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Doorway

mid-12th century
On view at The Met Cloisters in Gallery 01
A number of playful elements enliven this otherwise sober doorway. A bear and a fox dance in the keystone at the top, while other animals, some realistic, some fantastic, grace the foliated capitals at eye level. Long appreciated on stylistic grounds for its resemblance to monuments found near Tours, this doorway comes from a small church about fifty miles southeast of the city. The main structure of the church was sold into private hands in the nineteenth century, and the main portal was moved to nearby Villeloin-Coulangé; it entered the collection of George Grey Barnard before 1925.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Doorway
  • Date: mid-12th century
  • Geography: Made in Touraine, France
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Limestone
  • Dimensions: Overall: 166 x 180 in. (421.6 x 457.2 cm)
  • Classification: Installations
  • Credit Line: The Cloisters Collection, 1925
  • Object Number: 25.120.878
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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