Reliquary of Mary Magdalene

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Reliquary of Mary Magdalene, 14th and 15th century Made in Tuscany, Italy Gilded copper, gilded silver, rock crystal, verre églomisé; Overall 22 x 9 3/8 x 7 15/16 in. (55.9 x 23.8 x 20.2 cm), roundel 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm) Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917 (17.190.504) While their choir books were richly colored, Franciscan communities frequently chose more somber verre églomisé, a reverse-glass painting technique, for reliquaries. Although the palette of the glass medallion that crowns the reliquary is limited, the overall effect of crystal and gilded metal is sumptuous. The relic, enclosed in rock crystal, is said to be Mary Magdalene's tooth.

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