This is Gospel...

This piece entitled "Reliquary Casket with Scenes from the Martyrdom of Saint Thomas Becket" (original image can be found here) was made by an unknown artist around 1173–80 A.D. The medium of this piece was a Gilded silver with niello and a glass cabochon set over a tinted foil, over top of this latched case. The dimensions on the casket are 5.5 x 7 x 4.7 cm on the outside. This box was made during the rule of King Henry II of England, and is of British make. The box likely held a relic of Thomas Becket, the English saint who was martyred after his death at the hands of four of Henry II's knights at the Canterbury Cathedral. His martyrdom represents his struggles with the king over the separation of the rights of the monarch and the rights of the church. Represented in this piece are multiples scenes of Thomas Becket's martyrdom. It represents the style of decorating items, particularly personal items, with artwork of religious events or figures. This is in connection to the strong ties to the church present at this time. The middle ages was a significant period for the growth of Christianity, and this piece represents one of the conflicts between religion and ruling powers. The visible side depicts the knights attacking Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral, with the above panel on the top showing an angel watching over the event and making a blessing. The other visible side appears to depict an angel, with a decorative pattern on the panel above. The box is adorned with a gemstone on the top, and a latch visible in the front. The edges and decorative features are in gold, while the drawings are on top of a dark material.

The art is organized so that the important scenes are depicted on the long side of the box, as is the case with the scene of Thomas Becket being attacked, while the side panels are used to depict decorative pieces still tied to the theme (for example, angels). The gold highlights bring a regal and heavenly appearance to the piece, surrounding the artwork. The heavenly appearance the gold brings stems from the use of gold in a lot of church decoration, and in the depiction of angel's halos as gold. The dark surface used for the art represents the morbidity of the events taking place, and the dark act of murder that is depicted on the box. The red jewel on top could be used as merely decoration, or it could be used to represent blood, again alluding to the murder. The swords drawn on for the knights to wield are drawn bleeding off the main canvas and onto the surrounding gold, perhaps emphasizing the weapons used to carry out this act. Thus, the dark coloring, paired with the somber looks on the faces of the drawn individuals, sets a low and sad mood for viewers. The use of gold emphasizes the heavenly aspect of the art, and the use of bleeding the swords off the main canvas emphasizes the tools of the murder above all other aspects.

The purpose of this work is to highlight Christian values and to commemorate the martyrdom of Thomas Becket. This highlights a social trend of valuing the word of the church, and the power of the church, over the power of a king or ruler. This piece of art is also a political message to Henry II, who would have still been in power at this time. The sainthood and martyrdom of Saint Becket calls out the power of the king as inferior to the church, and this piece conveys that further by putting the message in a physical form. This work could today be tied to the popular debate of separation of church and state, which again calls into question the power of faith over the power of law. While the power of the church is not as high as it would have been in the time period this was made, it continues to shape and influence world politics and culture.