Ten years after its restoration in 2013, the Montalto delle Marche reliquary, a masterpiece of Gothic and Renaissance goldsmithing, is on display at the Museo dell'Opificio delle Pietre Dure from 23 February to 4 May.
Now, as part of the Caring for Art exhibition, now in its fourth year, everyone will have the opportunity to observe it at ease, to appreciate the technical mastery that holds even the smallest details unfolding even in apparently minor parts.
Known for its extraordinary technical refinement and the preciousness of its materials, the work is made of gold and silver with 19 sapphires, 20 spinels, 59 pearls and a cameo in sardonyx of Byzantine manufacture surrounding the scenes related to the Passion of Christ. Itis also known for its widely documented history:The reliquary belonged to the Valois, Habsburgs, Este and Papal treasuries, then was donated to the town of Montalto in the Marche region by Pope Sixtus V, who limited its public display to only three times a year, later further restricted to the third day before Pentecost.
