Engaged arched cassetta frame and arched tabernacle frame
Unknown Artist
ca. 1465 and 1490 (?)
Medium
Poplar. Carved, gilt; orange-red bole, blue and white color, all over greenish tone.
Dimensions
Overall: 46 × 29 in. (116.8 × 73.7 cm) Sight: 27 11/16 × 18 5/16 in. (70.3 × 46.5 cm) Rabbet: 27 13/16 × 18 1/2 in. (70.6 × 47 cm)
Classification
Frames
Culture
Sienese
Department
Robert Lehman Collection
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Robert Lehman Collection, 1975
Accession Number
1975.1.54b
Art Historical Context
Step into the refined world of 15th-century Sien frame-making with this pair of exceptional arched frames from the Robert Lehman Collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art The engaged arched cassetta frame, to around 1465, and the tabernacle frame, circa 1490, exemplify ornate architectural designs popular in Renaissance Siena. Cassetta frames, named for their box-like structure with recessed moldings, created a sense of depth, while tabernacle frames mimicked sacred niches with columnar supports and pediments, blurring the line between painting and sculpture. Crafted from poplar wood—a lig...