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Choir Stalls

15th century
On view at The Met Cloisters in Gallery 16
During church services, clerics and monks sat facing one another in choir stalls, or benches, set perpendicular to the altar, behind a screen. Their hinged seats could be turned up, leaving small supports known as misericords (from the Latin misericordia, or mercy) upon which to rest during long periods of standing. Misericords commonly feature grotesque, imaginative, and even obscene figures. Some believe that such figures embodied the perils of the world, others that they reflect commentary on scripture and theology, yet others that they reflect the medieval sense of humor and love of the imaginary.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Choir Stalls
  • Date: 15th century
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Oak
  • Dimensions: Overall: 42 3/4 x 59 1/2 x 23 3/4 in. (108.6 x 151.1 x 60.3 cm)
  • Classification: Woodwork-Furniture
  • Credit Line: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1916
  • Object Number: 16.32.15
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

Audio

Cover Image for 86. Kids and Families Tour - Choir Stalls

86. Kids and Families Tour - Choir Stalls

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PHILOMENA What strange-looking benches! Who sits here?

BROTHER PEREGRINE They're called choir stalls. They're made for a church choir.

PHILOMENA A choir? You mean the men and boys who sing in church?

BROTHER PEREGRINE Exactly! Like the one we're listening to now. Sometimes the choir singers have to stand up for a long time in church. The singer could lean back on that little ledge when he stood up, so he didn't get tired.

PHILOMENA But look at the bottom of the seat. What’s that strange face?

BROTHER PEREGRINE [laughing] Oh, look at him! Pulling his mouth with his fingers—how funny!

PHILOMENA [laughing] Why does a church have funny faces in it?

BROTHER PEREGRINE Some of the art in medieval churches doesn't look especially serious. Think about where this carving is when the seat’s folded down. What part of your body would be on top of it?

PHILOMENA Ohhhhhhhhhhh! Your bottom!

More Artwork

More Artwork
Burgonet with Falling Buffe, Steel, gold, French
Burgonet with Falling Buffe
French
ca. 1550
Triple Choir Stall with Canopy, Oak, French
Triple Choir Stall with Canopy
French
15th century
The Virgin Mary and Five Standing Saints above Predella Panels, Pot-metal glass, white glass, vitreous paint, silver stain, German
The Virgin Mary and Five Standing Saints above Predella Panels
German
1440–46
Shield of Henry II of France (reigned 1547–59), Steel, gold, silver, French
Shield of Henry II of France (reigned 1547–59)
French
ca. 1555
Choir stall panels, Johann Justus Schacht with collaborators, Panel: oak veneered with walnut, boxwod, rosewood, ebony, maple, and other woods, ivory, green-stained horn, and pewter; figures: carved and painted limewood, German, Mainz
Choir stall panels
Johann Justus Schacht
ca. 1723–26, figures 1787

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