Yet its appeal went beyond Europe: gold was a material that spoke across cultural divides.
The central part of the monstrance is arguably the most exuberant, with the highly detailed and individualized figures of the twelve kneeling Apostles flanked by two slender turrets.
Similarly, Gaspar Corte Real established a Portuguese presence in Newfoundland, and Afonso de Albuquerque violently confirmed Portuguese hegemony in the Indian Ocean.