Plaque from a Portable Altar: Zacharias at the Altar
Unknown Artist
c. 1100–1125
Medium
ivory
Dimensions
8.6 × 7.7 cm
Classification
Ivory
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of John L. Severance in memory of J. H. Wade
Accession Number
1926.212
About this artwork
This delicate ivory plaque may once have decorated a side of a portable altar. It likely depicts the angel of the Lord appearing to the priest Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, at the altar in the temple. Like the identity of the object in Zacharias’s hands, the identity of the couple accompanying the priest remains unclear.