id: 130314
accession number: 1952.89
share license status: CC0
url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1952.89
updated: 2024-03-26 01:58:27.132000
Reliquary of the True Cross, c. 1214. Cross: Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem
Panel: Rhine-Meuse region, Gothic period, 13th century. Silver, gilded silver, niello, precious stones, walnut core; overall: 44 x 31 x 4.7 cm (17 5/16 x 12 3/16 x 1 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1952.89
title: Reliquary of the True Cross
title in original language:
series:
series in original language:
creation date: c. 1214
creation date earliest: 1214
creation date latest: 1214
current location: 106C Medieval Treasury
creditline: Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
copyright:
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culture: Cross: Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem
Panel: Rhine-Meuse region, Gothic period, 13th century
technique: silver, gilded silver, niello, precious stones, walnut core
department: Medieval Art
collection: MED - Gothic
type: Metalwork
find spot:
catalogue raisonne:
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CREATORS
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measurements: Overall: 44 x 31 x 4.7 cm (17 5/16 x 12 3/16 x 1 7/8 in.)
state of the work:
edition of the work:
support materials:
inscriptions:
inscription: the Latin inscription on the border of the cover, written in gothic characters, translates as follows: "If you want information about the cross, read this: A priest, a true descendant of Judas, stole the relic and boarded a ship. Instead of the fair breeze he was wishing for, the aggrieved sailors ran into a tempest. The priest became raving mad to the point of gnawing his own hands. The Virgin Mary appeared to him and said: 'You will immediately recover your wits it you undertake to give back what you robbed.' He thereupon bequeathed the relic to the Knights Templars and agonized, brooding on himself: 'As long as I breathe, the waves will form horrible whirlpools. If I am thrown into the sea, it will quiet down.' He gave up the ghost and was thrown overboard. The pilgrims happily disembarked at Brindisi and returned peacefully to their country with the relic of the cross which you see beautifully set in its container. The panel-shaped reliquary was made in the year of the incarnation 1214 in the month of February." On front, Latin inscriptions listing the relics run between the inner and outer lines of the ovals and inside the two roundels not circumscribed by an oval.
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remark:
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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
title: Ornamenta Ecclesiae: Romanesque Art and Artists in Cologne
opening date: 1985-03-07T05:00:00
Ornamenta Ecclesiae: Romanesque Art and Artists in Cologne. Museum Schnütgen, Cologne, Germany (organizer) (March 7-June 9, 1985).
title: All That Glitters: Great Silver Vessels in Cleveland's Collection
opening date: 1994-11-23T05:00:00
All That Glitters: Great Silver Vessels in Cleveland's Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 23, 1994-January 8, 1995).
title: Treasures of Heaven: Saints, Relics and Devotion in Medieval Europe
opening date: 2010-10-17T00:00:00
Treasures of Heaven: Saints, Relics and Devotion in Medieval Europe. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 17, 2010-January 17, 2011); The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, MD (February 13-May 15, 2011); The British Museum, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (June 23-October 9, 2011).
title: Every People Under Heaven: Jerusalem, 1000–1400
opening date: 2016-09-19T00:00:00
Every People Under Heaven: Jerusalem, 1000–1400. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (organizer) (September 19, 2016-January 8, 2017).
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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS
* {'description': 'Cologne, 1985, Schnutgen Museums: Ornamenta Ecclesiaw, vol.3, cat.no.H43', 'opening_date': '1985-01-01T00:00:00'}
* {'description': 'CMA, October 17, 2010 - January 17, 2011, Walters Art Museum February 13 - May 15, 2011, British Museum June 23 - October 9, 2011: "Treasures of Heaven: Saints, Relics and Devotion in Medieval Europe," cat. no. 49.', 'opening_date': '2011-02-13T00:00:00'}
* {'description': 'The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC (9/19/2016 – 1/8/2017): "Every People Under Heaven: Jerusalem, 1000–1400" cat. no. 25f, p. 62.', 'opening_date': '2016-09-19T00:00:00'}
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PROVENANCE
Albin Chalandon, Lyons; Georges Chalandon, Paris; (Adolph Loewi, Los Angeles).
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RELATED WORKS
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CITATIONS
The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958.
page number: Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 141
url: https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1958/page/n38
Bagnoli, Martina. Treasures of heaven: saints, relics, and devotion in medieval Europe. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2010.
page number: Reproduced: cat. no. 49, p. 54, 90 - 91
url:
Boehm, Barbara Drake and Melenie Holcomb, eds. Jerusalem, 1000-1400: Every People Under Heaven. NY: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2016.
page number: 62
url:
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IMAGES
web: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1952.89/1952.89_web.jpg
print: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1952.89/1952.89_print.jpg
full: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1952.89/1952.89_full.tif