Statue robe

Created to adorn a cult statue, probably of the Infant Christ or of the Virgin Mary, during Catholic feast days and holy days, this distinctive cape is a rare survival of Sicilian coral work, also appreciable at The Met in the vestments 2009.300.2984a-c. With its rosy hues, coral symbolized the spilled blood of Christ whose sacrifice, Christians believe, saved Humanity; appropriate to the island of Sicily, coral was also believed to have talismanic powers, protecting its bearer when travelling on water. Here, the beads are nestled within shimmering silver threads- drawn, beaten, coiled, and wrapped around silken cores.