How Was the Arm Reliquary Made?

X-ray showing damages to the finger and pins used to hold the silver sheet repairs in place	[image of x-ray showing seam lines]
The reliquary is made of silver, gilt silver, and champleve enamel in seven major sections-the hand, the arm with a decorative band at the top and bottom, two sections of enamel on the edge of the sleeve, and a wooden core. The main section of the sleeve is a sheet of silver that was hammered to create the folds and wrinkles in the cloth. The silver sheet was then bent around to roughly form a cylinder. The two edges were fastened with rivets that were also used to hold the enamel in place along this edge. The two decorative bands were created with répoussé work (hammer work from the back side to create the decoration) and with chasing work (work done from the front to create finer, more delicate details in the metal). These two elements were attached with metal pins.
The hand is a separate element attached to the arm. It is constructed from sheet metal that has been so carefully put together it is difficult to detect most of the joins. Joins are present at the wrist, along the edge of the palm, and at the base of the four fingers and thumb. It seems likely that there are also vertical seams along the fingers. The wood core does not protrude very far into the hand.
The reliquary has sustained a fair amount of damage from use. Numerous silver patches have been set into the object's losses with metal pins. The middle finger also has been repaired and a rivet on each side is visible. The x-radiographs show that a material similar to plaster was used to fill the area around the damaged finger and then a dowel or pin was used to secure the finger. A rolled sheet of metal is also present inside the join to strengthen it.

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