Reliquary thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Sacred Silver & Stained Glass, Room 84, The Whiteley Galleries

Reliquary

Reliquary
1575-1600 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Barcelona (made)

Cylindrical glass relic-holder surrounded by six smaller cylinders separated by slender moulded rods of baluster shape which support the domed top. The screw-heads securing the rods are in the form of flowers on the upper plate and ram's heads on the lower plate. The baluster stem is decorated with acanthus leaves, strapwork and gadrooning. The section which comprises the domed top lacks its finial, and is a later addition: the swags of linen incorporated into the ornament suggest a seventeenth-century date.

Object details

Category
Metalwork
Object type
Reliquary
TitleReliquary (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Silver, raised and chased.
Silver
Raising
Chasing
Brief description
Silver, Spain (Barcelona), 1575-1600
Physical description
Cylindrical glass relic-holder surrounded by six smaller cylinders separated by slender moulded rods of baluster shape which support the domed top. The screw-heads securing the rods are in the form of flowers on the upper plate and ram's heads on the lower plate. The baluster stem is decorated with acanthus leaves, strapwork and gadrooning. The section which comprises the domed top lacks its finial, and is a later addition: the swags of linen incorporated into the ornament suggest a seventeenth-century date.
Dimensions
  • Height: 38.5cm
  • Diameter of base diameter: 15.2cm
  • Weight: 1451.7g
Style
Renaissance
Marks and inscriptions
  • Zig-zag assay mark on the rim of the underside of the base.
  • Town mark 'BA' in a rectangular punch for 'Barcelona' (Three marks clearly visible: on underside of base; on underside of circular disc supporting seven cylindrical reliquaries; on separate circular plate that holds the seven cylindrical reliquaries. The impression of a fourth Barcelona town mark faintly visible on the disc above the seven reliquaries. The later dome is unmarked.)
  • A small cross engraved beside one of the screws on the dome of the reliquary. (Cross does not appear to line up with anything else.)
Credit line
Dr W.L. Hildburgh Bequest
Object history
The reliquary was acquired in London in 1928 and given to the Museum in 1956 by Leo Hildburgh.
Bibliographic references
  • Oman, Charles. The Golden Age of Hispanic Silver, 1400-1665. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1968.
  • Esteras Martín, Cristina. Orfebrería de Teruel y su provincia, siglos XIII al XX, 2 vols. Teruel: Instituto de Estudios Turolenses, 1980.
Collection
Metalwork Collection
Accession number
M.306-1956

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O378790/reliquary-reliquary-unknown/
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