Shell Cross
Unknown Artist
300–700
Medium
Shell
Dimensions
Overall: 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 x 3/16 in. (3.8 x 3.2 x 0.5 cm)
Classification
Miscellaneous-Shell
Culture
Byzantine
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number
17.191.200
Art Historical Context
This delicate *Shell Cross*, crafted by an unknown artist between 300 and 700 CE, exemplifies the portable piety of early Byzantine Christianity. Fashioned entirely from shell—a rare and lightweight medium—this tiny artifact measures just 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 x 3/16 inches, it was worn as a pendant, sewn into clothing, or carried as a personal talisman. The cross form, central to Byzantine religious devotion, symbolized Christ's sacrifice and protection against evil, reflecting the empire's fusion of Roman engineering with emerging Christian iconography. In the Byzantine world, spanning Constantinop...