For centuries, people went on pilgrimages to holy places. It was often a long, hard, and dangerous journey. If you were wealthy, you might have carried a portable shrine to aid in your on-the-road devotions. This mixed media piece is my homage to those small shrines. It is a mixed media piece inside of a vintage tobacco tin. The tin has been altered with a faux rust finished. Inside is a red velvet plaque honouring Bernadette of Lourdes. On the other side is a French holy card from the 1890s and a tiny key. The cover is embellished with vintage mother of pearl buttons and a distressed rosary pochette. Inside is a vintage dizaine, a kind of mini-rosary, made of milk glass, with a metal crucifix and religious medal of Mary, circa 1930s. (Please note, the leather pocket is delicate and the dizaine should be removed and replaced very gently.) To see a larger version of any image, just click on a photograph below.)

Piece measures 4.25″ x 3.25″ x 1″ (11cm x 8.5 cm x 2.25cm). Cost is £115 GBP with worldwide shipping of £10. This is approximately $153 USD + $13 but please use this currency converter for exact exchange rate. To buy, please contact me directly at kelly@bookandpaperarts.com or find it in my Etsy shop here.