Aquamanile in the Form of a Lion
German (Nuremberg), ca. 1400
Latten alloy
The Cloisters Collection, 1994 (1994.244)

This proud lion aquamanile was filled with water through an aperture at the top of the animal's head, while a spout and spigot extending from its chest allowed water to be poured over the user's hands. This is an outstanding work, with an imposing style, masterful modeling, superb casting, golden luster, and beautifully textured surfaces. Although the form and details refer to natural leonine features, each element is simplified and dramatized. The sturdy fringed legs; the upward-curving and tufted tail; the eyebrows, flared nostrils, swollen and whiskered upper lip, and menacing maw, with bared fangs and extended tongue, are aspects of a unified conception of an energetic creature caught in the suspended action of a heraldic stance and possibly in an interrupted roar. The diminutive dragon that serves as a handle seems to shriek in ineffective defiance. The Museum owns several Nuremberg acquamaniles, but only one of comparable quality--a griffin acquamanile in the Lehman Collection. This work is the finest Nuremberg lion aquamanile in any collection.