The Hockley Pendant is a diamond-shaped, gold reliquary pendant dating from the early sixteenth century. The pendant was discovered in 2009 by four-year-old James Hyatt, while metal detecting in a field in Hockley, Essex, with his father, Jason Hyatt. The pendant is decorated on the front with an image of a female saint supporting a cross. The back of the pendant displays an image of the Five Holy Wounds of Christ, and contains a sliding panel covering an interior space, which originally held a relic. The pendant was officially declared treasure and was acquired by the British Museum.
| Hockley Pendant | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Front view of the Hockley Pendant | |
| Material | Gold |
| Created | 1500–1550 AD[1] |
| Period/culture | Early Modern Britain |
| Discovered | 2009 Hockley, Essex |
| Present location | British Museum |
Description
editThe Hockley pendant is a diamond-shaped gold pendant with an attached gold bail. It is 3 cm (1.2 in) in length, weighs a third of an ounce (8.68g), and has a gold content of up to 73%.[2][3] The front of the pendant is engraved with the image of a female saint carrying a cross. The cross is covered with marks that suggest drops of blood. Decorative foliage surrounds the central image. The figure is standing on a surface with a chequerboard design, indicating a tiled floor.[1][2]
.jpg)
The back of the pendant displays a heart, surrounded by four weeping cuts and drops of blood, suggesting the Five Holy Wounds of Christ.[2] The inside of the pendant would have stored a relic, possibly a remnant of the True Cross.[1] The four sides of the pendant display the names of the Three Magi: Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar, and decorative foliage.[1][2] The inscription's words were believed to have the power to heal fevers and epilepsy, which was known then as falling-down sickness.[4] The pendant's letters and decorative detail would have originally been enhanced with painted enamel.[5] Objects such as the Hockley pendant were meant for "intimate inspection" and needed an owner's "physical interaction" in order to "release its spiritual value".[6]
History
editThe pendant was discovered in 2009, by four-year-old James Hyatt and his father Jason Hyatt, from Billericay, while they were metal detecting in a field in Hockley, Essex.[3] The pendant was officially declared treasure and was acquired by the British Museum. At the time, it was thought to be worth up to £2.5 m, which the Hyatt family and the landowner would have shared when the pendant was sold.[3] However, the actual amount paid by the museum was only £70,000.[5]
The pendant front displays an image of a female saint, possibly the Virgin Mary, or Saint Helena.[2] The back of the pendant contained a panel, which may have held a relic of the True Cross.[1] Similar pendants had compartments for either a holy person's remains of their body or an item belonging to the holy person.[7] The pendant's back panel was tightly closed when found. The pendant was later repaired by the conservation staff at the British Museum. The back panel was opened to reveal a few flax fibres.[1][5] The pendant has been dated to the early sixteenth century, from 1500 to 1550.[2] It was featured on episode 49 of Britain's Secret Treasures on ITV in July 2012 "as one of the fifty most important archaeological finds made by the British public".[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f "The Hockley Pendant". Google Arts and Culture. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f "reliquary; pendant". British Museum. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ a b c "Boy, four, unearths 16th Century gold pendant in Essex". BBC News. 17 November 2010. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ a b "Hockley pendant". Artfund. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
- ^ a b c "Medieval pendant found by boy, 4, on show at British Museum". The Guardian. 21 December 2012. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ Chang, Heesok; DeMaria, Robert; Zacher, Samantha (2013). A Companion to British Literature, Volume 1: Medieval Literature, 700 - 1450. Wiley. p. 240. ISBN 978-1-118-73189-5. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
- ^ Ochota, Mary-Ann (2013). Britain's Secret Treasures. Headline. p. 128. ISBN 978-0-7553-6574-6. Retrieved 27 March 2022.