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Plaque with the Descent from the Cross

ca. 1320–40
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 306
The ivory figures are mounted on a sheet of whalebone. This plaque is part of a series of Passion carvings that are now dispersed among Antwerp, Oslo, Paris, London, and New York. The entire sequence was probably once set in an architectural frame, forming an altar frontal.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Plaque with the Descent from the Cross
  • Date: ca. 1320–40
  • Geography: Made in probably Paris, France
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Elephant ivory, whale bone, traces of paint, and gilding
  • Dimensions: Overall: 9 1/8 x 7 3/16 x 13/16 in. (23.2 x 18.3 x 2.1 cm)
  • Classifications: Ivories-Elephant, Ivories-Whale
  • Credit Line: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
  • Object Number: 17.190.199
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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3135. Plaque with the Descent from the Cross

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