Legend has it that Saint Christopher, whose name means "Christbearer," carried a child who grew increasingly heavy as they forded a turbulent river. After safely reaching the shore, the saint realized that he carried the Christ Child, who bore the weight of the world on his shoulders. Comparable gilded silver statuettes are listed in Albrecht of Brandenburg's treasury. These works, illustrated in both Halle relic books, housed 325 particles of Christopher and other saints.
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Hallmarks on front of base
Hallmarks on back of base
Hallmarks on Saint Christopher's garment
Engraved fish on base
Artwork Details
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Title:Reliquary Statuette of Saint Christopher
Date:ca. 1375–1425
Geography:Made in Toulouse
Culture:French
Medium:Silver, silver-gilt
Dimensions:Overall: 23 7/8 x 11 5/8 x 7 13/16 in. (60.6 x 29.5 x 19.8 cm)
Classification:Metalwork-Silver
Credit Line:Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number:17.190.361
Marking: TOL [hallmark of city of Toulouse on hem of garment and twice on base], [fleur-de-lis above, in reserve], [S in shape on hem of garment and twice on base]; [unidentified indistinct goldsmith's mark, probably IC and PO with heart in between]; [year mark on hem of saint's garment and base]
From the church of Lasbordes (Aude), France; [ Charles J. Wertheimer, London (in 1906)]; J. Pierpont Morgan (American), London and New York (1906–1913)
Cleveland Museum of Art. "Treasures from Medieval France," Novemer 16, 1966–January 29, 1967.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art. "The Middle Ages: Treasures from The Cloisters and The Metropolitan Museum of Art," January 18, 1970–March 29, 1970.
Chicago. Art Institute of Chicago. "The Middle Ages: Treasures from The Cloisters and The Metropolitan Museum of Art," May 16, 1970–July 5, 1970.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Cranach's Saint Maurice," April 20–July 27, 2015.
Breck, Joseph, and Meyric R. Rogers. The Pierpont Morgan Wing: A Handbook. 1st ed. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1925. p. 91, fig. 68, ill. p. 120.
Breck, Joseph, and Meyric R. Rogers. The Pierpont Morgan Wing: A Handbook. 2nd ed. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1929. p. 91, fig. 68, ill. p. 120.
Wixom, William D. Treasures from Medieval France. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1967. no. VI–7, pp. 228–29, 373.
Ostoia, Vera K. The Middle Ages: Treasures from the Cloisters and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1969. no. 88, pp. 192–193, 260.
Beeson, Nora B., ed. Guide to The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1972. no. 63, p. 224, fig. 63.
Shepard, Mary B. Europe in the Middle Ages, edited by Charles T. Little, and Timothy B. Husband. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987. p. 131, pl. 123.
Erlande-Brandenburg, Alain. Gothic Art. New York: H. N. Abrams, 1989. p. 364, fig. 175, ill. p. 369.
Durand, Jannic. "A Propos des Reliques du Monastère de Prodrome de Pétra á Constantinople, La Relique de Saint Christophe de l'Ancien Trésor de la Cathédrale de Cambrai." Cahiers Archéologiques 46 (1998). pp. 151–167, fig. 18.
Strouse, Jean. "J. Pierpont Morgan, Financier and Collector." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, n.s., 57, no. 3 (Winter 2000). p. 24, fig. 24.
Boehm, Barbara Drake. "Furta Sacra? L’histoire récente de quelques reliquaires médiévaux français et la Loi Combes." Les Cahiers de Saint-Michel de Cuxa 41 (2010). pp. 62, 65–66, 68, fig. 4.
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