Reliquaries Research Paper

Reliquaries are the containers that store and display relics. Since the relics themselves were considered to be valuable spiritual objects it is appropriate that they be enshrined in vessels, or reliquaries, crafted of or covered by gold, silver, ivory, gems, and enamel. These precious objects constituted a major form of artistic production across Europe and Byzantium throughout the middle Ages. Reliquaries were also fashioned into full-body statues; the distinction between the meaning of an image such as the famous Reliquary Statue of Sainte-Foy, still preserved at the monastery of Conquest in France, and pagan idols was clearly articulated. By the end of the Middle Ages, image reliquaries, which traditionally were meant to suggest a saint's heavenly form and visage, came to mirror contemporary ideas of beauty. Christian belief in the power of relics, the physical remains of a holy site or holy person, or objects with which they had contact, is as old as the faith itself and developed alongside it. Relics were more than mementos. The New Testament refers to the healing power of objects that were touched by Christ or his apostles. Many people travel great distances in order to see religious objects. I believe they feel they will be blessed by the spirit it holds by coming in showing their respect. Thousands of people travel each year to the Holy Land to be where Jesus was. We are always prejudiced to our own religion due to our faith that we …show more content…
This is one of the few pieces of carved wood that survived from the middle ages. In 970, Archbishop Gero of Cologne commissioned this piece for his cathedral. The Christ figure is life size and he is made of gilded oak that was it has been an icon of spiritual energy. Some artworks do center the spirit of the worshiper within the center of Divinity. It has a relic of the Eucharistic body of Jesus