Description: This bronze medal is from a recent auction in Benton, Maine which featured several ancient medals. I believe that this one dates to the late 16th or 17th century. It's sharply cast in very high relief and pierced at the top. From my research, I suspect that this is John the Baptist, the apocalyptic prophet who looked forward to the imminent end of the world and the establishment of God's rule on earth. Jesus began his career as a follower of John, and John’s popularity and apocalyptic message became political threats to Herod Antipas, who had John executed/beheaded at the request of his stepdaughter, Salome. That episode of the New Testament is the subject of abundant Christian iconography. In Roman Catholicism, John the Baptist is invoked as the patron saint of baptism, monastics, hermits, converts, tailors, prisoners, and many other occupations and causes. Also, the head of John the Baptist is a popular religious image among his followers, known as Mandaeans. They believe that John the Baptist was the final and most important prophet. His followers were among the earliest religious groups to practice baptism, as well as among the earliest adherents of Gnosticism, a belief system of which they are the last surviving representatives today. The sect came close to extinction in the late 1800s, but they still exist mostly in Iran, Iraq and Jordan, and they appear to have not changed much since before the Christian era. Weighs 17.5 grams or about .6 oz. Measures about 1 5/8" tall by 1" wide
Price: 115 USD
Location: Richmond, Virginia
End Time: 2024-12-27T14:49:13.000Z
Shipping Cost: N/A USD
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Item Specifics
Restocking Fee: No
Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 30 Days
Refund will be given as: Money Back
Religion: Christianity
