Censer - Cast brass - Coptic incense burner

Late 18th- or early 19th-century cast brass Coptic incense burner from Ethiopia. It dates to the period 1750-1850 and was made in Africa. The vessel is... The vessel is decorated with openwork motifs. For ecclesiastical use in the Coptic Church.

Material:
- brass.

Dimensions:
- length with chains: 84.5 cm.
- height without chains: 30 cm.
- diameter: 12 cm.

Condition:
- Fair. The incense burner has seen heavy use. In particular, the chains have suffered some defects and have been repaired many times. The handle has also been repaired. The upper part where a cross sat is broken. By surrounding it with a brass construction, the handle still functions. The chain to which the lid hangs is attached to this repair of the handle with a hook. (see photos)

Backgrounds:

Incense plays an important role within the Ethiopian church. It is used during liturgies and prayers and is seen as an offering to God. Small glowing embers are placed in the burner’s bowl, after which incense is added. The urn is swung back and forth on long chains during religious services and processions to distribute the incense. The ashes from the incense burner are regarded as holy, and it is believed that they have the power to heal the sick.

The Ma’étant (Géz: ૦৭૯১৯, 'incense burner; Amh.: ৭০১৯, maiant, ৩, maiäñña; or, in current usage, f, sénä [Géz: ป, sénhah], 'incense burner') in the Ethiopian Orthodox (Täwahédo) liturgy is a round metal vessel designed to hold glowing charcoal upon which incense is burned. The vessel hangs on four chains, all attached to the handle, with which it is swung around. It has a base and is provided with a lid that slides over the chains. To control the smoke, the lid hangs on an extra chain with a cross at the end; the cross of this chain, running through the shaft of the handle, forms the top of the entire instrument. Small bells (known as šahura, bilbilla) are often attached to the chains (twelve bells may be enough as a reference to the twelve apostles, whose voices reach to the ends of the earth [Psalm 18(19):4-5, sung as mésbak on an apostle feast day]).

The Ma’étant is used in almost every service in the Ethiopian Orthodox church tradition. While deacons and even other people may handle it for practical purposes, only priests may hold it by the handle and perform the fumigations. A folk saying, common among the clergy, is that the shape of the Ma’étant represents the image of Mary’s body, carried by the apostles to the tomb, since the deacons who would normally have performed this task were appointed later (interview with Alämnäw Azzänä, 24 May 2005).

Typology
The Ethiopian Orthodox liturgy (notably the hymn Anti wéyyetu ma Yéiänt zäwärq... You are the Golden Incense Vessel Wéddase Maryam, 6th stanza of Sunday, VelMe I, 91; II, 296, Mäshafä qéddase 1981/82, ch. III, no. 122 [Daoud 1954:41, no. 122]) and Ethiopian traditional scholars (via the ſérYatä betä kréstiyan) attach a spiritual meaning to every element of De Ma’etant in use: the golden Ma'ét. änt (cf. Heb 9:4) represents the figure of Saint Mary, who gave the Word of God his humanity. The glowing ember in the Ma’ét. änt is the burning Divine Word of God in Mary’s womb; it is compared to the glowing coal the angel took to cleanse Isaiah’s lips (Isa 6:6), and the chalice of the Eucharist itself is compared to the tongs he used. The incense is the fragrance of Jesus Christ’s Incarnation and his gracious offering. The pan and the three chains symbolize the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one God; the handle represents the fullness of divinity; the 24 bells represent either the 24 Heavenly Priests (Rev 5:8), or the voices of the angels at the foot of the four living beings. The smoke symbolizes the scent of God or the scent of the angels.

This sculptural bronze object is a late 18th- or early 19th-century liturgical incense burner, or incense vessel, used for guided prayers and ritual ceremonies within the Coptic Orthodox Church. The incense burner was blessed for use by the priest and then lit with incense, such as incense resin, and carried through the church, accompanied by prayers and the reading of Scripture.

The incense burner consists of a square incense burner with a domed lid featuring an overlapping circle pattern and a large cross on top. The lid can be lifted to reveal a deep incense brazier in which burning coals and incense grains were placed. The incense burner rests on a perforated base and hangs from four wire chains attached to a handle.

An incense burner is used to burn incense, a mixture of Arabic gum (resin from an acacia tree) and fragrances. Incense has been used since antiquity to symbolize the prayers of the faithful rising to God. It is placed on hot charcoal in the bowl of the incense burner, and as the incense burner is swung on its chains, the smoke rises and spreads throughout the church.

This incense burner comes from an Ethiopian Orthodox church, and the bells symbolize the elders surrounding God in the Revelation of John, the last book of the Bible.

The Ethiopian church was part of the Coptic Church until 1959, when it became fully independent.

An incense burner (in Latin Turibulum or Thuribulum) is a vessel in which incense is burned. Usually it consists of a bowl with a lid. Chains are attached to the bowl, allowing the incense burner to be carried during services or hung from a stand. An extra chain is attached to the lid. With this chain, the lid can be lifted to refill incense. This is done by placing incense grains on glowing coal.

The acolyte who carries the incense burner is the thuriferarius, thuriferar, or incense bearer.