Golden Emerald-Encrusted Goblet (False Grail)

Elsa selects this ornate golden goblet encrusted with emeralds from the temple's array of chalices. Indy fills it with water from the true Grail. Donovan drinks deeply, then writhes as his skin wrinkles, eyes sink, and body collapses into a pile of dust, witnessed by Indy, Henry, and Sallah.

1 appearances

Purpose

Drinking vessel to hold and consume Grail water

Significance

Tempts the greedy with false immortality; Donovan's choice triggers his rapid decay, enforcing the temple's rule that only the humble Grail brings healing.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

1 moments

S1E3 · INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE

"The Knight’s Trial: Wisdom, Sacrifice, and the Cost of Immortality

The False Grail (a golden, emerald-encrusted goblet) is chosen by Elsa and Donovan, who are drawn to its ornate beauty. When Donovan drinks from it after filling it with water from the Grail chamber’s well, he suffers a grotesque and rapid aging death, his body crumbling to dust. The False Grail serves as a moral lesson about the dangers of greed and the Grail’s divine justice. Its demise underscores the temple’s lethal defenses and the importance of humility in the face of the sacred.

Before: Among the array of chalices in the Grail chamber, selected by Elsa for its beauty.

After: Used by Donovan, leading to his instant and horrific death.

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