Miniature Altarpiece with the Crucifixion
Miniature Altarpiece with the Crucifixion (MA 17.1690.453) is a very small and complex (15 × 7.6 × 3.2 cm) early 16th century Netherlandish microcarved miniature sculpture in boxwood, now in The Cloisters, New York. The central carvings of the upper triptych show the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus, each outer wing contains two scenes from the biblical Old Testament. The complex base contains a round carving which opens like a boxwood prayer nut.
Works of this type are extremely rare, and because of this piece's layered structure, extremely fragile. Only about 150 Gothic boxwood miniatures survive;
Description
Central reliefs
The upper portion of the central relief shows the
This panel was built up from three separate layers of reliefs, the foreground shows the three horsemen visible, the mid-ground shows Mary kneeling with her attendants surrounded by other horseman, the last shows Jesus and the thieves hanging on their crosses. Other details include standing figures and horsemen at the base and either sides of the cross, and a figure holding a fork on the right side of the background. Behind them all is a cityscape.[3]
Wings
The outer wings can be folded inwards; the outer faces are blank.
Each wing contains a carved inscription; "Ge[nesis]" (left), and "Nu[mbers]" (right).[2]
Notes
- ^ Suda, Sasha. "Small Wonders: Gothic Boxwood Miniatures Introduction". Art Gallery of Ontario, 28 October 2016
- ^ a b c d e "Miniature Altarpiece with the Crucifixion". Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
- ^ a b c Ellis, Suda, 61
- ^ Breck; Rogiers, 197–98
Sources
- Ainsworth, Maryan; Christiansen; Keith. From Van Eyck to Bruegel: Early Netherlandish Painting in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998
- Breck, Joseph, and Meyric, Rogers. "The Pierpont Morgan Wing: A Handbook". New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1925
- Ellis, Lisa; ISBN 978-1-8942-4390-2