June 18
Silver and silversmiths in the cathedral. Art at the service of divine worship
Ignacio Miguéliz Valcarlos
Within the collection of silverware that the cathedral of Pamplona treasures, there are a series of pieces that we can consider as singular or unique in their genre, and that reached the cathedral in part thanks to its double condition as head of the Diocese and as first temple of the kingdom. Thus, the cathedral was favored not only by the bishops and the chapter, but also by the kings of Navarre, who provided it with important pieces in silver and noble metals, some used in the liturgy and divine worship, and others with a symbolic or ornamental value. Within these pieces, we find works of singular importance and unique characteristics within both Navarrese and French medieval goldsmithery, thanks to the links existing in the average Ages between the two kingdoms.
Our Lady of the Sagrario. Pamplona. Maestro Rainalt. c. 1150 and XVII century.
The first of the jewels that deserve to be highlighted is none other than the image of the cathedral's patron saint, Our Lady of the Tabernacle or Santa María la Real, from the middle of the 12th century, attributed to the master Rainalt, the same who made the image of the Virgin of Irache, both covered with a fine silver plate in its color and gilded, represented as Sede sapientiae. Both the throne on which she sits and the image of the Child resting on her lap are 17th century baroque additions. Over the centuries, the cathedral has built up a rich trousseau around her figure and cult, including what is considered to be the best set of gold jewelry from the first third of the 18th century preserved in Spain, jewelry destined for the ornamentation of the cathedral's patron saint.
Reliquary of the Holy Sepulchre. Paris. S.XIII. 1284
Linked to its condition of main church of the monarchy is the presence of two reliquaries of magnificent invoice, the one of the Holy Sepulcher and the one of the Lignum crucis. The first is a masterpiece of French medieval goldsmithery, linked to the court of Paris, and is believed to be from the time of Philip of Evreux and Joan of Navarre. It is a work of architectural format, following models linked to the school of Reims, which frames the scene of the three Marys and the Angel in the Holy Sepulchre. While the second, the Lignum crucis, a piece that obeys different periods, presents an architectural base topped by three crosses. The base is the work of Juan el Argentero and it seems that it was the base of a large cross given by Charles II to the cathedral in 1379. The side crosses were a gift from the Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus to Charles III of Navarre in 1401, who in turn gave them to the cathedral, and contained relics of the true cross and the tunic of Christ. However, in the robbery suffered by the cathedral in 1935 this work was badly damaged, and only one of the original crosses was recovered, the other two being of modern invoice , made on the basis of old photographs to replace those lost in the robbery. These reliquaries are accompanied by others, some of excellent quality, such as that of the Holy Thorn, from Pamplona workshops of the early 16th century, or that of Saint Ursula, anthropomorphic, in the form of a bust, the work of Juan de Ochovi and donated by Bishop Juan de Rena. Also of bust are the reliquaries of the Magdalena, San Fermín and San Francisco Javier, that in the great solemnities accompany Our Lady of the Tabernacle in the cathedral's main altar.
Covers of Evangeliario. Pamplona. Pedro del Mercado. 1550-1554
Nor should we forget the silver covers of an Evangelist, a Renaissance work attributed to Pedro del Mercado, which replaces an earlier Romanesque one from the 13th century, similar to the one preserved in the collegiate church of Roncesvalles, or the magnificent monstrance of the cathedral, together with the temple-shaped platforms on which the procession took place.
In short, a silver-plated trousseau that, as befits an episcopal see and the head of an ancient kingdom, preserves among the numerous pieces it treasures works of special relevance and singular importance, reflecting its history and transcendence over the centuries.
Public attending the lecture