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Reliquary Cross

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Reliquary Cross

Date:
ca. 1180
Geography:
Made in Limoges, France
Culture:
French
Medium:
Silver gilt, rock crystal, glass cabochons; wood core
Dimensions:
Overall (w/ tang): 11 3/4 x 4 15/16 x 1 in. (29.8 x 12.5 x 2.5 cm) Overall (w/o tang): 10 x 4 15/16 x 1 in. (25.4 x 12.5 x 2.5 cm)
Classification:
Metalwork
Credit Line:
Purchase, Michel David-Weill Gift, The Cloisters Collection, and Mme. Robert Gras Gift, in memory of Dr. Robert Gras, 2002
Accession Number:
2002.18

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 014

  • Description

    More than 60 glass gems decorate this double-sided cross, which enshrines sacred relics from the Holy Land. Pieces of wood, believed to be from the cross on which Jesus was crucified, are framed in the rectangle at the top. Inscriptions on the sides of the arms and shaft identify the precious fragments still visible behind pieces of rock crystal: relics of several early saints, from the site of Jesus' birth, his Crucifixion, his tomb and the tomb of Mary.

    Testament to the important tradition of goldsmith's work in central France, as well as to the region's strong spiritual, cultural and political links to the Holy Land, this reliquary cross is the only example of twelfth-century French silver in the Museum, and the only cross of this type and date outside France.

  • Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

    Inscription: On the proper right side of the shaft, running up: De sepulcro dñi; De sepulcro be Marie On the proper left side of the shaft, running down: S hermetis mi: capilli sci stephi.m Over the proper right arm: De innocentib Over the proper left arm: S apollinaris, obscured by a strip of metal engraved: S vincenci Under the proper left arm: De calvarie Under the proper right arm: De nativitate dñi

  • Provenance

    Probably from the Abbey of Grandmont, France

    Félix Doistau 1846-1936 , Paris ; [private collection sale, Hôtel Drouot , Paris (December 19-20, 1919, no. 202)] ; Professor Augustin Gilbert , Paris (sold 1927) ; [his sale, Hôtel Drouot , Paris (November 29-December 1, 1927, no. 16)] ; [ Brimo de Laroussilhe , Paris (from 1927)] ; Withney collection ; [Collection de Monsieur X sale, Hôtel Drouot , Paris (June 20, 1961, no. 13) ; [sale, Le Mans (April 3, 1963)] ; [ Brimo de Laroussilhe , Paris (sold 2002)]

  • See also
    What
    Where
    When
    In the Museum
    Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
    MetPublications
70015305:3

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