Disk, possibly a pilgrimage token.
Obverse: mounted military saint;
Reverse: cross on stepped base

<p>During the Middle Ages, one of the main fears of pilgrims and other travelers in the Mediterranean was that they would fall prey to raiders or pirates of a different faith and be sold into slavery in a foreign land. The small lead token here reflects this fear. It depicts a clean-shaven saint, dressed in military costume and mounted on a warhorse, with a smaller figure riding behind him. The scene is from a popular story of the miraculous rescue of a Christian from Muslim captivity through the agency of a warrior saint. The token was distributed at the holy shrine of St. Demetrios in the city of Thessaloniki in northern Greece. Objects like it may have been regarded as charms to ward off future perils or as mementos of a dangerous journey successfully accomplished.</p> <p>The image brings together stylistic elements from indigenous Byzantine and imported Western European artistic traditions, in a manner not uncommon to religious art from the era of the Crusades.</p> <p><strong>Teresa Shawcross</strong>, <em>Associate Professor of History and Hellenic Studies<br></em></p>