Reliquary Crucifix

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Two cavities in Christ’s back originally held relics. The exquisite niello decoration, a black inlay containing sulfides of silver, copper, and lead, relate the cross to other goldsmiths’ work made in northern Spain. Whether it functioned as an altar or a processional cross or both is uncertain. The abbreviated Latin inscription identifies Christ as “Jesus of Nazarus, King of the Jews.”

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.

Metropolitan Museum of Art