Head of St Eustace

From: Basle, Switzerland
Date: around AD 1210

Relics are objects that are thought to have been a part of someone's life. Relics linked to key religious people are very important to their followers. This amazing silver head is a container which held the remains of the skull of a Christian saint called St Eustace. We don’t know if Eustace really existed, but according to legend he was a general in the Roman army who became a Christian. When he refused to worship the Roman gods, the other Roman soldiers had him and his family burnt to death.

St Eustace wears a beautiful headband set with precious stones. The twelve apostles are lined up on the box underneath him.