Pilgrim flask (front)

Pilgrim flasks were used by pilgrims to hold small amounts of secondary relics such as hallowed oil, earth, dust or water. This earthenware example dates from the 5th to the 7th century AD. The picture shows the front of the flask.

The figure on the front is Menas, an Egyptian soldier-saint whose shrine was at Abu Mena, south-west of Alexandria. It is said that two camels brought the body of the saint to Abu Mena, where they stopped and refused to go on.

Before the introduction of pilgrim flasks, precious shrines were often damaged by pilgrims breaking off bits of rock, stone and earth. To prevent such damage and to satisfy the growing demand for relics, the guardians of the shrines made available small amounts of hallowed oil, earth, dust and water, which were placed in small containers of ceramic or metal, and sealed up.

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