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Tusk Fragment with the Ascension

720–970 Radiocarbon date, 95% probability
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 302
Ivory was so highly valued in Byzantium that emperors received it in tribute. Here, a fragment of a tusk, originally carved in the round, displays one of the most important Byzantine images, the Ascension of Christ into Heaven (Luke 24:50-53, Acts 1:6-11).

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Tusk Fragment with the Ascension
  • Date: 720–970 Radiocarbon date, 95% probability
  • Geography: Attributed to Egypt or Palestine
  • Medium: Ivory; carved
  • Dimensions: H. 7 3/4 in. (19.7 cm)
    W. 4 15/16 in. (12.5 cm)
    D. 2 3/8 in. (6 cm)
    Max. Th. 1 1/16 in. (2.7 cm)
  • Classification: Ivories and Bone
  • Credit Line: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
  • Object Number: 17.190.46
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

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