The Godsfield pyx, England, ca.1400-1500

Pyx, copper alloy, gilded, cast and turned. Of cylindrical form elaborately engraved with acanthus-like foliage, between moulded borders, the conical lid similarly decorated, the cross finial and hinge modern restorations.

Purchased under the Bequest of Francis Reubell Bryan, 1921

Historical significance: A pyx was used until the time of the Reformation as a container for the consecrated wafer bread. Only two early English pyxes have survived: the Swinburne Pyx (M.15- 1950) of about 1310 and this example.

Medieval Worship. Until the 16th century Roman Catholicism was the universal faith of the Western world and Latin was its universal language. The needs of church ritual inspired the production of a range of richly decorated vessels and vestments, crosses and images in the form of altarpieces. Many were made of gold or silver, adorned with enamels or gems, precious materials seen as symbolic of the reverence due to the worship of God. Less wealthy churches used cheaper vessels in copper, brass or pewter.

The celebration of Mass was and remains the most important service of the Roman Catholic liturgy. For this the minimum requirements are an altar, a chalice and missal, the book of texts necessary for the Mass. Holy Communion or Eucharist is that part of the Mass in which the people participate in the sacrifice of Christ, by partaking of his body and blood in the consecrated bread and wine, held in the chalice and paten.

A pyx (from the Greek for ‘box’) is used in Roman Catholic worship to contain the Sacred Host, the consecrated bread or wafer used in the Mass. In the medieval period, it came in various forms, the most standard being this conical shape. Although silver was the preferred metal, other materials were also used, a practice noted by the English king Henry VII to his ‘inward regret and displeasure’.

M.360-1921