?Yes, Underneath.

Gates: Goksel Explains That
We Are Walking On A Crossroad

Between The Three
Most Important Structures

In Old Constantinople.

Behind Us Is The Ayasofya,
The Center Of Religious Power.

Right Next Door Stood
The Byzantine Emperor's Palace.

Sadly, There's Nothing Left
Of It Today.

And Just Beneath Us Lie
The Remains Of The Hippodrome,

A Horse-Racing Stadium

Big Enough To Hold
100,000 Spectators.

When The Emperor
Visited The Horse Races

Or The Cathedral, No One
Ever Spotted Him Arriving.

Goksel Believes The Emperor

Must Have Traveled Between
These Three Important Buildings

By Way
Of Secret Underground Passages.

So There Must Be Tunnels.
Yes.

Do You Think
That It Can Be Reached?

Yeah.
[ Speaks Native Language ]

Do I Want To See It?

Yeah, I Want To See It.
Okay.

Please.
Yeah.

Goksel Believes That Remnants Of
The Holy Cross Are Hidden Here,

And He Introduces Us To His Team
Conducting The Investigation.

How Are You?
Nice To Meet You Guys.

So This Is It.Yes. Are You Ready?

Yeah,
What Is This Door?

The Door Is A...

[ Speaks
Native Language ]

This Part Of The Building
Was Used For Keeping The Horses.

As Stables,
You Know?

Right.
Is It Safe?

♪♪

Gates:
The Silence Is Telling.

Uh...

Everybody Got Very Quiet There
When I Asked If It Was Safe.

What Are
The Conditions Like?

[ Speaks
Native Language ]

Uh-Huh. I Got It.
Not Safe.

"Not Safe" Is
What That's Called.

♪♪

We Waste No Time
And Suit Up In Caving Gear.

We Also Have Paramedics
On Standby.

And They Give Us
Emergency Oxygen,

Since The Air Beneath The
Hippodrome Is Potentially Toxic.

♪♪

Whoa.
Okay.

Okay.
Here We Go.

♪♪

Gates: I've Joined Explorers
In The City Of Istanbul

Searching For Evidence
Of The True Cross Of Jesus.

Here We Go.

We're About To Descend Beneath
The Ancient Chariot-Racing Arena

Known As The Hippodrome,
Where Researcher Goksel Gulensoy

Believes Precious Relics
Are Hidden.

Whoa! Okay.

-Under The Hippodrome.
-Yes.

Look At
The Size Of This Place.

Yeah. Wet.

A Little Wet.

The Question Is,
How Deep Is That Water?

May Be Knee-Deep.
Okay.

Let's Give It
A Whirl.

Goksel And His Team

Have Already Mapped Part Of
The Underside Of The Hippodrome.

We're Heading Along The Curved
Outer Wall Toward The Stables

And Tunnels
They've Never Explored.

♪♪

This Water Is...

Maybe The Dirtiest Water
I've Ever Been In.

It's Literally
Parts Of Dead Birds.

All Sorts Of Nastiness
Everywhere You Step.

♪♪

So We Have These Little Rooms
That Offshoot Here.

And They Would Have Been
Stables, I Guess, Originally,

For Horses
Underneath The Hippodrome.

As We Check Out Each Stable, It
Appears They're All Dead Ends.

So We Have To Look To See
If Any Of These

Connect Out
To Any Passages.

♪♪

Just As I'm Getting The Hang
Of Walking In Liquid Bird Flu,

We Hit A Wall -- Literally.

♪♪

Thankfully, Goksel
And His Team Are Undeterred.

So,
I Think I Got This.

Oh. Okay.

They Rig Up A Makeshift Ladder,

Attach It To Something
Unsafe-Looking,

And I Head Up And Over.

♪♪

Right Under.

Okay,
Coming Down.

World's Sketchiest Ladder,
Check.

Whew!

Okay.

Okay,
I'm Down.

As I Step Back Into The Muck
On The Other Side,

Something Isn't Quite Right.

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

Bad, Yeah.

You Can Taste It Almost.

It's Like...

I Don't Know If It's Gas
Or A Chemical Or Something,

But It's Bad.

[ Speaks
Native Language ]

We Should Use Masks.

Masks. Yes. Okay.

♪♪

Okay.

Okay,
Here We Go.

This Seems Like
The Least Fitting Place

In The World For The True Cross,

But These Passages Were Once
Frequented By Christians

And Perhaps Even Emperors
Hiding From The Ottomans.

Ohh.
Gets A Little Deeper Here.

Yes.

Eventually, We Reach The End
Of The Curved Wall

But Haven't Found
Any New Passages.

So We Head Back To Explore
The Other Direction.

This Area Is Promising Because
It's Closer To The Ayasofya

And The Emperor's Palace.

Some Old Piping Here.

Yep.

Whoa!
What's This?

Passageway
Of Some Kind.

What Was This Originally,
Do You Think?

[ Gulensoy Speaking
Native Language ]

Might Be An Escape Tunnel
For The Important Person

Like The Emperor
Or His Family.

If We're Looking
For Holy Artifacts,

Tunnels Like This
That Would Have Been Obscured

From The General Population
Are A Great Place To Look.

Do You Want To Go First
Or Second?

♪♪

Gates: With Every Step,
I'm Feeling A Little Wary

That We're Getting Farther
From The Only Known Exit

And Deeper Into A Very Narrow,
Very Dark,

1,000-Year-Old Passage.

It Never Ends.
It Just Goes And Goes And Goes.

Follow Me.
Okay.

After You.

♪♪

We're Looking For Some Kind
Of Opening

In The Ceiling,
In The Walls, Or In The Floor,

And Then, We Get A Break.

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

What's He Got?

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

Do You See Something?

Yeah.

♪♪

Gates: I'm In Istanbul Several
Stories Below Street Level

Following A Team Of Researchers
Inside The Ancient Hippodrome.

We're Searching
For A Lost Passageway

That Might Lead Us
To The True Cross Of Jesus.

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

What's He Got?

Do You See Something?

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

Another Room?

Can You Get Down Into It?Yeah.

Well,
Let's See What's There.

♪♪

Before I Can Squeeze Down
To Reach Goksel...

Oh, Man, That's Tight.

...It Appears That He's Made
Another Find --

A Tiny Opening In A Sidewall.

It's A Clean Breeze
Coming Through The Hole.

The Air's Colder Here,
Yeah?

Yeah,
It's Colder.

[ Speaks
Native Language ]

Like A Room?

Room, Yes.

Can We See
Into It?

Unfortunately, The Hole
Is Too Small To See Through,

And Widening It
Could Trigger A Collapse.

So We Decide To Rig
A Makeshift Probe.

This Tiny Camera Might Just
Give Us A Peek Inside.

Whoa!

This Connects
Through To A Bigger Space.

There's Definitely
A Chamber Back There.

It's Flooded.
I Can See The Waterline.

It's Hard To Tell.

It Might Go On Underneath,
There.

It's Silted Up,
But I Think It Continues.

You've Got An Unexplored Room
Back There.

Unexplored Tunnel.
Next Time?

Next Time.
Yeah.

You Bring
The Demolition Equipment.

Okay.Okay.

[ Chuckles ]

That's Absolutely Incredible.Okay!

Nobody's Been Back There
For 1,000 Years, Probably.

We've Officially Discovered
A Never-Before-Documented

Chamber
Inside Istanbul's Hippodrome.

But It Will Take Months,

Or Perhaps Even Years,
To Excavate Our Find.

Hey.
Great Job!

Okay!
Oh, Man.

[ Chuckles ]
We're Alive!

♪♪

Only Time Will Tell If The
Tunnels Beneath The Hippodrome

Contain Holy Relics
Like The True Cross.

And Historic Sources Reveal That
Smaller Fragments Of The Cross

Were Splintered Off In Istanbul
To Help Establish New Churches

And Spread Christianity.

In 2013,
An Archaeologist Leading A Dig

At A Church
In A Small Turkish Town

Made A Monumental Discovery
Connected To The True Cross.

To Find Out More,

I'm Headed To Sinop, A Town
Located On The Turkish Coast,

300 Miles Northeast Of Istanbul.

♪♪

Welcome To The Town Of Sinop.

This Is Northern Turkey,

As Far North As You Can Get
Along The Edge Of The Black Sea.

2,500 Years Ago,
This Was A Greek Colony.

After That,
It Was Conquered By The Romans,

Then Became Part
Of The Byzantine Empire,

And Then The Ottomans,
The Turks, And So On And So On.

On Paper, Might Seem Like
Kind Of A Weird Place

To Look For
The True Cross Of Jesus

And It Would Be,
Except That Just Recently,

Archaeologists Here
Made An Awesome Discovery.

♪♪

On The Outskirts Of Town,

I Meet With Archaeologist
Gulgun Koroglu.

Her And Her Team Have Uncovered

The Remains Of The
1,400-Year-Old Balatlar Church.

♪♪

There's Not One,
But Three Cemeteries Here,

Spanning More Than 1,000 Years
Of History.

Wow.
Really Impressive Site.

It's Huge.

So, You've Been
Working Here Since When?

[ Speaking Native Language ]

They Start The Excavations
In 2010.

Wow.

Gates:
After Several Years Of Digging,
Gulgun Unearthed This --

The Corner Of A Stone Box
Bearing A Crucifix Symbol

That May Have Been Used To Hold
A Significant Biblical Relic.

The Find Made News
Around The World,

Since Many Believed A Piece
Of The True Cross

Could Be Close At Hand.

So Let's Talk About This Box
That You Discovered Here.

Yes.

Can You Show Me
Where You Found It?

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

Back Here? Please.
I'd Love To See It.

♪♪

As We Make Our Way
To The Back Of The Site,

We're Walking Further Back
In Time.

Finally, We Arrive
At The Oldest Structure Here.

♪♪

So This Is Where
This Box Was Found?

So, Other Than The Fragment
Of The Relic Box,

Did You Find Anything Else
In The Pit?

Interpreter: Nothing,
But We Have Recently Found

Something Pretty Incredible
Nearby.

♪♪

This Is Incredible.

This Is A Burial,
Obviously, From --

What Year Do We Think,
Roughly?

[ Speaks Native Language ]7Th Century.

God, Look At That.
That Is Something Else.

Gates:
This Is A Big Lead --

A Prominent Grave
Located Near The Spot

Where The Mysterious
Stone Fragment Was Found.

And Best Of All, We're Going
To Excavate It Right Now.

♪♪

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

There's A Second Skull.

Oh,
Look At That.

[ Speaks Native Language ]And A Third One.

And Another One.Uh-Huh.

And This Is Not
From The Same Skull As This?

No.

Wow.
Look At That.

How Many People
Do You Think Are Buried In Here?

I Think Four People?Four?

Four People.

That Is Incredible.

Gates: We Continue Excavating
A Family Of Four.

But Just As Things Are
Getting Really Interesting...

Um, Guys,
We Have To Stop.

We Have To Stop,
Why?

Tea.

Tea?
Tea Time.

Yeah.
Tea Time.

Tea Time.
Sure.

Okay.

Gates: This Isn't Just A Quick
Run To Starbucks, Either.

Here In Turkey,
Tea Is Serious Business.

This Is The Greatest
Archaeological Excavation

Of All Time.

It Has Bundt Cake.

I've Never Been On A Dig
With Bundt Cake Before.

♪♪

You Never Saw This Scene
In "Indiana Jones,"

Where He Stopped For Cake.

They Cut Right Past That.

♪♪

After Our Mandatory
Turkish Snack Break,

We Get Back To Work,
Excavating A Tomb

Near The Location
Of A Biblical Box.

And You Think There Could Be
More Skeletons In Here, As Well?

Yes.
More People.

[ Speaking
Native Language ]

Did She
Find Something?

Ah, Interesting.

What Is It?

It's Hollow?

It Feels Like
There's A Cavity Under It.

♪♪

Gates: Want Even More
"Expedition Unknown"?

You Can Check Out
My Personal Photos,

Deleted Scenes,
And More At Travelchannel.Com.

I'm Pitching In
In An Archaeological Dig

In The Turkish Town Of Sinop,

And What Looked Like
A Simple Headstone

Might Be Much More
Than We Realized.

[ Speaks
Native Language ]

Did She Find Something?Ah, Interesting.

What Is It?

It's Hollow?

It Feels Like
There's A Cavity Under It.

It's Hollow, Yeah?
Yeah. Yeah.

She Wants
To Flip It?

Yeah. Sure.
Okay, Hold On.

Ready?

♪♪

Ohh!
Whoa!

Oh,
Look At That.

[ Speaks
Native Language ]

It's Hollowed Out.

It's Not A Stone,
It's A Container.

Yes.

What Do You Think
This Is?

[ Speaks
Native Language ]

It Could Be A Container
For A Holy Relic.

Uh-Huh.

This Is Like The Fragment
You Found Earlier.

Same Idea?
Yes.

This Would Have Been Used
For Something Holy?

-Mm-Hmm.
-And Do You Think It Could Be

For Something Like
A Holy Cross?

Yes.

Interpreter: I Think This Site
Still Holds Great Secrets.

Gates:
This Is A Huge Find --

A Largely Intact Box

That May Have Been Used
For A Sacred Burial

Or To Hold
An Important Christian Relic.

So Now The Question Is,
"What Was Inside Of This?"

So, More Work To Do.
Yes.

More Soil To Turn.
Who Knows What's Down There?

Yeah?

♪♪

My Mission To Follow The Trail
Of The True Cross

Has Taken Me From The Heart
Of The Holy Land

To A Former Christian Capital

And To The Very Edge
Of An Empire.

Along The Way,
I've Been Lucky Enough To See

Closely Guarded Holy Relics
And Stunning Historic Artifacts.

I've Been On Hand
To Participate In The Discovery

Of Unknown Chambers
And Major Archaeological Finds.

It's All Given Me
A New Perspective

On The Importance Of This Story.

The Cross
Is More Than Just An Artifact.

It's More Than A Symbol.

To Billions, It Is A Living
Promise Of Salvation.

And Whether You
Believe In Its Power,

It's Hard Not To Be Impressed
By The Explorers Who Have

Taken On The Most Unknown
Expedition Of All --

The Quest To Reconcile Faith
With History.

Could Biblical Relics Like The
True Cross Still Be Out There?

With So Many Exciting Finds,

I Feel Confident
There's More To Discover.

And I, For One,

Feel Blessed To Have Been
Invited Along On The Journey.