Devotion and Pilgrimage
Devotional objects
The saints are present in this world represented by images and relics, which the faithful would admire on altars dedicated to the particular saint.
The saints are present in this world represented by images and relics, which the faithful would admire on altars dedicated to the particular saint. The relic, which may be a body part, a piece of clothing or other personal accessories are placed in reliquaries, which were often used in processions. In the Middle Ages there was a great deal of interest in the remains of the First Martyrs. Many noble women donated their jewellery and clothes for antependia, monstrances, chasubles or cloth-covers for chalices, which were used in celebrations of the cult of saints.
Bust of a Saint

1730
Moravian Gallery, Brno
Governor's Palace, Brno, Moravia, Czech Republic
Ignaz Lengelacher
Wood, silver-plated
The figure might be St. Hieronymus, one of the Church Fathers. The pedestal shows that the object was a reliquary. The Bust is one in a series of original decorations of altar tables in a church.