Ostensorium

An ostensorium is a special kind of display fixture used for presenting religious relics. This unique example serves more as a frame than a container.

In its center, surrounded by a crystal ring, is a reliquary wrapped in fabric and attached to a “bouquet“ of wire and gold leaf. The Nuremberg ostensorium therefore represents a new form of spiritual understanding: the packaged reliquary is openly displayed, and no longer hidden.

An Arabic inscription refers to the reign of Caliph Ali az-Zahir over the Fatimid Caliphate from 1021 to 1036. The object represents a crescent moon and once sat atop the minbar, an Islamic pulpit in a mosque.

The artistic centre of this Islamic dynasty was Cairo, where many such rock crystal objects were crafted. Today they are extremely rare, with only a few more than 20 known to have survived.

The crystal rock mounts on a delicately worked base and a shaft fashioned in the form of a tiny Gothic chapel. Translucent blue enamel highlights the windows.

In former times a cross sat atop the crystal ring.

In the 19th century, a Viennese art dealer produced a “copy” of the ostensorium, which today can be found in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. He created two new objects from the original and copied parts.

The Gothic base and shaft, the crystal ring and the cone at the top of the Nuremberg ostensorium were part of the original work. The ring mount and reliquary holder are products of the 19th century. The original cross now sits atop the copy in Vienna, which also holds the original reliquary.

The Venetian goldsmiths were undoubtedly aware of the crystal’s origin. What is unclear is whether the integration of a religious Islamic object in a Christian vessel was a sign of subjugation or deference.

Either way, the individual parts of the ostensorium are testament to its chequered history across centuries and cultures.