Triple Crucifix

Kongo artist

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 304

This composite artifact may be an interpretation of the Trinity. The three individually cast Christ figures were affixed to the wood cross with nails and copper loops. The central one is more finely rendered and may be earlier in date. Among the varieties of European crosses in eighteenth-century Kongo that may have served as a point of reference was the Caravaca form, brought to the region by Capuchin missionaries. It incorporates double crossbars with a lower horizontal extension of angels.

Triple Crucifix, Kongo artist, Open-back cast brass (central figure), solid cast brass (top and bottom figures), forged iron nails, brass, copper, wood, ultramarine pigment, Kongo

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Triple Crucifix, Kongo artist, Open-back cast brass (central figure), solid cast brass (top and bottom figures), forged iron nails, brass, copper, wood, ultramarine pigment, Kongo
Triple Crucifix, Kongo artist, Open-back cast brass (central figure), solid cast brass (top and bottom figures), forged iron nails, brass, copper, wood, ultramarine pigment, Kongo

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