Eucharist chalice from St Mary's Parish Church
- Barth
- around 1450
- gilded silver
- height: 19 cm
- on permanent loan by the Protestant Parish of St Mary's, Barth
The shaft and the foot are fashioned from the sexfoil. Interrupted tracery adorns the shaft above and below the knob. Six prominently protruding, cubic fields arranged on the stem are inscribed with individual minuscules spelling the name of the Holy Virgin 'm a r i a'.
The foot is formed by six semicircular sections attached to a filigree, ornamental frieze depicting interrupted vines. A small relief medallion with the crucifixion scene adorns one of these semicircles. Engravings on the tapered foot show Jesus on the cross, the Apostles Paul and Peter, John the Baptist and St Barbara. She was a hugely popular figure in the late Middle Ages as patron saint to people in need, the dying and others. An engraving of two names, possibly the masters in charge of production, are visible on the base of the foot.
Text: J. P.