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Reliquary in the Shape of a Sarcophagus

400–600
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 300
Holes in the lids of sarcophagus-shaped reliquaries, as seen here, allowed the faithful to insert cloth attached to narrow rods into the reliquary in order to absorb the power of the relic through contact. Alternatively, oil was poured through the hole and collected by means of a second hole in the base in containers brought by the faithful.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Reliquary in the Shape of a Sarcophagus
  • Date: 400–600
  • Culture: Byzantine
  • Medium: Marble
  • Dimensions: Overall: 5 5/8 x 7 7/16 x 3 7/8 in. (14.3 x 18.9 x 9.8 cm)
    Lid: 3 1/8 x 7 5/16 x 3 3/4 in. (7.9 x 18.6 x 9.6 cm)
    Bottom container: 2 15/16 x 7 7/16 x 3 7/8 in. (7.5 x 18.9 x 9.8 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture-Stone
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1949
  • Object Number: 49.69.2a, b
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

More Artwork

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Container for Holy Oils, Bone, with paint and metal pins, Frankish
Container for Holy Oils
Frankish
400–600
Lectern for the Reading of the Gospels with the Eagle of Saint John the Evangelist, Giovanni Pisano Italian, Marble, Italian
Lectern for the Reading of the Gospels with the Eagle of Saint John the Evangelist
Giovanni Pisano
ca. 1301, with later additions
Table Base with Jonah Swallowed and Cast Up by the Big Fish, Marble, white, Roman
Table Base with Jonah Swallowed and Cast Up by the Big Fish
Roman
early 300s
Reliquary in the Shape of a Sarcophagus, Marble, Byzantine
Reliquary in the Shape of a Sarcophagus
Byzantine
400–600
Marble Portrait Bust of a Woman with a Scroll, Pentelic Marble, Byzantine
Marble Portrait Bust of a Woman with a Scroll
Byzantine
late 4th–early 5th century

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