12th century reliquary that looks like the Aurora shooter

I was looking through a book of art history when I came across this photo of a reliquary of St. Vitale, made around 1170. A reliquary is a container for holding sacred relics, such as the bones or body parts of saints. This reliquary, made out of bronze with encrusted enamel, held pieces of what were supposed to be St. Vitale's skull. The skull pieces "could be placed in (and removed from) the container through a concealed opening at the rear of the sculpted head." To be honest, I'm not sure which St. Vitale this is supposed to represent, because there are a couple of them.

But what really struck me, as soon as I saw the photo, was how much the reliquary, with its creepy staring eyes, resembled James Holmes, the Aurora shooter. Compare for yourself!

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Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Contact Us

Posted By: Alex - Sat Jan 12, 2013
Category: Art | Costumes and Masks | Death

Comments

Well, then... this dude MUST be found innocent as he was only doing saintly deeds. http://www.picgifs.com/smileys/smileys-and-emoticons/angel/smileys-angel-597719.gif

Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 01/12/13 at 09:28 AM

Since Expat has shown his photo here before, I'll show you a relic that bears a great resemblance to myself. I do usually wear a beard though.
http://northstargallery.com/gargoyles/aboutgargoyles.htm

Posted by BMN on 01/12/13 at 05:52 PM

Apparently crazy has looked much the same for centuries. Expat, if you are at all familiar with the church you'd know being crazy and a saint are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 01/13/13 at 08:22 AM

The reliquary's nose is longer, the hair is better, and the ears are not as large, especially the ear lobes. Still I did get a good shock when you compare the two side by side. Must be the expression.

Posted by Jeff on 01/14/13 at 12:42 PM

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