The central figure of The Silver Chalice is Basil of Antioch, a young sculptor of Antioch, once a slave, who is charged by the dying Joseph of Arimathea to fashion a frame worthy to hold the silver Cup from which Jesus drank at the Last Supper. His task takes Basil first to Joseph's house in Jerusalem where he meets the gentle Deborra who is destined to be his wife, and then on a journey, pursued by Jewish Zealots and ever in danger of Roman persecution, through the ancient world to Rome. Here at the gaudy palace of the Emperor Nero, he meets again Helen, the slave-girl, who still stands between him and Deborra; here at a shabby inn on the outskirts of the city he sees Peter in disguise, serving wine. And one by one he adds to the chalice the portraits of the disciples and followers of Jesus—Luke and Paul in Jerusalem, Matthew and Mark in Antioch; John, the beloved, at Ephesus; Peter at Rome. But, torn between two women, unable to find the same joy in Christianity as others, Basil is not yet at peace. Against this background, with its great and colorful figures, there is unfolded the story not only of the dramatic days of the founding of Christianity, but also of one man's striving to come to terms with himself. "The author's heart-felt conviction...his detailed command of his material. Writing of events in the years soon after the Crucifixion, when the Gospel was spreading like a forest fire, Mr. Costain has caught that fervent pulsing enthusiasm and conveys it because he believes in it."—Viola Garvin, The Daily Telegraph "A work of fine sensibility and insight. It presents a theme, human and divine, that will touch heart as well as head. Here is a book worth reading."—Church Times "In its class, I think it is better than The Robe."—British Weekly