Mirror Case with a Couple Playing Chess
Unknown Artist
1325–1350
Medium
ivory
Dimensions
w. 10.2 cm, d. 1 cm
Classification
Ivory
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Accession Number
1940.1200
About this artwork
During the 1300s, elephant ivory was valued by courtly patrons as the most exquisite material for indicating the human form. At this time Paris was the center of production for luxury ivories like the example seen here. They were much sought after by members of the court and aristocracy as emblems of wealth and status and signifiers of fashion and taste. This ivory, once forming a mirror back, depicts a man and woman engaged in a game of chess, a popular game at the time representing both love a...