Lectern
Unknown Artist
1707
Medium
wood and gesso
Dimensions
167.7 × 48.3 cm
Classification
Furniture and woodwork
Department
Decorative Art and Design
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust
Accession Number
1915.572
About this artwork
Lecterns of this type were used in Roman Catholic churches and monastery chapels to hold the Bible, from which a priest would read the lessons of scripture and at some points during the liturgy, guide the participants in prayer. The high degree of decoration was achieved by applying plaster gesso to the wooden base allowing for elaborate carving in the same way that a picture frame is worked. Sometimes lecterns bearing the arms of a pope or cardinal like this one were gifts to mark the visit or ...