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3 Furniture & Decorative Arts Auction on 26 March 2020 Treasure from Limoges The old bishopric of Limoges became the undisputed centre of the elaborate craft of “Limousine enamel” as early as the 12 th century. The exquisite small-format reliquary shrines and boxes made there were among the best and most valuable that goldsmiths and enam- ellers could produce. Reliquaries from Limoges such as the one shown here, to be sold on 26 March (ill. 1) remained influential for centuries: as late as the 19 th century, replicas were still being made in the style of the 13 th century. Christian religious worship is based on belief in the im- perishability of the Holy Body of Christ as well as in the special powers of the remains of martyrs and saints, handed down in so-called miracle reports, which con- veymuch of the religiosity and ideas of salvation of their time. Since the 8 th century, the Church has endeav- oured to endow every altar with a relic. Reliquaries were used for the storage of venerable sanctuaries, such as the bones or bone splinters of a saint or textile frag- ments that were said to have a religious context. Reliquaries from the first half of the 13 th century, such as the one offered here, could have served to store the remains of a saint's bones or wooden splinters fromthe cross. After the conquest of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade in 1204, tiny splinters of the cross were distributed throughout Europe as venerable relics, of- ten in cross-shaped reliquaries. In addition, “speaking” reliquaries were created, in which the outer form of the reliquarywas determined by the body part within. Other forms includedphilatories, and latermonstrances, which were glass-framed cases through which the relic or consecrated host was visible. Special forms of reliquary worship exist to this day during processions honouring patron saints, or pilgrimages, in which relics are the fo- cus of often elaborately staged ceremonies. The gable-roofed lid of the reliquary in the 26 March auction depicts scenes from the Marian legend: the Annunciation, the birth of Christ and the flight to Egypt. The hinged lid is surmounted by five small spheres; two are made of rock crystal, and the middle one is com- pleted by a cross. The sides of the box are adorned with busts of angels in circular medallions, surrounded by stylised vines. This highly decorative object is exe- cuted in coloured champlevé enamel. In this process, liquid enamel – here in lapis-lazuli blue, white and red – fills cavities that have previously been made in the fire- gilt copper base material. In this way, the enamel and metal fuse to form the surface. Enamel colours consist of the fondant, a colourlessmass of glass which gets its colouring by adding various metal oxides; for example, opaque white enamel is created by adding tin oxide. This reliquary was once part of the extensive art col- lection of Ole Olsen (1863–1943), who founded Nor- disk Film A/S in 1906, the oldest extant film production company in the world. 1 A Gothic enamel reliquary. Limoges, 2nd half 13 th century. 20.5 × 8 × 15.5 cm. Estimate: CHF 70 000/120 000 2 Third Bessarion Master. Leaf from a gradual with an historiated initial B. Bologna, Ferrara 1455–60. Estimate: CHF 25 000/35 000 (Manuscripts, Auction 23 March 2020) 1 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION FURNITURE Stephan Koller skoller@kollerauctions.com ONLINE CATALOGUES www.kollerauctions.com 2