Museum - Reliquary Of Saint Benignus - Wood And Metal Sculpture - Folk Art - Relic

Late 19th century – Early 20th century France Striking popular reliquary dedicated to Saint Benignus, presented in a composition that is both religious and deeply expressive. Made entirely of wood and metal, it combines a sculpted head with gilded eyes, surmounted by a heavy wooden cross, framed by two lances and a multitude of nails evoking the instruments of torture. At the base, a glass case houses the authenticated relic of the saint, accompanied by its handwritten label (S. Benignus M.). Saint Benignus, a disciple who came from Lyon to evangelize Burgundy in the 2nd century, was arrested and tortured under the Emperor Aurelian. Pierced with lances, loaded with chains, nailed and bruised, he suffered martyrdom around the year 179. His cult, rooted in Dijon around the abbey that bears his name, made him one of the patron saints of the region, guardian of the faithful and witness to the strength of faith in the face of persecution. This singular reliquary is not the product of an academic workshop, but of popular, spontaneous and inhabited work. Everything in its making reflects an artisanal as well as intuitive approach: the monumental and simplified face, with its deliberately fixed features, refers to the world of naïve art; the assemblages of wood, the nails, the tools of the Passion evoke a raw, almost delirious aesthetic, born of a gesture of fervor more than of standardized know-how. One imagines that it was made for a small church or an oratory, conceived as an immediate and striking object of piety. Beyond its religious function, this reliquary has become a true sculpture in its own right, at the crossroads of folk art, naive art and art brut. Its expressive intensity, its direct and unadorned appearance, make it an exceptional piece that goes beyond the simple devotional object to join the domain of inspired sculpture, where faith and popular creativity merge. Condition: consistent wear, patinated wood and metal, traces of oxidation, relic preserved under glass with its handwritten label. Dimensions: height 46 cm – width 42 cm – depth 16 cm ALL DELIVERIES ARE MADE BY DHL EXPRESS ONLY.