Vatican Museums

The reliquary consists of a rectangular box with sliding lid, with a double bar cruciform cavity inside, a shape characteristic of the “patriarchal” type widespread in Jerusalem and elsewhere in the East. It was intended to contain relics of the “True Cross”. Both the external and internal surfaces of the cover and surface on which the relic is positioned are covered with paintings on a gold background, components which together form a theological series focusing on the Byzantine rites of Holy Week. On the outer surface of the cover, the Crucifixion of Jesus on Calvary adheres to the dictates of canonical tradition, while the image of St. John Chrysostom on the back emphasises their relationship with the Gospel according to John, which he had commented on. Thus an explicit connection is made between the liturgy of Good Friday (whose morning offices are opened by the reading of verses 15 and 17, shown on the book held open in his hands), the preaching of the patriarch and the content of the case, effectively alluded to by the image on the lid.