Saxon & Medieval — Late Medieval; late 14th century
Our Lady of Walsingham
Pilgrim badge from the shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham at Walsingham Priory. This open work badge depicts the Annunciation scene (the moment when the Angel Gabriel announced to the Virgin Mary that she was to give birth to Christ) inside an architectural frame. Mary stands on the left and Gabriel is on the right. Between them is a lily growing out of a pot, which symbolises Mary’s purity, innocence and the immaculate conception of Christ. Also in the centre are two scrolls, one with part of Gabriel’s greeting, ‘AVE MARIA’ (‘Hail Mary’), and the other with an abbreviation of Mary’s reply, ‘ECCE ANCL’ (short for ‘Ecce: ancilla Domini fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum’, meaning ‘Behold the handmaiden of the Lord: be it unto me according to thy word’). Flying above the pair is the Dove (the Holy Spirit).
The shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk was a popular pilgrimage destination in the medieval period, especially after Henry III made a series of pilgrimages there in the 13th century.
- Category:
- Saxon & Medieval
- Object ID:
- A17216
- Object name:
- Our Lady of Walsingham
- Object type:
- Artist/Maker:
- —
- Related people:
- Related events:
- Related places:
- Production date:
- late Medieval; late 14th century
- Material:
lead alloy, tin alloy, pewter
- Measurements/duration:
- H 91 mm, W 56 mm (overall), H 87 mm, W 60 mm (overall)
- Part of:
- —
- On display:
- —
- Record quality:
- 100%
- Part of this object:
- —
- Owner Status & Credit:
Permanent collection
- Copyright holder:
digital image © London Museum
- Image credit:
- —
- Creative commons usage:
- —
- License this image:
To license this image for commercial use, please contact the London Museum Picture Library.