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Not currently on display at the V&A

The Lion of St Mark (?)

Statuette
ca. 1700 - ca. 1750 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Mexican (made)
Mexico (excavated)

This statuette representing a lion with a semi-human face was bought from Captain R. Hollocombe in Mexico, where it was said to have been excarvated, although no further details are known. This is perhaps Latin American, possibly dating from about 1700-1750. The lion may have been originally the companion of a statue of St Mark, or may have been part of a crib. Similar lions with a semi-human face are to be seen accompanying St Jerome at Quito, Equador, Bogotà, Columbia, Juli, Peru and at Guatemala City.


Object details

Category
Sculpture
Object type
Statuette
TitleThe Lion of St Mark (?) (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Carved ivory
Ivory
Brief description
Statuette, ivory, of a lion, probably the Lion of St Mark, Mexican or Hispano-American, ca. 1700-1750
Physical description
Ivory statuette of a lion, stained brown and worn. The feet have been broken away. Two holes on the back near the shoulders seem to have been used for the attachment of wings, possibly representing the Lion of St. Mark.
Dimensions
  • Height: 7.5cm
  • Length: 9.2cm
Style
Latin American
Object history
The figure has been called perhaps North Italian, thirteenth-forteenth century (Longhurst 1929); other opinions were 'not-Columbian', South German, Indo-Portuguese. Pal Kelemen's was that it was certainly Hispano-American, probably eigtheenth century, pointing out comparable lion figures accompanying St Jerome and remarking that a number of South American artefacts were exported to Mexico (Kelemen II, 1967).
Historical context
Believed to have been the companion to a statue of St. Mark or part of a crib almost certainly from Latin America. The carving bears particularly close parallels in the semi-human face to examples found in Ecuador, Columbia, Peru and Guatemala. Such South American artefacts were exported to Mexico.
Subject depicted
Lions (Animals)
Summary
This statuette representing a lion with a semi-human face was bought from Captain R. Hollocombe in Mexico, where it was said to have been excarvated, although no further details are known. This is perhaps Latin American, possibly dating from about 1700-1750. The lion may have been originally the companion of a statue of St Mark, or may have been part of a crib. Similar lions with a semi-human face are to be seen accompanying St Jerome at Quito, Equador, Bogotà, Columbia, Juli, Peru and at Guatemala City.
Bibliographic references
  • Longhurst, Margaret H. Catalogue of Carvings in Ivory. London: Published under the Authority of the Board of Education, 1927-1929. Part II. p. 58.
  • Kelemen, P. Baroque and Rococo in Latin America, New York, 1951, pl. 58
  • Review [1911-1938], Victoria & Albert Museum. Review of the Principal Acquisitions during the Year, London, 1927, p. 7
  • Trusted, Marjorie, Baroque & Later Ivories, Victoria & Albert Museum, London, 2013 p. 362
  • Trusted, Marjorie, Baroque & Later Ivories, Victoria & Albert Museum, London, 2013, p. 362, cat. no. 355
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
A.3-1927

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Record createdNovember 22, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107393/the-lion-of-st-mark-statuette-unknown/
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