The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Container for Holy Oils

Container for Holy Oils

Images (6)

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Container for Holy Oils

Date:: 6th–8th century
Geography:: Made in Northeastern France
Culture:: Frankish
Medium:: Bone, polychromy
Dimensions:: Overall: 3 1/2 x 4 7/16 x 1 3/4 in. (8.9 x 11.3 x 4.5 cm)
Classification:: Ivories
Credit Line:: Rogers Fund, 1965
Accession Number:: 65.68.2

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 304

Description

This portable container for holy oils is decorated with incised circular patterns, some of which may have a cosmological meaning. Used for both baptisms and confirmations, the container could also be suspended from a chain or strap worn around the neck.
Provenance

Ruth and Leopold Blumka, New York (until 1965)
See also
What
Bone (6,328)

Ivory (5,389)

Boxes (1,778)

Polychromy (585)

Reliquaries (314)
When
A.D. 500-1000 (6,672)
In the Museum
Medieval Art (6,712)

170008687:1