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Reliquary Cross

ca. 1180–90
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
Henry the Lion (ca. 1130–1195), duke of Saxony and Bavaria, was believed to have presented a relic of the True Cross, framed at the center of this cross, to the Church of the Holy Cross in Hildesheim. No evidence supports that legend, but the importance of the relic enshrined here is not in doubt. It is proclaimed by the cross’s profusion of jewels and its array of goldsmiths’ techniques, including filigree and delicately hammered leaf patterns.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Reliquary Cross
  • Date: ca. 1180–90
  • Culture: German (Hildesheim)
  • Medium: Gilded silver, rock crystal, semiprecious stones, and ancient intaglios; wood core
  • Dimensions: Overall: 26 15/16 x 12 13/16 in. (68.5 x 32.5 cm)
  • Classification: Metalwork-Silver
  • Credit Line: Dom-Museum Hildesheim (DS L 112)
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters