Badge with the Virgin and Child

Badge with the Virgin and Child

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Pendants or badges with images of saints and holy figures were probably worn as talismans–the patron saint likely chosen to answer personal concerns–and as displays of piety.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Badge with the Virgin and ChildBadge with the Virgin and ChildBadge with the Virgin and ChildBadge with the Virgin and ChildBadge with the Virgin and Child

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.