Holy Lance
A Holy Lance is conserved in Vagharshapat (previously known as Echmiadzin), the religious capital of Armenia. It was previously held in the monastery of Geghard. The first source that mentions it is a text "Holy Relics of Our Lord Jesus Christ", in a thirteenth-century Armenian manuscript. According to this text, the spear which pierced Jesus was to have been brought to Armenia by the Apostle Thaddeus. The manuscript does not specify precisely where it was kept, but the Holy Lance gives a description that exactly matches the lance, the monastery gate, since the thirteenth century precisely, the name of Geghardavank (Monastery of the Holy Lance).
History of weapons
As the barbarian hordes from Germania were still using clubs and maces the classical Greek civilization had mastered the art of making spears. The trident, a three pronged spear used for fishing, was a form of spear popular with the Greeks. This weapon was used in the east by the Indians who called it "Trishul" (three spears) and by gladiators in Rome known as retarii, or 'net-fighters', in keeping with the historical use of the trident in fishing. These net fighters would cast the net onto their enemies and once their enemies were trapped and helpless in the net, would then use the trident to kill them or inflict serious injuries. The trident is also associated with various gods: Poseidon and his Roman counterpart Neptune were both associated with and often depicted with a trident, and the Hindu god Shiva also wields the trident.