Pilgrim Badges of St Edmund of East Anglia

Abstract

• It was common for medieval pilgrims visiting holy sites to purchase souvenirs celebrating the cults of local saints and then touch these upon associated relics. Such items not only became signs of the places journeyed to, but also – it was believed – took on mystical properties that might cure or protect the owner, or others to whom the badge or trinket was passed. Pilgrim badges, therefore, are not only ephemera, but also practical items. This paper considers badges of St Edmund of East Anglia within the wider sphere of those badges reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS), and examines how these badges relate to those of similar form, with a view to better understanding their wider use and context.