Scallop-shell pilgrims' badges
Date:
Twelfth to sixteenth century
Location or Findspot (Modern-Day Country):
Spain
Medium:
Lead
Dimensions:
0.44 × 0.44 cm
Description:
Medieval pilgrims to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela (Spain), which held the remains of St. James the Greater, sometimes purchased souvenir scallop shells collected from nearby Atlantic beaches, or imitations in cheap metal. For the visitors to Santiago, badges became a popular commodity that served to commemorate their spiritual journeys—journeys that were often very long. One of the badges reproduced here was made in Spain but discovered in London. At the Spanish monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos, a relief carving on one of the piers in the cloister shows Christ as a pilgrim, wearing a wallet with a scallop shell.
Relevant Textbook Chapter(s):
7,
8,
9,
10,
11
Image Credits:
British Museum, Metropolitan Museum
