Rosary Bead with the Crucifixion and Resurrection
Unknown Artist
ca. 1500–1525
Medium
Ivory, polychromy, silver-gilt mount
Dimensions
Overall (open): 4 7/16 x 5 3/8 x 1 5/16 in. (11.2 x 13.7 x 3.3 cm) Overall (closed): 4 7/16 x 2 3/4 x 2 1/4 in. (11.2 x 7 x 5.7 cm) left hemisphere: 4 7/16 x 2 3/4 x 1 5/16 in. (11.2 x 7 x 3.3 cm) right hemisphere: 2 11/16 x 2 3/4 x 1 1/8 in. (6.9 x 7 x 2.8 cm)
Classification
Ivories
Culture
Spanish
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number
17.190.304
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite Spanish rosary bead, crafted around 1500–1525, exemplifies the devotional artistry of late medieval Iberia. Carved from ivory with vibrant polychromy—painted details in vivid colors—and framed in a silver-gilt mount, it served as a portable prayer aid for the faithful. Measuring just over 4 inches when open, it hinges into two hemispheres, transforming from a compact orb into a miniature altarpiece, a clever design that invited intimate meditation during the height of Catholic piety in Renaissance Spain. The larger left hemisphere depicts the Crucifixion, with Christ on the cro...