Reliquary coffer

A piece of the surplice worn by Saint Francis Xavier was kept in this small reliquary coffer. Made of wood and completely covered in chased silver, it was fashioned by a local silversmith. It is decorated with curving plant motifs that adorn the front and coffered top in low relief, arranged symmetrically as in a fabric design.
On the coffer’s sides the craftsman has depicted miracles performed by St. Francis Xavier: one about the raising of a dead man, and another alluding to the help given to the Vicar of Malacca where the saint drove away the demons persecuting him at the hour of death. The delicate silverwork at the back of the coffer informs us of its contents – two narrow tables flank a central medallion containing the trigram of Christ, a cross and nails: the right one reads “SOBREPELIS” (surplice) and the left one “D.S. FRANCISCO XAV”.