The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 24, 2024

Mold for a Eulogia (Blessing) Bread

Mold for a Eulogia (Blessing) Bread

600s-900s
wood
Diameter: 8.8 x 1.9 cm (3 7/16 x 3/4 in.)
Thirty-fifth anniversary gift of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mallon 1951.152
Location: 105 Byzantine

Did You Know?

Medieval Christian pilgrims often traveled months or years to religious sites in the Holy Land and returned home with blessed mementos of their journey, such as vials of holy water, relics from saints, and even special loaves of bread. This mold was used to mark bread with an image of the Church of Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem; the bread was then distributed to pilgrims.

Description

It was a common early Christian practice to stamp images and inscriptions into loaves of bread using special molds. Representing the Church of the Holy Sepulcher on Mount Golgotha--the hill outside Jerusalem on which Christ was crucified and entombed--this wooden mold was probably used to stamp loaves of bread distributed to pilgrims visiting Jerusalem, in commemoration of their journey.
  • ?-1951
    (Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mallon, New York, NY, gifted to the Cleveland Museum of Art).
    1951-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Wessel, Klaus, Marcell Restle, Birgitt Borkopp-Restle, Annegret Plontke-Lüning, and Andreas Pülz. Reallexikon zur byzantinischen Kunst. 1966. p. 751
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  • Sacred Gifts and Worldly Treasures: Medieval Masterworks from the Cleveland Museum of Art. National Museum of Bavaria, Munich, Germany (May 10-September 16, 2007); J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, CA (October 30, 2007-January 20, 2008); Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN (February 13-June 7, 2009).
    Late Antique and Early Christian Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (1977-1978).
    Exhibition of Orthodox Religious Art, Michigan State University, Lansing, MI (April-May, 1960).
    Architectural Style in Miniature, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (August 1-November 30, 1959).
    35th Anniversary Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 20-September 30, 1951).
    The Arts of Christian Antiquity, University Art Gallery Notre Dame, Indiana (October 1-31, 1957).
  • {{cite web|title=Mold for a Eulogia (Blessing) Bread|url=false|author=|year=600s-900s|access-date=24 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1951.152