Fragments of a Crucifixion
Unknown Artist
late 14th or early 15th century
Medium
Elephant ivory, velvet pasteboard
Dimensions
Overall (ivory only): 4 3/8 x 6 3/16 x 1/2 in. (11.1 x 15.7 x 1.2 cm) with frame: 5 1/4 x 7 3/16 x 3/4 in. (13.4 x 18.2 x 1.9 cm)
Classification
Ivories-Elephant
Culture
French or South Netherlandish
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number
17.190.243
Tags
Art Historical Context
"Fragments of a Crucifix," crafted by an unknown artist in the late th or early 15th century, exemplifies the exquisite ivory carvings produced in French or South Netherland workshops during the late Gothic period. This delicate relief sculpture, made from elephant ivory mounted on velvet pasteboard, measures just 4 3/8 x 6 3/16 inches (ivory only), making it a prime example of portable devotional art designed for personal prayer and contemplation. The Met's Medieval Art collection highlights such works, gifted by J. Pierpont in 1917, as treasures of religious piety. Ivory's creamy translucen...