On the morning of 12 February, the altar from the Latin chapel of Calvary returned to the Holy Sepulchre. Last April it had been removed and, together with other works belonging to the Terra Sancta Museum of Jerusalem, it had gone to Florence to be restored and exhibited at the “Marino Marini” Museum .
The altar, donated in 1578 by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Ferdinando de’ Medici, to the Custody of the Holy Land, has been restored to its original splendour. “As Franciscan friars, we are very pleased that the altar has returned to Jerusalem,” says Fra Stéphane Milovitch, director of the Cultural Heritage Dept. of the Custody of the Holy Land and in charge of the project of the Terra Sancta Museum. “The altar has been put back in the Latin chapel of Calvary. Every Saturday in Lent, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem will go in a procession to this altar where he will celebrate Good Friday in this jubilee year.”
The various types of restoration work have been carried out by the workshop of the Savi brothers, specialized in sacred silver and gold works. The work had the purpose of bringing back the piece to its original aspect as far as possible, without eliminating any structural element.
Fra Stéphane shows a significant detail. “In the corner of the altar there is the coat-of-arms of the Medici with a curious detail, the cardinal’s hat. This is because the altar was donated when the Grand Duke of Tuscany was also cardinal. Subsequently, for the first time in the history of the Church, he was reduced to the lay state to be able to keep the duchy alive.”
The altar is made up of two different parts, which together are joined telling a story of profound devotion. The upper part donated by Ferdinando de’ Medici is made of gilded bronze and has six bas-reliefs illustrating the passion and resurrection of Jesus. Originally conceived as a cover for the Stone of Unction, when it arrived in Jerusalem, it turned out to be too small, so it was placed under the norther arch of the chapel of the crucifixion and used as an altar by the Franciscan friars.
The lower part, on the other hand, is made of wrought iron. Crafted by the friars, with the help of the craftsmen in the iron workshop of St Saviour’s convent, it is evidence of the bond between the Custody and the local community.
“In this altar, the union between the Local Church and the Universal Church is clear,” fra Stéphane explains. “The Custody of the Holy Land operates both for the local Church, which lives in the shadow of the shrines, and for the Universal Church, the peoples of the whole world. On this altar we have an excellence of the Universal Church, with the part donated by the Medici and a local excellence made by the artists-craftsmen of Jerusalem.”
The altar has great symbolic value as “Epiphany of the three missions of the Custody of the Holy Land,” says Fra Stéphane. “The first is the preservation and promotion of the Holy Places, here we see the altar placed on Calvary. The second is the pastoral and professional formation of the local community, as shown by the most recent part. Lastly, the third mission is welcoming pilgrims who come to the Holy Land from all over the world and leave gifts as a mark of devotion, as the Grand Duke of Tuscany did in 1578.”
Lucia Borgato
