Reliquary box, staurothèque, in engraved and gilded copper. - Lot 17

Lot n° 17
Go to lot
Estimation :
5000 - 6000 EUR
Reliquary box, staurothèque, in engraved and gilded copper. - Lot 17
Reliquary box, staurothèque, in engraved and gilded copper. Rectangular and flat, with loops on the sides, it opens with a sliding lid decorated with a Christ on the cross using an acorn-shaped knob. Italy, mid-14th century H. 2.4 - L. 17.1 - Total L. 13.9 cm (wear to gilding, empty) Staurotheques are reliquary boxes designed to preserve a relic of the True Cross. They can take various forms, such as crosses or triptychs, but can also be simple rectangular boxes like the 9th-century Byzantine staurotheque in cloisonné enamel in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, also decorated with a Crucifixion on the lid (Inv. 17.190.715a, b, fig.). In Byzantium, these reliquaries were frequently worn, as they were thought to have apotropaic virtues, as the presence of side loops suggests.
My orders
Sale information
Sales conditions
Return to catalogue