Column Base
Unknown Artist
ca. 1130–40
Medium
Marble
Dimensions
Overall: 17 7/8 x 7 1/2 x 17 7/8 in. (45.4 x 19.1 x 45.4 cm)
Classification
Sculpture-Architectural
Culture
Catalan
Department
The Cloisters
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Cloisters Collection, 1925
Accession Number
25.120.1075
Art Historical Context
This exquisite marble column base, crafted around 1130–40 by an unknown Catalan artist, exemplifies refined architectural sculpture of medieval Catalonia. Measuring 17⅞ x 7½ x 17⅞ inches, it once supported a column in a Romanesque church cloister, a common feature in the region's burgeoning monastic architecture. The Cloisters Collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art this piece, offering visitors a tangible link to the vibrant workshops of 12th-century northeastern Spain. Carved from high-quality marble, the base showcases the durability and luminous quality prized in Romanesque sculpture...