More than 150 relics and religious artifacts are on display this summer at the British Museum, as part of the Treasures of Heaven exhibit, on now until October 9, reports the Evening Standard.
The sacred finds have been brought together from more than 40 institutions, including the Vatican, European church treasuries, museums from the U.S. and Europe and the British Museum’s own collection.
"Relics featured in the exhibition include three thorns thought to be from the Crown of Thorns, fragments of the True Cross, the foot of St Blaise, the breast milk of the Virgin Mary, the hair of St John the Evangelist, and the Mandylion of Edessa (one of the earliest known likenesses of Jesus)," explains the museum website.
"Treasures such as these have not been seen in significant numbers in the UK since the Reformation in the 16th century, which saw the wholesale destruction of saints’ shrines."
The practice of including relics in Christian worship dates back to the medieval period. While the devout would pilgrimage vast distances for the chance to see a worthy relic, visitors to the British Museum have the rare chance to visit many of these treasures all in one place.