Sacred Splendor: Jewish Ritual Art and Christian Treasures from St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague
The exhibition explores the material expressions of devotion, memory, and sacred space in Jewish and Christian communities of medieval and early modern Central Europe, highlighting moments of artistic cross-fertilization, shared iconography, and theological divergence. Specially designed and organized for the Jewish Museum’s galleries, Sacred Splendor: Jewish Ritual Art and Christian Treasures from St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague features extraordinary reliquaries from the treasury of St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague—most never exhibited in the United States. Bejeweled and sacred vessels of veneration, medieval reliquaries are at once works of art from their time and place of production as well as physical containers of remarkable beauty. They are presented in dialogue with objects from the Museum’s own holdings, as well as important loans from public collections across Europe and the United States, including Torah ornaments, liturgical textiles, illuminated manuscripts, ceremonial vessels, and rare medieval Jewish hoards hidden underground during the Black Death of the late 1340s when Jews endured violence and uprooting. Works by four contemporary artists address related themes in the present day.
Sacred Splendor: Jewish Ritual Art and Christian Treasures from St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague has been organized in collaboration with the Metropolitan Chapter of the Archdiocese of Prague. It is co-curated by Claudia Nahson, Morris & Eva Feld Senior Curator, and Abigail Rapoport, Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel Curator of Judaica, in collaboration with Jiri Fajt, Curatorial Consultant, and Vladimir Kelnar, Chancellor of St. Vitus Cathedral. The presentation builds on Fragments of Memory, a 2024 exhibition at the Kunsthalle im Lipsiusbau in Dresden, Germany and its more recent 2026 iteration at the Prague Castle Riding. The contemporary component of the exhibition is organized by Shira Backer, Leon Levy Associate Curator.
Sacred Splendor: Jewish Ritual Art and Treasures from St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, is made possible by Lilly Endowment Inc.
Leadership support of Sacred Splendor: Jewish Ritual Art and Treasures from St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, and Jewish Museum exhibitions, is provided by Jan Barta, and the Knapp Family Foundation. Major support is provided by the Achelis and Bodman Foundation, the David Berg Foundation, the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, Jane and Reuben Leibowitz, and the New York Medieval Society. Additional support is provided by the Dorot Publication Fund, the Alfred J. Grunebaum & Ruth Grunebaum Sondheimer Memorial Fund, and other generous donors.
Exhibition design by Leslie Gill, Laura Lyon, and Polina Stepanova; Leslie Gill Architect; graphic design by Topos Graphics
Left: Gothic Sacrament House, Prague, Master Wenceslas, c. 1375. Iron, gilded. Prague, Saint Vitus Cathedral, Saint Wenceslas Chapel. Right: Spice Container, Germany, c. 1550. Silver: traced, pierced, cast, and parcel-gilt. The Jewish Museum, New York. Photo by Kris Graves
