Arm Reliquary of Saint Pantaleon
(Medieval Europe )
This silver arm is known as a "speaking" reliquary because it takes shape of the body part it once contained. The reliquary reputedly held an arm bone of Saint Pantaleon, a "Holy Doctor" martyred in Asia Minor (AD 305) who later became the patron saint of physicians. The remains of an inscription along the seam of the sleeve refer to the saint by name. The small door with the two glass shields was added in the 15th century, as was the crystal at the edge of the sleeve.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
A. Tollin, Paris; Chevallier & Mannheim, Paris, May 20, 1897, no. 79; Robert Hoe, New York; American Art Association, New York, February 15, 1911, no. 1813; Wareham Harding, New York; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1920, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
2010-2011 | Treasures of Heaven. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland; The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; The British Museum, London. |
1984-1985 | Reliquaries and Ritual: Medieval Objects of Devotion. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
1961 | A Medieval Treasury from Southern Collections. Ackland Art Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill. |
2024 | Secrets of Our Own. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. 0. |
Conservation
Date | Description | Narrative |
---|---|---|
2/1/1948 | Treatment | cleaned; coated |
12/1/1984 | Treatment | cleaned |
6/3/1987 | Examination | other |
3/28/1994 | Treatment | cleaned |
10/7/1998 | Examination | x-ray; technical study |
Geographies
Germany (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 18 9/16 x W: 5 1/16 x D: 3 5/8 in. (47.2 x 12.8 x 9.2 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1920
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
57.688