RELIC OF THE MOST HOLY VIRGIN MARY

Rare reliquary in bronze with a glass front containing the fragment of the garment of the Most Holy Virgin Mary.

The relic is fixed at the center of a refined decoration. It rests on a red fabric background; this color, omnipresent in Christian liturgy, symbolizes the blood of Christ and His redemptive sacrifice, surrounded by twisted golden threads arranged in spirals (a typical ornament of baroque and post-baroque reliquaries).

Above, a label in paper or parchment bears the inscription "Veste della SS. V." → garment of the Most Holy Virgin Mary

Good condition of use with its original glass.

Unopened.

Ecclesiastical seal and silk threads present.

PERIOD : 18th century
DIMENSION : 2.5 cm X 2 cm
SIZE : 1" X 0.8"

The relics of the garments of the Virgin Mary have held a prominent place in Christian tradition since the earliest centuries. Popular piety and ecclesiastical history report that several veils, tunics, and belts of the Mother of God were preserved in prestigious sanctuaries, notably in Constantinople, Jerusalem, and Chartres. These sacred garments were perceived as powerful symbols of Marian protection and as tangible testimonies of Mary’s earthly life. From the Middle Ages onwards, small fragments of these fabrics were distributed throughout Europe, enshrined in precious portable reliquaries. Often offered by popes or rulers, they enhanced the prestige of the churches and monasteries that received them. The devotion to these relics experienced a new flourishing in the Baroque era, in the wake of the Council of Trent, when the veneration of the Virgin took on a particular intensity.