Polyptych, ivory, French (Paris), ca. 1300-1325

Polyptych of four panels of ivory carved in high relief with scenes from the early life of Christ: the Nativity, the Annunciation to the Shepherds, the Adoration of the Magi, and the presentation in the Temple. The Annunciation has no architectural decoration, the Nativity is surmounted by three trefoil arches and the two remaining panels by one. The painting and gilding are much restored.
The four leaves were once folded up concertina-fashion to form a single block of ivory, 2.8 cm in depth.
The first leaf has a triple arcade of trefoil arches, the central arch being wider than the outer two. Beneath this is depicted the Nativity, in the version of the composition in which Christ's manger is placed on a column behind the Virgin, rather than in the foreground. The Virgin touches her hand to her face, while Joseph raises his right hand in a speaking gesture. The second leaf has no architectural frame, allowing the scene to spread out across the whole surface of the relief. It depicts the Annunciation. Two shepherds appear in the left foreground before a large tree, one sitting and playing the bagpipes while the other leans on his staff (and appears to dance, given his complex posture). To the right are three goats, while on a rocky outcrop the angel stands, holding a speech scroll. The third leaf is framed by s single trefoil arch. The arch is topped by large crockets and a finial, while the upper border of the plaque bears a stepped moulding. Below is the Adoration of the Magi. The sitting Virgin holds a lily stem in her left hand, while the standing Christ-Child opens the ciborium offered by the kneeling magus, and blesses with his right hand. Behind, the second magus points to the star (not indicated), while the final magus raises his right index finger to interject; these two figures wear gloves. The final leaf is framed with a single arch in the manner of the previous plaque. Beneath is depicted the Presentation in the Temple. The Virgin lifts Christ towards Simeon over the altar, with a maidservant holding a wicker basket containing the doves on the left.
The scenes have been clumsily painted during their post-medieval history.

From the Webb Collection. Formerly in the Louis-Fidel Debruge-Duménil (1788-1838) collection, Paris, until 1850 (Labarte Description des Objets d'Art, Paris 1850, no. 160. Bought by Ayres at the Soltykoff sale, Paris, 1861, lot 239. In the possession of John Webb, London, by 1862. Purchased from Webb in 1867 for £49.

Historical significance: The present object was probably made in a Parisian workshop which specialised in small scale objects such as booklets and diptychs or polyptychs.

Polyptychs of this size could have easily been held in the hand and used like manuscripts to deepen the experience of prayer and and stimulate meditation on the humanity of Christ.

This is an ivory polyptych, made in Paris in about 1300-1325. It contains of four leaves that once folded up in concertina fashion to form a single block of ivory. The leaves are carved with scenes from the early life of Christ: the Nativity, the Annunciation to the Shepherds, the Adoration of the Magi, and the presentation in the Temple.

Ivory was used all over Europe for religious works of art. It was often combined with precious metals and usually took the form of relief panels, for book covers, portable altars and caskets. An almost unbroken tradition of ivory carving extends from the Roman and Byzantine empires until the end of the 14th century. From about 1250, Paris became the centre of production for figures and reliefsintended for private devotion.

Polyptychs survive in far smaller numbers, and were probably never as popular as diptychs. In order to allow them to be folded up, the hinges usually alternated between the front and the back of the leaves, enabling them to be closed concertina-fashion. There was no standard form, but the larger polyptychs were sometimes gabled.

237C-1867