Tree (crèche accessory)
Unknown Artist
second half 18th–mid-19th century
Medium
Mixed media
Dimensions
Overall (confirmed): 8 1/4 × 2 1/8 × 2 1/8 in. (21 × 5.4 × 5.4 cm)
Classification
Crèche
Culture
Italian
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of David Vicario, Katrina Cary, and Linn Cary Mehta, in memory of M.F. Vicario and Katherine L.F.C. Cary, 2015
Accession Number
2015.741.20
Tags
Art Historical Context
This charming mixed-media tree served as an accessory in an Italian crèche, or nativity scene, created between the late eighteenth and mid-nineteenth centuries. Standing just over eight inches tall, it was designed to bring a touch of natural landscape to the sacred tableau of the Holy Family. During this period, elaborate crèches became a cherished part of Italian devotional life, especially in homes and churches during the Christmas season, where families arranged dozens of figures amid miniature hills, buildings, and vegetation to recreate the world of Bethlehem. Crafted from mixed materia...