This carved disk was originally part of a set of thirty pieces made for the board game known as "tables," a precursor of backgammon. Classical and biblical themes are seen frequently on surviving tableman, including episodes from the stories of Hercules and Samson, suggesting that these ancient heroes often represented opposing sides in the game. Here, Hercules, at left, is shown killing the three-headed monster Geryon—his tenth Labor. The monster, now slain, is represented again at the bottom of the scene. Like many other examples this tableman retains traces of paint. Color allowed one side to be easily distinguished from the other side, which was often left unpainted.
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Title:Game Piece with Hercules Slaying the Three-Headed Geryon
Date:ca. 1150
Geography:Made in Cologne, Germany
Culture:German
Medium:Ivory
Dimensions:Overall: 2 3/4 in. (7 cm)
Classification:Ivories-Walrus
Credit Line:The Cloisters Collection, 1970
Object Number:1970.324.4
Emile Gavet, Paris (until 1897) ; his sale, Galerie Georges Petit, Paris (May 9–June 9, 1897, no. 327) ; Paul Casimir Garnier, Paris (1897–1916) ; his sale, Hôtel Drouot, Paris (December 18–23, 1916, no. 37) ; [ Brimo de Laroussilhe, Paris] ; [ Brummer Gallery, Paris and New York] ; Ernst and Marthe Kofler-Truniger, Lucerne (sold 1970)
Kunsthaus Zürich. "Sammlung E. und M. Kofler-Truniger, Luzern, Zürich," June 7–August 2, 1964.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Patterns of Collecting: Selected Acquisitions, 1965–1975," December 6, 1975–March 23, 1976.
Musée National du Moyen Âge - Thermes et Hôtel de Cluny. "Jeux de la Babylone antique á l'Occident Médiéval," November 28, 2012–March 18, 2013.
Molinier, Emile. Collection Émile Gavet: catalogue raisonné précédé d'une étude historique et archéologique sur les œuvres d'art qui composent cette collection. Paris: Jouaust, 1889. no. 293, pl. 30.
Catalogue des Objets d'Art et de Haute Curiosité de la Renaissance; Tableaux, Tapisseries: Composant la Collection de M. Émile Gavet. Paris: Galerie Georges Petit, May 31–June 9, 1897. no. 327, p. 90.
Catalogue officiel illustré de l'exposition retrospective de l'art français des origines à 1800. Exposition universelle de 1900. Paris: Lemercier & Cie., 1900. no. 48, p. 263.
Migeon, Gaston. "La Collection de M. Paul Garnier: II. – Objets d'Art du Moyen Age et de la Renaissance." Les Arts 53 (May 1906). pp. 14, 16.
Collection Paul Garnier: Objets d'art & de haute curiosité du Moyen Age, de la Renaissance, des XVIIe, XVIIIe siècles et autres. Paris: Hôtel Drouot, December 18-23, 1916. no. 37, p. 10.
Volbach, W. F. Mittelalterliche Elfenbeinarbeiten. Berlin: E. Wasmuth, 1922. p. 8, pl. 45c.
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Schnitzler, Hermann, ed. Große Kunst des Mittelalters aus Privatbesitz. Cologne: Museum Schnütgen, 1960. no. 12, p. 15.
Philippowich, Eugen von. Elfenbein: ein Handbuch für Sammler und Liebhaber. Braunschweig: Klinkhardt & Biermann, 1961. p. 279, fig. 211.
Salerno, Luigi. "Ivory and Bone Carving." In Encyclopedia of World Art. Vol. 8. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1963. Column 770, pl. 244.
Sammlung E. und M. Kofler-Truniger, Luzern: Ausstellung. Zurich: Kunsthaus Zürich, 1964. no. 681, p. 72, pl. 62.
Lasko, Peter. "A Notable Private Collection." Apollo 79, no. 28 (June 1964). fig. 7, ill. p. 466.
Schnitzler, Hermann, Peter Bloch, and W. F. Volbach. Sammlung E. und M. Kofler-Truniger, Luzern: Skulpturen – Elfenbein, Perlmutter, Stein, Holz; europäisches Mittelalter. Vol. 1. Lucerne: Verlag Räber & Cie, 1964. no. 18, pp. 14–15.
Bloch, Peter, Hermann Schnitzler, Charles Ratton, and W. F. Volbach. "Mittelalterliche Kunst der Sammlung Kofler-Truniger, Luzern." Aachener Kunstblätter 31 (1965). pp. 14–15.
"Departmental Accessions
." Annual Report of the Trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art 101 (July 1, 1970–June 30, 1971). p. 21.
Beckwith, John. Ivory Carvings in Early Medieval England. London: Harvey Miller Publishers, 1972. no. 125, p. 147, fig. 228, ill. p. 155.
Deuchler, Florens. "The Cloisters: Ein Museum für mittelalterliche Kunst in New York." Du 32, no. 2 (1972). p. 98.
Raggio, Olga, ed. "Medieval Art and the Cloisters." Notable Acquisitions (Metropolitan Museum of Art) no. 1965/1975 (1975). p. 154.
Raggio, Olga, ed. Patterns of Collecting: Selected Acquisitions, 1965-1975; Explanatory Texts. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975. p. 17.
Mann, Vivian B. "Romanesque Ivory Tablemen." PhD diss., New York University, 1977. no. 106, pp. 272–73.
Mann, Vivian B. "Samson vs. Hercules: A Carved Cycle of the Twelfth Century." ACTA 7 (1980 [1983]). pp. 11, 31, fig. 17.
Barnet, Peter, and Nancy Y. Wu. The Cloisters: Medieval Art and Architecture. New York and New Haven: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2005. no. 17, pp. 44, 194.
Bardiès-Fronty, Isabelle, and Anne-Elizabeth Dunn-Vaturi, ed. Art du Jeu, Jeu dans l'Art: De Babylone à l’Occident Médiéval. Paris: Musée National du Moyen Âge - Thermes et Hôtel de Cluny, 2012. no. 110, p. 116.
Barnet, Peter, and Nancy Y. Wu. The Cloisters: Medieval Art and Architecture. 75th Anniversary ed. New York and New Haven: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012. p. 41.
Brennan, Christine E. "The Brummer Gallery and the Business of Art." Journal of the History of Collections 27, no. 3 (November 2015). p. 461, fig. 6.
Senior Research Associate Christine E. Brennan recalls enjoying the Medieval Festival at The Met Cloisters with her family and invites visitors to join the festivities this Sunday, September 18.
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