NARRATOR: The subject of this small, square plaque is the Pentecost, the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles fifty days after Easter. Six of the apostles are seated on a bench before the city of Jerusalem. The triple arch at the top, labeled "DOM[US]" represents the house in which the miracle of the Pentecost occurred. In the center of the plaque is St. Peter, receiving the central red ray from the left hand of God above. The inscription around the hand can be translated as an abbreviation for Father, and the inscription on either side of St. Peter is an abbreviation for the Holy Spirit. This twelfth-century plaque was undoubtedly carved as part of a series representing the Life and Passion of Christ that may have been made for a cross base, a pulpit, or some other liturgical furnishing. Julien Chapuis.

JULIEN CHAPUIS: This is one of the best examples of a Mosan enamel, by which I mean that the plaque has the quality of a Matisse or a Schiele drawing. The artist chooses the line as his foremost creative medium. The line has a tremendous variation. It is not the same width everywhere. And he's able, by using variations in the line, to create a sense of space, a sense of volume. If you look, for instance, at the figure of the Apostle on the right, you will see that he really is standing in space. And this tremendous sense of presence is what makes this work.