The Collection
The American Wing Ancient Near Eastern Art Arms and Armor The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing Asian Art The Cloisters The Costume Institute Drawings and Prints Egyptian Art European Paintings European Sculpture and Decorative Arts Greek and Roman Art Islamic Art Robert Lehman Collection The Libraries Medieval Art Musical Instruments Photographs Antonio Ratti Textile Center Modern and Contemporary Art

Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.

Censer with a Ram’s Head Handle

8th century

Not on view

Occupying a strategic high point at the heart of the ancient city of Philadelphia, the Amman Citadel (Jabal al-Qal’a) is one of a string of "desert palaces" constructed along the roads to Damascus by the Umayyad caliphate as it consolidated power in the seventh and eighth centuries. The citadel included administrative buildings, defensive structures, residential apartments, and a mosque.
Excavated in a large house on the citadel, this arcaded domed censer is typical of a tradition long known across the Mediterranean in the Byzantine world. The floral pattern on the base relates to textile designs.

Censer with a Ram’s Head Handle, Cast copper alloy, engraved and punched — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Title: Censer with a Ram’s Head Handle

Date: 8th century

Geography: Made in Eastern Mediterranean, excavated at the Amman Citadel, Jordan

Medium: Cast copper alloy, engraved and punched

Dimensions: 4 1/2 x 8 1/4 in. (11.5 x 21 cm)

Classification: Metalwork

Credit Line: Jordan Archaeological Museum, Amman (J. 1660)

Accession Number: isl385

The Met

Medieval Art and The Cloisters at The Met

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world, encompassing the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome to the beginning of the Renaissance.