Redating the Arca Santa of Oviedo

Abstract

The reliquary known as the Arca Santa of Oviedo has traditionally been dated to 1075 on the basis of its dedicatory inscription and events described in Document 72 of Oviedo Cathedral's archives. The authenticity of this document, which describes a ceremonial opening of the casket by King Alfonso VI of Leon-Castile, has recently been questioned. This article proposes an alternative date in the twelfth century which sets the reliquary's production in the context of rivalries between Oviedo, Toledo, and Santiago de Compostela, and takes into account certain of its stylistic and iconographic features.