The Agate Casket of Oviedo ( es, Caja de las Ágatas, sometimes in English Agate Box, "Box of Agates") is an elaborately decorated box, casket or small chest given by King

Fruela II of Asturias Fruela II (Froila II) (c. 875–July 925) was the King of Asturias from the death of his father, Alfonso III of Asturias, in 910 to his own death. When his father died, the kingdom was divided, with the third son, Fruela, taking the original porti ...

and his wife Nunila to the Cathedral of San Salvador,

Oviedo Oviedo (; ast, Uviéu ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains the city. Oviedo is located ap ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. This masterpiece of 10th century Asturian gold work is kept in the Cámara Santa (Holy Chamber) treasury.

Construction

It is a rectangular box made of wood of

European Pear ''Pyrus communis'', the common pear, is a species of pear native to central and eastern Europe, and western Asia. It is one of the most important fruits of temperate regions, being the species from which most orchard pear cultivars grown in Euro ...

, with a lid in the shape of a truncated pyramid. The

Agate Agate () is a common rock formation, consisting of chalcedony and quartz as its primary components, with a wide variety of colors. Agates are primarily formed within volcanic and metamorphic rocks. The ornamental use of agate was common in Ancie ...

box is long, wide and high. The wooden box is covered with sheets of gold forming unequal arches in which 99 large flat sections of veined

agate Agate () is a common rock formation, consisting of chalcedony and quartz as its primary components, with a wide variety of colors. Agates are primarily formed within volcanic and metamorphic rocks. The ornamental use of agate was common in Ancie ...

are mounted. The gold is decorated with

cabochon A cabochon (; ) is a gemstone that has been shaped and polished, as opposed to faceted. The resulting form is usually a convex (rounded) obverse with a flat reverse. Cabochon was the default method of preparing gemstones before gemstone cuttin ...

gemstones and

coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

. The top of the lid is a gold plaque with a cross and three large gems which was taken from an older piece. It is decorated with small animals in enamel in a kind of

champlevé Champlevé is an enamelling technique in the decorative arts, or an object made by that process, in which troughs or cells are carved, etched, die struck, or Casting (metalworking), cast into the surface of a metal object, and filled with vitreo ...

technique that is only found in one other work, the South German rear cover of the

Lindau Gospels The Lindau Gospels is an illuminated manuscript in the Morgan Library in New York, which is important for its illuminated text, but still more so for its treasure binding, or metalwork covers, which are of different periods. The oldest elemen ...

, of the late 8th century, now in the

Morgan Library The Morgan Library & Museum, formerly the Pierpont Morgan Library, is a museum and research library in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It is situated at 225 Madison Avenue, between 36th Street to the south and 37th S ...

, New York. The base of the box is made of pure silver, with a cross made of

gem A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, a ...

s and with a carved

tetramorph A tetramorph is a symbolic arrangement of four differing elements, or the combination of four disparate elements in one unit. The term is derived from the Greek ''tetra'', meaning four, and ''morph'', shape. In Christian art, the tetramorph is t ...

, representing the four evangelists: the angel of

St. Matthew Matthew the Apostle,, shortened to ''Matti'' (whence ar, مَتَّى, Mattā), meaning "Gift of YHWH"; arc, , Mattai; grc-koi, Μαθθαῖος, ''Maththaîos'' or , ''Matthaîos''; cop, ⲙⲁⲧⲑⲉⲟⲥ, Mattheos; la, Matthaeus a ...

, the Lion of St. Mark, the ox of

St. Luke Luke the Evangelist (Latin: '' Lucas''; grc, Λουκᾶς, '' Loukâs''; he, לוקאס, ''Lūqās''; arc, /ܠܘܩܐ לוקא, ''Lūqā’; Ge'ez: ሉቃስ'') is one of the Four Evangelists—the four traditionally ascribed authors of t ...

and the eagle of St. John. The inscription which describes the donation of the box to the cathedral is engraved on the basex. "Caja de las Ágatas", Enciclopedia de Oviedo It reads:

Notes

References

* * * Lasko, Peter, ''Ars Sacra, 800-1200'', Yale University Press, 1995 (2nd edn.)

External links

The Art of medieval Spain, A.D. 500-1200
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Agate Casket of Oviedo (no. 71, pp. 143-145) {{DEFAULTSORT:Agate Box Asturian culture Gold objects Medieval art Religion in Asturias Spanish art