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Evangelists Mark and Luke

ca. 1220–30
On view at The Met Cloisters in Gallery 14
Intent on their work, Saints Mark and Luke pen extraordinary messages based in medieval theology rather than the text of their gospels. Mark links belief in the Resurrection of Jesus to the medieval legend that the lion breathes life into stillborn cubs three days after their birth. Saint Luke acknowledges that his task is divinely inspired.
Both highly sculptural and delicately engraved, these figures likely come from the high altar of the abbey of Grandmont, near Limoges. When it was destroyed during the French Revolution, a few fine elements were spared, apparently by a local copper smelter.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Evangelists Mark and Luke
  • Date: ca. 1220–30
  • Geography: Made in Limoges, France
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Gilded copper and glass
  • Dimensions: Overall (Mark .1): 6 7/8 x 4 7/16 x 1 1/4 in. (17.4 x 11.2 x 3.1 cm)
    Overall (Luke .2): 6 1/2 x 4 3/4 x 1 7/16 in. (16.5 x 12.1 x 3.6 cm)
  • Classification: Metalwork-Copper
  • Credit Line: Purchase, The Cloisters Collection, Michel David-Weill Gift, and Gifts of J. Pierpont Morgan and George Blumenthal, by exchange, 2012
  • Object Number: 2012.70.1, .2
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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