 Miniture Holy Oil Set And Holy Water Sprinkler (8633)
This looks nearly identical to the one before this, as it has the containers for the tree holy oils, but it is a fraction of its size. I have never seen another three oil container of this size anywhere, not even as a pocket piece. I’ve mentioned in other descriptions, that the 3 holy oil container, came as a pocket container and it’s the easiest piece to put on a shaft, to make a new gadget cane, they were made in the 1920’s as I have seen them dated on the bottom. I always thought the top container on this one was for communion wafers and the ring that swings on a hinge was so the piece didn’t have to be held during communion. The truth is I’ve had it so long I haven’t looked at it. As I examined the pictures for this book, I noticed it said I O on the lid, which stands for Oil of the sick, the same letters on one of the holy oil containers below the handle. It never occurred to me that if you are going to have communication you have to have both bread and wine, as with the cane above. What is in the shaft of this one is the exact style of holy water sprinkler that is in Dike. This was also made for another use as it was also for the pocket, I see them independent of canes. This would be a hard cane to make today, because the size of these handle parts have never been seen, not even by the old Priest, and I’ve ask them. The entire handle and sprinkler is sterling, they also came in brass in the normal larger size. I only have one cane with only the 3 oil containers, as that would be the easiest to make new, but mine is 14K solid gold, which I have also never seen as a pocket container. That would be too ostentatious for a priest. Only a bishop or cardinal would carry the more expensive gold one. The bishops had some pretty expensive jewelry, most notable the seal ring. The ring had his crest on it, and was used to seal documents and relics in containers. In a sense giving his word the relic inside was authentic. It was also the ring every one kissed. I’m outside my element again, as I don’t know why people kissed his ring. I sold a bishops amethyst ring a number of years ago and got $1800, a lot of money for an amethyst. The one I had been from the 1890’s, and was considered quite desirable. You might find this interesting, but whatever the priest owned went to his family at his death, not the church. That is why there are so many religious antiques in private hands. The families are free to sell whatever they wish, and if the families have changed denominations, there is often little sentiment to keep it in the family.
In the 1970’s they tore down a lot of terrific Antique Churches to make way for new churches, or they were on land they wanted for other uses, and one of the most beautiful was St. James Catholic Church in Bay City Michigan, they wanted a new church. The entire contents were sold and I got the entire hand carved alter, carved alter pews and tons of beautiful windows, nobody seemed to want them. Their attitude was like my father’s, what do you want with all that old junk. My most prized religious canes are relic canes came from a church where nobody wanted them. Historically, there is not a large market for religious art, and it has never brought large sums of money, compared to its secular counterpart. I have never sold any of my religious canes and suspect; there would not be a large demand for them, for money that the same quality of secular canes would bring. The quality of these are better than most gadget canes, as they are usually made from sterling or gold, or bronze or ivory. They are also far rarer, how many do you have? My guess is, very few, because few care for them. Maybe the reason I have so many, they sat for a long time waiting for me to come along and buy them. I have seen and had a lot of religious antiques, and feel they are usually a bargain.
Category: Gadget
Sub Category: Occupational - Tools
Listed: 2006-10-08 22:12:41
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