Reliquary Bust of Saint Balbina

Reliquary Bust of Saint Balbina

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Medieval reliquaries often took the form of the body parts they were created to contain. Bust reliquaries for the skulls of saints were placed on or near altars and, by the late Middle Ages, were assembled in large numbers in some church sanctuaries, from Cologne in the north to Ubeda in southern Spain. These examples, with elaborate jewels, beautifully braided hair, and richly decorated gowns, probably represent companions of the virgin martyr Saint Ursula, believed to have been eleven thousand in number. The small glazed medallions resembling jewelry once displayed additional relics. On particular feast days, such busts could be carried in processions.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Reliquary Bust of Saint BalbinaReliquary Bust of Saint BalbinaReliquary Bust of Saint BalbinaReliquary Bust of Saint BalbinaReliquary Bust of Saint Balbina

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.