The Projecta Casket
- Audio guide stop: 461
- Gallery: Room 41
- Culture: Late Roman
- Made in: Rome (city) (?)
- Date: 380 (circa)
- Object type: casket
- Materials: silver; gold
- Museum number: 1866,1229.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
This is The Projecta Casket, a remarkable piece of Late Roman craftsmanship made in Rome around 380 AD. Shaped like a truncated pyramid, the casket is made of silver and features gilded decoration. On the lid, five panels show mythological scenes: Venus bathing, a winged sea nymph riding a hippocampus, and a mythical sea monster. On the top panel, two portraits are flanked by nude cupids. The back panel shows figures in an architectural setting—a scene likely representing a bath procession.
Though rich in pagan imagery, the casket also includes a clear Christian message. On its rim, a Latin inscription reads: “Secundus and Projecta, live in Christ.” This suggests the casket was a wedding gift, combining myth and faith. The piece was once part of a larger treasure found near San Francesco di Paola ai Monti and was purchased in 1866. It is an exquisite example of Roman artistry and cultural transition.
See it in person
The Projecta Casket is on display in Room 41 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and type its audio guide stop number, 461, from the gallery label, or take a photo of it, to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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