From Royal Caskets to Relic Containers: Two Ivory Caskets from Burgos and Madrid

Artistic Interchange between Al-Andalus and the Iberian Christian Kingdoms: The Role of the Ivory Casket from Santo Domingo de Silos

“…It may have been mutilated through Christian intervention on the piece, as will be argued later on. According to several specialists, the hunting and fighting scenes between animals that decorate this casket were intended to symbolise the territorial power of the owner of the piece, while the vegetal motifs evoked paradise and the favour of Allah towards the ruler [19]. The ivories produced in Cuenca seem to be the work of the same family of carvers, the Ibn Zayyan.…”

“…Considering the widespread dissemination of the sculpture of the Silos cloister 18 , it can be presumed that some of these notebooks could have been made in its important scriptorium, allowing the propagation of its iconography throughout the surrounding area. The motifs that decorated Ibn Zayyan's casket could also be copied in those notebooks or sketches that would have circulated throughout the Christian kingdoms, later being used on site by sculptors 19 . Islamic textiles were undoubtedly an even more important element than ivories for the transmission of motifs from Islamic to Christian art since they were more abundant and easier to transport.…”

“…It is a very studied question, see a state of the arts in [33]. 19 In the collection of drawings by Adhémar de Chabannes (considered by some scholars as an attempt to create a model book) we find a Kufic script. ( [42] pp 163-255).…”

La arqueta del Patriarca Juan de Ribera: origen, usos y estudio de su inscripción árabe

“…Como es sabido, la reutilización de piezas islámicas en los reinos cristianos peninsulares en la Edad Media fue un comportamiento habitual. Este fenómeno afectó particularmente a los objetos más ricos, singularmente a las arquetas y píxides andalusíes de marfil, que pasaban a manos cristianas como regalo diplomático o botín de guerra y en su mayoría se transformaban en relicarios (Shalem 1995). La arqueta de Palencia (Museo Arqueológico Nacional, inv.…”