In the Christian tradition, journeying was associated with conversion: all pilgrim roads potentially led to Damascus. All Christians were stained with sin in his life, but individuals’ motives for going on pilgrimage differed from person to person: to seek health care; fulfil pilgrimage vows made during crises; do penance for sins; give thanks for blessings received; as a court punishment for a crime; or for pleasure.
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The risks were great: infections, rugged climates, pirates and rape. Muslim pirates lurked on the sea routes; other nations’ wars flared up; ocean storms and epidemics threatened; pilgrims had to obtain food/shelter en route; and leaving one’s affairs at home was risky. Brigands meant pilgrims travelled in convoy; protection was needed along the roads and safe places for shelter. Where monasteries could not accommodate the crowds, large guest halls were set up by the holy orders. Or hostels at the end of every day’s journey. There they would receive beds of straw, food and alms, a chapel, minstrels and story tellers.
So every temptation that could fascinate the medieval mind was linked to pilgrimage. A general indulgence was made by Pope Urban II in 1095 to pilgrims to Jerusalem, and later to all pilgrims. The ceremony for blessing departing pilgrims was held in the local parish church; in his habit he lay prostrate before the altar. Each pilgrim received a staff and leather satchel, and wore a grey tunic, scarf and large broad-rimmed hat. A red cross was sewn on his garment.
The natural world was seen by medievals as a chaos in which the perpetual intervention of God was the only guiding law; the only remedies were prayer and the performance of pious acts. The sexually unchaste were shown as deformed, distorted human beings. Detailed descriptions of Hell, involving fire, brimstone and venomous worms, were on the west fronts of Bourges, Conques, Lourdes and Rocamadour. Except for the upper mobility, clergy and wealthy merchants, the vast majority could not read. So the church chose sculptural themes that were most likely to capture citizens’ attention, elicit their emotions and improve their morals.
The greatest relics were those associated with Christ, especially once the holy cross was excavated in Jerusalem. Relics of the Passion were sent westwards, the crown of thorns going to St Louis of France in Ste Chapelle 1239.
In French pilgrimages to the Virgin were the principal means by which devotion of uneducated people was expressed. Virgin statues were placed on altars, carved images, on shrines, column capitals and walls. Relics included: her empty tomb outside Jerusalem; her cloak in the church of Constantinople; and her silk tunic in Chartres’ crypt.
If churches could not have relics from Christ or the Virgin, other holy people were next best eg the head of St John the Baptist was preserved at St Hilaire in Poitiers. This cult of saints led to an unprecedented demand for relics, given that relics were necessary for the consecration of churches. There was a great demand for saints’ literature. Saints’ lives were read in the lessons on their feast days; stories were repeated in sermons; and the themes were often illustrated in wall art or stained glass. Teaching the lives and miracles of the saints greatly simplified doctrinal issues and encouraged uneducated people with the faith.
Apostle arm reliquary, German, c1190, silver gilt & enamel, 51cm,
Cleveland Museum Art
The risks were great: infections, rugged climates, pirates and rape. Muslim pirates lurked on the sea routes; other nations’ wars flared up; ocean storms and epidemics threatened; pilgrims had to obtain food/shelter en route; and leaving one’s affairs at home was risky. Brigands meant pilgrims travelled in convoy; protection was needed along the roads and safe places for shelter. Where monasteries could not accommodate the crowds, large guest halls were set up by the holy orders. Or hostels at the end of every day’s journey. There they would receive beds of straw, food and alms, a chapel, minstrels and story tellers.
So every temptation that could fascinate the medieval mind was linked to pilgrimage. A general indulgence was made by Pope Urban II in 1095 to pilgrims to Jerusalem, and later to all pilgrims. The ceremony for blessing departing pilgrims was held in the local parish church; in his habit he lay prostrate before the altar. Each pilgrim received a staff and leather satchel, and wore a grey tunic, scarf and large broad-rimmed hat. A red cross was sewn on his garment.
The natural world was seen by medievals as a chaos in which the perpetual intervention of God was the only guiding law; the only remedies were prayer and the performance of pious acts. The sexually unchaste were shown as deformed, distorted human beings. Detailed descriptions of Hell, involving fire, brimstone and venomous worms, were on the west fronts of Bourges, Conques, Lourdes and Rocamadour. Except for the upper mobility, clergy and wealthy merchants, the vast majority could not read. So the church chose sculptural themes that were most likely to capture citizens’ attention, elicit their emotions and improve their morals.
The greatest relics were those associated with Christ, especially once the holy cross was excavated in Jerusalem. Relics of the Passion were sent westwards, the crown of thorns going to St Louis of France in Ste Chapelle 1239.
In French pilgrimages to the Virgin were the principal means by which devotion of uneducated people was expressed. Virgin statues were placed on altars, carved images, on shrines, column capitals and walls. Relics included: her empty tomb outside Jerusalem; her cloak in the church of Constantinople; and her silk tunic in Chartres’ crypt.
If churches could not have relics from Christ or the Virgin, other holy people were next best eg the head of St John the Baptist was preserved at St Hilaire in Poitiers. This cult of saints led to an unprecedented demand for relics, given that relics were necessary for the consecration of churches. There was a great demand for saints’ literature. Saints’ lives were read in the lessons on their feast days; stories were repeated in sermons; and the themes were often illustrated in wall art or stained glass. Teaching the lives and miracles of the saints greatly simplified doctrinal issues and encouraged uneducated people with the faith.
The relics were not venerated in themselves; they were a link to holy martyrs whose lives were a model to humanity. So the more beautiful, the better. Soon precious reliquaries were being created to honour those divine persons to whom the relics had once belonged. Where possible, reliquaries were shaped as the contents had appeared in life.
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The badges were made to boost revenues at pilgrim sites and to limit damage to shrines that were nicked. Cheap lead alloys allowed thin casting and detailed low-relief imagery, allowing for the production of delicate, silver-bright objects, affordable for the majority of medieval pilgrims.
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St Michael's Pilgrim brass badge
Reliquary bust, Auvergne, c1160, copper-gilt, ivory & horn, 73cm,
Mairie de Saint-Nectaire
Medieval people were vulnerable to illness. Physical disease had to have spiritual causes, brought on by sin; infection was the physical transfer of devils; and barrenness was a sign of God’s displeasure. The clergy upheld the invocation of the saints as the ONLY sure remedy for sickness. Epidemics led to mass pilgrimage to each of the Blessed Virgin’s sanctuaries. When sick pilgrims came for the Virgin’s intervention, they were nursed in the crypt hospital. They slept IN the cathedral: the nave was sloped for easy sluicing. On saints' feast days, crowds of the sick filled the great basilicas. [The medical profession did not inspire as much confidence as the intercession of St Thomas or St James]. Many of the great healing shrines cultivated their own medical specialities, and the cures were advertised in the saints’ books.
By the late C12th, four shrines vied with Rome & Jerusalem in importance: Compostela, Canterbury (immediately following the 1170 martyrdom of St Thomas Becket), Cologne and Chartres. Compostela’s popularity reached its peak in the mid C12th, with c500,000 pilgrims a year. The best protection for pilgrims in those decades was provided by military monkish orders.
By the late C12th, four shrines vied with Rome & Jerusalem in importance: Compostela, Canterbury (immediately following the 1170 martyrdom of St Thomas Becket), Cologne and Chartres. Compostela’s popularity reached its peak in the mid C12th, with c500,000 pilgrims a year. The best protection for pilgrims in those decades was provided by military monkish orders.
Pilgrimage provided a wealth of memorable experiences: new friends, tourism in new lands, soaring gothic spires, physical pains, dazzling shrines and reliquaries, and ultimate relief at the end. Without photos, medieval pilgrim souvenir badges were the best and most evocative memories available to returning pilgrims.
The badges were made to boost revenues at pilgrim sites and to limit damage to shrines that were nicked. Cheap lead alloys allowed thin casting and detailed low-relief imagery, allowing for the production of delicate, silver-bright objects, affordable for the majority of medieval pilgrims.
St Thomas Becket badge, Canterbury
England 15th century
Between the C12th and the C16ths they were sold in their thousands at famous sites, as well more local sites. Smart badge makers would try and reflect the relics relevant to each pilgrimage sites.
The souvenirs were bought for different reasons. 1] For religiously focused pilgrims, badges could serve an important devotional purpose. 2] Medieval artefacts were sparkling, colourful objects, attractive to wear. 3] They advertised the particular shrine that had been most important to that group of pilgrims. 4] They could protect the health of the pilgrims on the long trip home. And 5] for the rest of their lives, the souvenirs would remind the pilgrim of the best time in his entire life. Family and friends would be in awe of the one person in the village who had fulfilled his dream.
Most major pilgrimage sites had at least one easily recognisable image that could be reproduced on a badge. Santiago de Compostela badges were shell-shaped; Amiens’ was John the Baptist's head on a plate; St Albans’ showed the saint's martyrdom. The badge of Thomas Becket at Canterbury was his jewel-encrusted reliquary that housed a holy skull fragment.
The souvenirs were bought for different reasons. 1] For religiously focused pilgrims, badges could serve an important devotional purpose. 2] Medieval artefacts were sparkling, colourful objects, attractive to wear. 3] They advertised the particular shrine that had been most important to that group of pilgrims. 4] They could protect the health of the pilgrims on the long trip home. And 5] for the rest of their lives, the souvenirs would remind the pilgrim of the best time in his entire life. Family and friends would be in awe of the one person in the village who had fulfilled his dream.
Most major pilgrimage sites had at least one easily recognisable image that could be reproduced on a badge. Santiago de Compostela badges were shell-shaped; Amiens’ was John the Baptist's head on a plate; St Albans’ showed the saint's martyrdom. The badge of Thomas Becket at Canterbury was his jewel-encrusted reliquary that housed a holy skull fragment.