Pilgrim's Medallion with St. Symeon the Younger

Saint Symeon the Younger was a stylite saint, an early Christian ascetic who fled the world for the desert and, perched on a column, spent his days fasting and praying. The site of Symeon’s column attracted many pilgrims during and after his lifetime. Medallions like this one, showing Symeon atop his column on one side and a cross on the other, were taken home by pilgrims in commemoration of their visit and were believed to serve their owners as protective talismans.