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Pilgrim's Ampulla with the Crucifixion (front)

c. 600
tin-lead alloy with leather fragments
Overall: 6.3 x 4.6 x 1.5 cm (2 1/2 x 1 13/16 x 9/16 in.)
John L. Severance Fund 1999.46.a
Location: 105 Byzantine
Public Domain
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Description

The images found on the sides of surviving lead pilgrims' ampullae include scenes relating to the life of Christ, and by extension to the holy sites (loca sancta) where the events took place. Cast into the sides of this ampulla are scenes of Christ's Crucifixion on the front and the Ascension on the back. The use of such sacred images on these vessels illustrates the early Christian belief that images were carriers of divine power. This ampulla is known as a "Monza" or "Bobbio" type after caches of similar examples discovered in those two Italian towns.
Pilgrim's Ampulla with the Crucifixion (front)

Pilgrim's Ampulla with the Crucifixion (front)

c. 600

Byzantium, Palestine, early Byzantine period, early 7th Century

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