Custodia (Monstrance) by Enrique de Arfe
Catedral de Toledo (Toledo Cathedral)
Calle Cardenal Cisneros
Toledo, September 2022
“The most important object kept in the Chapel of the Treasure is the great Monstrance of Arfe, also known as La Gran Ostensoria de Toledo. Made of the finest silver and gold and bejeweled with gems, it measures over ten feet tall. The monstrance is famous for being used in the annual feast of Corpus Christi of Toledo. The creator of the Great Monstrance was the metalworker Enrique de Arfe, born Heinrich von Harff, originally from Jülich or Harff near Cologne, Germany.[31] Arfe labored on it from 1517–1524, on commission to Cardinal Cisneros. It is of late Gothic design. This triumph of the silversmith's craft is in the form of a Gothic temple, with all the architectural details, such as columns, arches, and vaultings, the whole resembling a delicate lacework. Scenes from the life of the Saviour are illustrated in relief. It has two hundred and sixty statuettes of various sizes, all exhibiting the same skill in workmanship.[32] The Great Monstrance has a hexagonal base, and rises on small exquisitely made columns, with adornments of gems and varied figurines of angels and saints, fleurons, small bells and clappers. The work is crowned in the uppermost section by a 17th-century cross. The pedestal on which it sits is in the Baroque style of the 18th century. Originally made of silver, Archbishop Quiroga commissioned its gilding to match the gold plated wood of the monstrance of the altar; it was gilded in 1595 by Valdivieso and Morino. Today it is encased under bulletproof glass and heavily guarded by an automatic security system within the grounds of the cathedral.” (Toledo Cathedral, Wikipedia)
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