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Large reliquary with 3 relics of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Hair, Veil, & Covering

Large oval glass-fronted silvered brass reliquary theca housing three relics of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Veil, Covering, and rarely seen relic of the Hair. Relics are affixed to the background of silk ground surrounded by gilt paperolle ornamentation and identified in Latin on manuscript cedulae labels as De Velo, Indusio & Capillis B // Mariae Virginis (Of Veil, Covering & Hair of the Blessed Virgin Mary). On the back, under a protective cap, the theca is secured with a perfectly preserved seal of red Spanish wax bearing an imprint with a coat of arms of an unidentified Roman Catholic Bishop.

According to tradition, the Veil of the Blessed Virgin Mary was worn by the Virgin as she stood at the foot of the Cross. It had been transferred in the early years of Christianity from Jerusalem to Constantinople when it was presented by the Byzantine Empress Irene to the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne. In 876 his descendant Charles the Bald gave the relic to the cathedral at Chartres. The Veil is kept in a golden reliquary beside the high altar and has formed the focus of many traditions throughout the centuries. It was believed to have protected the faithful down through the centuries from many dangers and evils, including famine and war, outbreaks of the plague, and the worst ravishes of the French Revolution. The veil itself is more than six meters long and made of silk. Scientific studies have shown that it is of Syrian design, of fine quality, and can be traced to the first century. Every year on 15th August, the Feast of the Assumption of Our Lady, the Veil is processed through the town of Chartres.

The Hair of Our Lady is the rarest and the most desirable of all holy relics and the only first-class relic we have of the Most Holy Mother of God. Since the Blessed Virgin Mary was assumed into Heaven with body and soul, no physical relics of Her exist. The sole exception is that of Her hair, which had been preserved and venerated since antiquity in the Holy House of Nazareth. The Holy relic was initially kept by the Patriarchs of Jerusalem until the fifth century when it was ordered by the Byzantine Empress Pulcheria for the Holy relics of the Virgin's Veil and Hair to be translated to Constantinople. 

 

 

 

Additional Info

  • ID#: 85-RSMBR-6
  • Size: 62 x 45 mm (2 1/2 x 1 3/4 inches)
  • Age: ca. 19th century
  • Origin: Italy
  • Materials: brass, glass, silk, paper, Spanish wax
  • Price: SOLD!
  • Orthodox Cross
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