Strange Cylindrical artifacts

[Perogi]

Throughout the game I found a number of strange cylinder shaped artifacts with gems set in the top. When using them the screen whites out and some text is displayed. These things are found really infrequently and are never really explained. Does anyone know if they serve a purpose or what exactly they are meant to communicate to the player? Seems like it's Alexander talking through them but I don't know.

[Commando Peach]

I think they're just a throwback to Penumbra, in which very similar-looking cylinders can be touched to save the game. When you touch them, you either feel memories of your father, who had passed through the area ahead of you, or the protagonist comments that he can feel himself "slipping away" and into the thing.

So perhaps it's a memory storage device that somehow made its way out of Penumbra and into Amnesia. I have no idea why they're there.

[OO Agent]

They did seem to be more of a throwback for the fans of the Penumbra series, although they didnt save the game this time around. I think their main purpose besides that was just to reveal more about Alexanders character and what his thoughts were, giving another perspective of his intentions.