Plaque from a Reliquary Shrine
Unknown Artist
ca. 1170
Medium
Champlevé enamel, copper alloy, gilt
Dimensions
Overall: 2 11/16 x 1 1/16 x 1/8 in. (6.8 x 2.7 x 0.3 cm) a: 1 5/16 x 1 1/16 x 1/8 in. (3.4 x 2.7 x 0.3 cm) b: 1 5/16 x 1 1/16 x 1/8 in. (3.4 x 2.7 x 0.3 cm)
Classification
Enamels-Champlevé
Culture
German
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number
17.190.2138a, b
Art Historical Context
This exquisite plaque, dating to around 1170, hails from a German reliquary shrine—a sacred container for housing holy relics venerated in medieval Christian devotion. Crafted by an unknown artist during the Romanesque era, it exemplifies the spiritual artistry of 12th-century Europe, where such objects adorned churches and monasteries to inspire awe and piety among the faithful. Its petite size (just over 2½ by 1 inches) suggests it was one of many panels forming a larger decorative ensemble, now preserved in the Metropolitan Museum of Art thanks to a 1917 gift from J. Pierpont Morgan. The p...