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Late Renaissance Octagonal Gilded Brass Reliquary Pendant with Velvet Interior

$8,000List Price

About the Item

OCTAGONAL RELIQUARY PENDANT Probably Italy, c. 1600 Fire-gilded brass, glass, velvet, ink on paper Weight 63.2 grams; dimensions 82 × 47 × 21 mm (with loop) Physical description: Double-sided pendant in octagonal form made of fire-gilded brass. Both sides of the pendant with deep profiled frames with glass. The slightly indented side panels comprise openwork friezes with symmetrical scrollwork. On the front is dark red velvet, onto which tiny bone relics of saints (now missing) would have been attached. Labels on a lace-like paper silhouette remain, with names written in ink, mostly faded; only “S. Agnes” is legible. The back is hinged and when opened reveals a velvet-lined interior and paper insert with floral decorations on a turquoise ground, on which fragments of bones are attached. Baluster shaped base for shield-like pendant loop and ring. This reliquary pendant is difficult to situate historically because it is a composite object. It represents traditional handwork in the form of a paper cutout, combined with a jeweler’s beautiful fire-gilt brass case. The work of paper cutting, painting, and ornamentation, sometime combined with needlework, is comparable to work still being done in the nineteenth century by nuns and pious ladies. It is prayerful work, a devotional exercise in itself, and shows reverence to the tiny relic fragments that it would have framed and honored. Early versions of this sort of handiwork might be found in the meticulous displays sometimes called “Paradise Gardens.” These were made, beginning in the sixteenth century, by the nuns at Mechelen, in northern Belgium, in multimedia handwork displays of sewing and gluing, combining relics with paper, cloth, glass, metal wire, and found materials. These textured and pious displays were then combined with paintings and cases by professional artists and artisans, as in the example in Cassel. Unfortunately, because of water damage, only one of the labels of the original relic displayed in this reliquary is legible, inscribed “S. Agnes” at the center top; the other names are faded. Presumably the deep velvet-lined box would have also held an assortment of relics other than the ones that were visible through the glass, and perhaps there would have been another display in the glass on the other side of the pendant. There is a second paper insert, this one decorated with a turquoise ground and silhouette flowers to which bone fragments seem to be still attached. The octagonal case, in contrast to the paper cutout, is not at all “home-made.” It has an openwork frieze in scrollwork patterns familiar from enamel work and other metalwork done for European courts and nobility. It is not unlike cases for expensive watches or pendants that were set with jewels. Furthermore, the deeply profiled frames surrounding the glass gives the little piece a substantial presence; even the attachment for the suspension loop is large and assumes a shield-like profile. There is a latch to open the glass, and presumably the owner often availed herself of her privilege to look inside at her collection of relics after first praying and admiring the handiwork displayed behind the glass. Comparisons and Literature: The goldsmith who made this reliquary pendant appears to have adapted his design from an octagonal watchcase from about 1600-20; such cases were often made in gilded brass. A related reliquary pendant in the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, Munich, in octagonal form made of rock crystal with inserts, was originally intended for relics.

Metal:
Brass
Weight:
63.2 g
Dimensions:
Height: 3.23 in (82 mm)Width: 1.86 in (47 mm)Depth: 0.83 in (21 mm)
Place of Origin:
Italy
Period:
1600-1609
Date of Manufacture:
1600
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
Chicago, IL
Reference Number:
Seller: J 350161stDibs: LU2334218634192

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