Kingdom of Portugal

silver basin

Portugal
Basin, 1673
Silver
H.: 6 11/16 in. (17 cm), diam.: 23 1/8 in. (58.7 cm)
Terra Sancta Museum, Jerusalem
© The Frick Collection

 

This basin was used to wash the feet of pilgrims arriving at the Holy Sepulcher. During the ceremony of Maundy Thursday, the Custos—and the Patriarch of Jerusalem today—washes the feet of pilgrims to commemorate the action of Christ before the Last Supper. This large basin was the gift of the future king Peter II of Portugal (r. 1683–1706), who had been regent since 1667.

gold lamp

Lisbon
Sanctuary Lamp, 1740s
Gold
27 × 10 13/16 × 9 13/16 in. (68.5 × 27.5 × 25 cm)
Terra Sancta Museum, Jerusalem
© The Frick Collection

 
red decorative cloth

Lisbon
Lectern Cloth from the “Palm Leaf ” Set of Pontifical Vestments of Portugal, 1728
Silk velvet, gold and silver thread
104 5/16 × 23 13/16 in., 2.18 lb. (265 × 60.5 cm, 0.99 kg)
Terra Sancta Museum, Jerusalem
© The Frick Collection

 

A set of fabrics was sent by King John V of Portugal (r. 1706–50) to the Custody of the Holy Land in 1728. Made of elegant velvet decorated with a pattern of pomegranates, these were from the Italian city of Genoa. The fabric is described in documents as “a drapery from Portugal, an opulent piece of material, with a silver ground to be used on the outside of the Most Holy Saint Sepulcher.” Later, in 1735, the king sent a set of pontifical vestments with a similar fabric.