This casket in the shape of a basilica could well be the casket listed as “expensive (precious) model of the Katholikon” in a 1673 inventory. Indeed, its decorative engravings include subjects relevant to the sanctity of the site of Sinai and its local worship traditions, such as the Transfiguration, the Mother of God as Holy Bush with Moses and Saint Catherine, Saint Anastasios of Sinai, and other saints to which various monastery chapels are dedicated. What is most striking, though, is the rich heavenly and symbolic ornamentation, and the colorful filigree enamels and stones. Several construction and stylistic features associate this casket with workshops active in the area of present-day Bulgaria.
