Editing Reliquary

{{Short description|Container for religious relics}}
{{About|containers for relics|the Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child novel|Reliquary (novel)}}
[[File:Reliquary Shrine Jean de Touyl.jpg|thumb|300px|''[[Reliquary Shrine (de Touyl)| Reliquary Shrine]]'', French, {{circa|1325}}–50, [[The Cloisters]], New York]]
[[Image:Reliekschrijnbinnen.jpg|thumb|Inside the shrine of St. [[Saint Boniface| Boniface of Dokkum]] in the [[Hermitage (religious retreat)| hermit-church]] of [[Warfhuizen]] in the [[Netherlands]]. The little folded paper on the left contains a bone fragment of Saint [[Benedict of Nursia]], the folded paper on the right a piece of the [[religious habit| habit]] of St. [[Bernard of Clairvaux]]. The large bone in the middle (about 5 cm in length) is the actual relic of St. Boniface.]]

A '''reliquary''' (also referred to as a ''[[shrine]]'', ''[[Chasse (casket)|chasse]]'', or ''phylactery'')<ref>{{Cite book |last=Farmer |first=Sharon |year= 2007 |editor1= Rachel Fulton Brown |editor2= Bruce W. Holsinger |title= History in the Comic Mode: Medieval Communities and the Matter of Person |chapter=17: Low Country Ascetics and Oriental Luxury: Jacques de Vitry, Marie of Oignies, and the Treasures of Oignies |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JZE2AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA209 |location= New York City |publisher= Columbia University Press |isbn=9780231508476 |oclc= 8182124165 |page=209}}</ref> is a container for [[relic]]s. A portable reliquary, or the room in which one is stored, may also be called a ''feretory''.<ref>
{{oed | feretory}}
</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of FERETORY |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/feretory |access-date=2025-05-18 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}</ref>

[[Relics]] may be the purported or actual physical remains of [[saint]]s, and may comprise bones, pieces of clothing, or some object associated with saints or with other religious figures. The authenticity of any given relic is often a matter of debate; for that reason, some churches require documentation of a relic's provenance.

Relics have long been important to [[Buddhism| Buddhists]], [[Christianity |Christians]], [[Hinduism |Hindus]], and to followers of many other religions.<ref>"Two Gandhāran Reliquaries". K. Walton Dobbins. ''East and West'', 18 (1968), pp. 151–162.</ref><ref>''The Stūpa and Vihāra of Kanishka I''. K. Walton Dobbins. (1971). The Asiatic Society of Bengal Monograph Series, Vol. XVIII. Calcutta.</ref><ref>"Is the Kaniṣka Reliquary a work from Mathurā?" Mirella Levi d’Ancona. ''Art Bulletin'', Vol. 31, No. 4 (Dec. 1949), pp. 321–323.</ref> These cultures often display reliquaries in shrines, churches, or temples to which the faithful make [[pilgrimage]]s to gain blessings.

The term is sometimes used in a looser sense to mean a container for the remains of any important figure, even non-religious ones. In particular, the [[kings of France]] often specified that their hearts and sometimes other organs be buried in a different location from their body.

==In Christianity==
[[File:Reliquary Cross (French, The Cloisters).jpg|thumb|upright=1|''[[Reliquary Cross (The Cloisters)|Reliquary Cross]]'', French, {{Circa|1180}}]]
[[File:Domhnach Airgid.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1|[[Domnach Airgid]], Irish, 8th–9th century, added to 14th century, 15th century, and after]]
The use of reliquaries became an important part of [[Christianity|Christian]] practices from at least the 4th century, initially in the [[Eastern Christianity|Eastern Churches]], which adopted the practice of moving and dividing the bodies of saints much earlier than the West, probably in part because the new capital of [[Constantinople]], unlike Rome, lacked buried saints. Relics are venerated in [[Oriental Orthodox]], [[Eastern Orthodox]], [[Roman Catholic]], and some [[Anglican]] Churches.  Reliquaries provide a means of protecting and displaying relics. While frequently taking the form of caskets, they range in size from simple pendants or rings to very elaborate [[ossuary|ossuaries]].<ref name=boehm/>

The relics were enshrined in containers crafted of or covered with [[gold]], [[silver]], gems, and [[enamelled glass]].<ref name=boehm>[http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/relc/hd_relc.htm Boehm, Barbara Drake. "Relics and Reliquaries in Medieval Christianity". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art,(October 2001)]</ref> [[Ivory]] was widely used in the Middle Ages for reliquaries; its pure white color is an indication of the holy status of its contents.<ref name=speakman>[http://www.learn.columbia.edu/treasuresofheaven/relics/Reliquary.php Speakman, Naomi C., "Treasures of Heaven", The British Museum, London, 2011]</ref> These objects constituted a major form of artistic production across Europe and Byzantium throughout the Middle Ages.{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}

Many were designed with portability in mind, often being exhibited in public or carried in [[procession]] on the saint's [[feast day]] or on other [[Liturgical year|holy days]]. [[Pilgrimage]]s often centered on the [[veneration]] of relics. The faithful often venerate relics by bowing before the reliquary or kissing it; those churches that observe the veneration of relics distinguish between the honor given to the saints and the worship that is due to God alone (see [[Second Council of Nicea]]).{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}

Sixteenth-century reformers such as [[Martin Luther]] opposed the use of relics since many had no proof of historical authenticity and objected to a cult of saints. Many reliquaries, particularly in northern Europe, were destroyed by [[Calvinist]]s or Calvinist sympathizers during the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]], being melted down or pulled apart to recover precious metals and gems. Nonetheless, the use and manufacture of reliquaries continue to this day, especially in [[Roman Catholic]] and [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Christian]] countries.{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}

===Forms===
[[File:French - Reliquary for a Finger Bone - Walters 57690.jpg|thumb|upright|Franco-Flemish Gothic philatory for a finger bone, late 15th century,  [[Walters Art Museum]]]]

The earliest reliquaries were essentially boxes, either simply box-shaped or based on an architectural design, taking the form of a model of a church with a pitched roof. These latter are known as [[Chasse (casket)|chasse]] (from French {{lang|fr|châsse}}), and typical examples from the 12th to 14th century have wooden frameworks with [[gilding|gilt-copper]] plaques nailed on, decorated in [[champlevé enamel]]. [[Limoges]] was the largest production centre.{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}

Relics of the [[True Cross]] became very popular from the 9th century onward and were housed in magnificent gold and silver cross-shaped reliquaries decorated with enamels and precious stones. From about the end of the 10th century, reliquaries in the shape of the relics they housed also became popular; hence, for instance, the skull of [[Pope Alexander I]] was housed in a head-shaped reliquary. Similarly, the bones of saints were often housed in reliquaries that recalled the shape of the original body part, such as an arm or a foot.

Many [[Eastern Orthodox]] reliquaries housing tiny pieces of relics have circular or cylindrical slots in which small disks of [[wax-mastic]] are placed, in which the actual relic is embedded.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Tomov |first1=Nikola |last2=Dzhangozov |first2=Januarius (Yanko) |title=Wax Embedding as a Method for Preservation of Body Relics Used by the Orthodox Church |journal=Acta Morphologica et Anthropologica |volume=25 |issue=1–2 |pages=122–125 |url=http://www.iempam.bas.bg/journals/acta/acta25a/122-125.pdf}}</ref>

A '''philatory''' is a transparent reliquary designed to contain and exhibit the [[bone]]s and relics of saints. This style of reliquary has a viewing portal to view the relic inside. The ''feretrum'' was a medieval form of reliquary or [[shrine]] containing the sacred [[effigies]] and relics of a saint.

During the later [[Middle Ages]], the [[monstrance]] form, primarily used for consecrated hosts, was sometimes used for reliquaries. These housed the relic in a rock crystal, or glass capsule mounted on a column above a base, enabling the relic to be displayed to the faithful. Reliquaries in the form of large pieces of metalwork jewellery also appeared around this time, housing tiny relics such as pieces of the [[Crown of thorns|Holy Thorn]], notably the [[Holy Thorn Reliquary]] now in the [[British Museum]].

{{multiple image
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 | header_align = center 
 | header    Forms of reliquaries in Christianity

 | image1    = Chasse saint taurin.jpg
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 | caption1  = Box reliquary/[[Chasse (casket)|chasse]] of [[St. Taurin]]
 
 | image3    = LaszloOradea.jpg
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 | caption3  = Head reliquary
| image2 = ArmreliquiarSanktQuintin.jpg
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| caption2 = The Arm reliquary of Margaret of Castell

 | image4    = Gurii (icon whis relic).jpg
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 | caption4  = [[Icon]] of St. Guriy of Kazan, with a relic embedded in it (19th century).

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}}

==In Buddhism==
In Buddhism, [[stupa]]s are an important form of a reliquary and may be buried inside larger structures such as a [[stupa]] or [[chorten]]. Particularly in China and throughout East and Southeast Asia, these take the form of a [[pagoda]]; in Japan, this is known as a ''[[tō]]''.

Two famous very early excavated reliquaries are the 1st-century [[Bimaran Casket]] and the [[Kanishka Casket]] of 127 AD, both believed to have contained part of the cremated remains of [[Gautama Buddha]]. [[Relics associated with Buddha]] are the most important in Buddhism, but those related to other enlightened figures like [[Sariputta]] and [[Maudgalyayana|Moggallana]] are also highly revered. 

In Buddhism, relics are known as [[cetiya]]; one of the most significant is the [[relic of the tooth of the Buddha]] in [[Sri Lanka]]. In Japan, Buddhist relics are known as {{Nihongo||舎利|shari|from Sanskrit [[śarīra]]}}, and are often stored in a {{Nihongo||舎利殿|shariden|relic hall, reliquary}}. (See also: [[Japanese Buddhist architecture]]) The Golden Pavilion at [[Kinkaku-ji]] in Kyoto is a well-known example of a ''shariden''.

<gallery mode=packed>
File:Kanishka casket, Asia, G33 South Asia.jpg|Buddhist reliquary in [[Kanishka Stupa]]
File:Guimet Relicario Song.JPG|[[Buddhist]] reliquary, [[Song dynasty]]
File:Kinkaku-ji_the_Golden_Temple_in_Kyoto_overlooking_the_lake_-_high_rez.JPG|''Shariden'' at [[Kinkaku-ji]], Kyoto, Japan
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[Cetiya]]
* [[Ennabeuren reliquary]]
* [[Essen-Werden casket]]
* [[Relics of Sariputta and Moggallana]]
* [[Shrine of the Three Kings]] in [[Cologne Cathedral]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal |last1=Bynum |first1=Caroline Walker |last2=Gerson |first2=Paula |title=Body-Part Reliquaries and Body Parts in the Middle Ages |journal=Gesta |date=January 1997 |volume=36 |issue=1 |pages=3–7 |doi=10.2307/767274}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Hahn |first1=Cynthia |title=The Voices of the Saints: Speaking Reliquaries |journal=Gesta |date=January 1997 |volume=36 |issue=1 |pages=20–31 |doi=10.2307/767276}}
* [[Kurt Weitzmann|Weitzmann, Kurt]], ed., ''[http://libmma.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15324coll10/id/156533 Age of spirituality: late antique and early Christian art, third to seventh century]'', no. 569–575, 1979, [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]], New York, {{ISBN|9780870991790}}

== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline|Reliquaries}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Reliquaries| ]]
[[Category:Chests (furniture)]]
[[Category:Religious objects]]