Medieval Liturgical Objects from the Musée de Cluny in Paris

Once again, I am very grateful to a friend for sharing with us photos taken during his travels, this time from the medieval collection at the Musée de Cluny in Paris. There is currently an exhibition going on there titled “The Middle Ages of the 19th Century - Creations and Fakes in the Fine Arts”, which displays medieval works next to modern ones inspired by them, and some forgeries as well. E.g., here we see a medieval thurible on the left, and a modern one which copies it (on the left.)

This museum, which is housed in a building that was once the Parisian residence of the abbot of Cluny, is best known as the home of a famous set of six tapestries called The Lady and the Unicorn, but also possesses a large number of very beautiful liturgical objects. Some of these items are not medieval, but relatively modern works inspired by medieval ones. In 2019, I visited the museum, and posted some of my own photos, but a large part of it was closed for renovations, and so there isn’t any overlap between these and my own set.

A reliquary in the form of an angel made in France ca. 1470-80.

A modern reliquary inspired by it, made in 1913, containing a rib of the Dominican Saint Gerard of Brogne.

The smaller reliquary at the lower right of this photo was made towards the end of the 19th centuryto contain a small fragment of the True Cross; another container was added to it to contain a relic of Julie Billiart, the founder of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, shortly after her beatification in 1906. (She has since been canonized.)

An embroidered panel inspired by the same time of design, made in England in the mid-19th century.

A medieval chalice and paten, and a modern copy (upper right.)

On the right, a ciborium made in France in about 1200, and on the left, a 19th century copy.

>On the left, a chalice and pattern set made in 1226-29, and on the right, two modern imitations, the one above made in 1899, and the one below in 1909.