The Collection
The American Wing Ancient Near Eastern Art Arms and Armor The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing Asian Art The Cloisters The Costume Institute Drawings and Prints Egyptian Art European Paintings European Sculpture and Decorative Arts Greek and Roman Art Islamic Art Robert Lehman Collection The Libraries Medieval Art Musical Instruments Photographs Antonio Ratti Textile Center Modern and Contemporary Art

Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.

Token with Stylite, Baptism of Christ, and Adoration of the Magi

6th-7th century

Not on view

Stylites were ascetics who lived on platforms atop columns. This movement had practitioners into the nineteenth century, from Mosul in today’s northern Iraq to Gaul in France. Syria was home to large numbers of stylites, including the first stylite, Symeon Stylites the Elder (ca. 389–459).
Pilgrims visiting a stylite’s column carried home a memento, often a clay token. Most examples depict a stylite on a column being crowned by angels. Here, the Baptism of Christ (left) and the Adoration of the Magi (right) are included. The token is inscribed in Greek, "Holy, Holy."

Token with Stylite, Baptism of Christ, and Adoration of the Magi, Terracotta — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Title: Token with Stylite, Baptism of Christ, and Adoration of the Magi

Date: 6th-7th century

Geography: Made in Syria (?)

Medium: Terracotta

Dimensions: 1/4 x 1 in. (0.7 x 2.5 cm)

Classification: Ceramics

Credit Line: Malcove Collection, University of Toronto Art Centre, Toronto (M82.242)

Accession Number: isl713

The Met

Medieval Art and The Cloisters at The Met

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world, encompassing the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome to the beginning of the Renaissance.