This paten, chalice, and fan (BZ.1924.5, BZ.1955.18, and BZ.1936.23, respectively) were said to have been found together at Riha, a small village south of Aleppo in central Syria. Their burial in this area was probably in response to invasions during the early seventh century by Sasanian and Arab forces and, because their owners had to flee or were killed, the silver objects were not retrieved until the early twentieth century. This group and silver treasures from nearby Stuma, Hama, and Antioch were discovered at about the same time, and it has been suggested that these individual hoards actually constituted one large group brought together for protective burial, which was divided into smaller sets after it was unearthed about one hundred years ago.

The chalice, paten, and fan are each impressed with stamps that indicate the emperor’s reign during which it was made. The chalice was fabricated during the reign of Justinian I (527–65), while the paten and fan belong to the reign of his successor, Justin II (565–78). Although the chalice’s date indicates that it was not made along with the paten and fan, the three may well have been used together at a subsequent date. They form a set for use in the Orthodox Eucharist, or Communion: the paten held the leavened bread, still a tradition in Orthodox worship, the chalice contained the wine, and the fan was used to
keep insects away from the bread and the wine. Jesus instituted the Eucharist, as recorded in the gospels of Matthew (26:26–28) and Mark (14:22–24): offerings of bread and wine to the apostles that foreshadowed the sacrifice of Christ’s body and blood.

This paten and a related one from Stuma (Istanbul, Archaeological Museum) illustrate the Communion of the Apostles, the precedent for all Eucharist ceremonies in the Orthodox church. Although part of the Gospel narrative, the representation is symbolic, showing Jesus twice with a cross-halo, behind the altar, officiating as a priest and a deacon, in front of a niche with a shell motif, suggesting the apse of a small church. He distributes wine and bread to the apostles standing to either side of the altar while lamps burn above on top of columns.

Inscribed in handsome niello letters around the edge of the paten is the supplication of its donors: “For the repose (of the soul) of Sergia, (daughter) of John, and of Theodosios, and (for) the salvation of Megalos and Nonnous and their children.” The prayer for Sergia and Theodosios was “repeated” whenever the paten was used, certainly an intended result of the inscription’s placement. The detailed image of the Communion is in the repoussé technique, raising the metal surface by tamping from the back. Gilding has been added for spiritual value, and the lustrous niello further enhances the paten’s aesthetic impression. The use of the paten with its symbolic image contributed to the deeply spiritual character of the Eucharist and accentuated the heartfelt prayer of its donors.

-S. Zwirn

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Münster, Germany, LWL-Museum für Kunst und Kultur, "Frieden. Von der Antike bis heute" (Peace. From Antiquity to the Present Day), April 27, 2018 - September 2, 2018.

Cleveland, OH. Cleveland Museum of Art, Lend-back for CMA's participation in Woven Interiors: Furnishing Early Medieval Egypt, August 1, 2019 - January 20, 2020.

Purchased from the dealer Georges Joseph Demotte (1877–1923), Paris, by Mildred Barnes and Robert Woods Bliss, 1924;

Collection of Mildred Barnes and Robert Woods Bliss, Washington, DC 1924 - November 29, 1940;

Gifted to Harvard, November 29, 1940;

Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Byzantine Collection, Washington, DC.