ABSTRACT
The idea that premodern treasure collections represented more than simply conglomerations of material, aesthetic, and spiritual values is a key insight in the field of culture studies, and relevant research can well be of value for the study of relics. The relics are important pieces of evidence not only regarding Rome and the papacy but also in connection with the holy sites in Palestine, pilgrimage activity, and the political links between Rome and Jerusalem. This chapter focuses on the Islamic period up to about the year 900, as that is when the foundations of the papal relic collection were laid. Pilgrims' reports from the late antique period give the impression that the eulogiae received at the sites, from tombs and rivers, were available to most visitors. Many of the relics from Jerusalem probably came as diplomatic gifts.
