The Deposition from the Cross, carved walrus ivory with traces of polychromy, England (probably York), about 1200

This carved walrusy ivory relief is fully carved at each side and shows the Deposition of Christ, a scene from the Passion in which Joseph of Arimathea lifts Christ's dead body from the cross. Some natural longitudinal fissures running down the primary dentine are visible on the front in Joseph and Christ's face and arms. There are fine scratches running horizontally across Christ's arm and hand. There are historic losses, including to Christ's proper left hand and proper right foot. Both Joseph's feet are missing. There is some staining from pigments, particularly along the edges of drapery, with remnants of green or blue pigment found underneath the folds of some of the drapery.
On the back are numerous fine sharp tool mark scratches. There are three fixing holes with the top proper left hole having remains of a wooden dowel present. There has been selective darkening and bleaching of areas due to natural ageing of the ivory and and from light.

Acquired with the support from the National Heritage Memorial Fund; Art Fund; The Headly Trust; the V&A Americas Foundation; legacy gifts from Lt Cdr Paul Fletcher, William Roper, Suzanne Pinkerton, and Gillian Taylor; Malcolm and Rosalind Gammie; Lady Gibbs; Tioc Foundation; The William Brake Foundation; and many other generous donors.
Art Fund's grant was made possible with the support of the Rought Fund, The Leche Trust, the David and Emma Verey Charitable Trust and a group of generous individuals.

In the collection of John Hunt (1900 -1976) and Gertrude Hunt (1903 - 1995), active as collectors and art dealers in London between 1933 and 1940, relocated to Ireland in 1940; acquired by the Hunts prior to 1970, when first on loan to the international exhibition The Year 1200, held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (see Hoffman 1970, p. 48). From 1982 to 2022, on long loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; acquired by the museum in 2024.
The naturalistic carving is of great delicacy and beauty; the heads of Christ and Jospeph of Armiathea are rendered with poignant feeling and attention to detail worthy of the best ivory carvings of the English twelfth century. Scholars have repeatedly highlighed details such as Joseph's compassionate look towards Christ, the inclination of Christ's head and his heavy and limp arms contribute to the extraordinarily strong emotional appeal of the carving. This emotional interpretation of the Deposition, derived from the Byzantine tradition, began in Western art already around the middle of the twelfth century. It has been suggested that the ambiguous position of Christ's feet, with one foot overlapping the other, may be an early representation of Christ having been fastened to the cross with only one nail, an iconography that became more widespread only in the early thirteenth century (Hoffmann 1970, p. 49). The type of rough-hewn cross on which Christ is crucified, seen behind Christ's proper right leg, recalls that of an earlier possibly English walrus ivory cross now in the Cloisters collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (accession no 63.12).
The Deposition from the Cross is very closely related to another walrus ivory carving showing Judas at the Last Supper. This carving was found in a house in Wakefield, Yorkshire, in or before 1769, and given to the V&A in 1949 (mus. no A.34-1949). Some of the details, for example the naturalistically carved hands and tubular drapery, are identical in both pieces. The two walrus ivories, both carved almost in full relief, are similar in size and proportion. The construction of the back of both objects is also the same: each have dowel holes and very distinctive shelves carved into their backs near the top, which were probably used for mounting them to a back support. Both these stylistic and structural similarities suggest that they were made in the same workshop, and that they once formed part of the same ensemble.
Stylistically, the carvings fit into a Northern English milieu of the late twelfth century, and a place of production in York, close to the finding spot of the carving of Judas at the Last Supper, is very likely. In the years around 1200, York was a major centre of sculptural production, and sculptors working both at the Minster and at nearby St Mary's ABbey were aware of the latest artistic developments in France and the Low Countries. The Deposition from the Cross and Judas at the Last Supper can be compared to the life-size statues from St Mary's Abbey now at Yorkshire Museum, dated to about 1190.
The Deposition from the Cross and Judas at the Last Supper are therefore closely connected to York as one of England's most important medieval centres of artistic patronage, trade and religion. The carvings' uniqueness and importance are further highlighted when seen in the context of the English Reformation, which saw the wholescale obliteration of much of early English art production up to that point. It is almost impossible to have a complete understanding of life in England in the Middle Ages or what level of excellence was achieved by the artists and craftsmen. This makes the Deposition from the Cross and Judas at the Last Supper even more outstanding as pieces surviving from the period.

Together with the walrus ivory of Judas at the Last Supper (mus. no 34-1949), this carving must have formed part of a larger ensemble such as an altarpiece.

This walrus ivory carving shows the tender moment in the story of the Passion of Christ known as the Deposition, in which Christ's lifeless body is carefully lifted from the cross by Joseph of Arimathea. It would once have been part of a larger scene and ensemble and would have included a cross, still partly visible behind Christ's legs, and perhaps other figures. Traces of pigments are visible in the folds of the drapery and other areas and indicate that the carving was originally partially coloured. The carving is made from an unusually large piece of walrus tusk and is of extraordinarily high quality. The heads of Christ and Joseph are rendered with exquisite attention to detail, and the expressive gestures highlight the emotive quality of the work.
From a technical point of view, the object belongs to the highest range of ivory carvings of the twelfth century and constitutes an exceptionally well-preserved surviving piece of English Romanesque sculpture. As with most surviving early and high medieval objects, the artist is unknown to us. However, the piece reveals an artistic personality of extraordinarily masterful skill, not only in terms of ivory carving, but also in terms of their ability to observe and represent human suffering, empathy, and compassion in a particularly compelling and moving way. Although the ivory is only 18.3 cm high, it has an intensity of expression rarely found in contemporary medieval works of art. The physical embrace and loving facial expressions depicted transcend the boundaries of both the time and the context in which the object was made more than 800 years ago.
The Deposition from the Cross is very closely related to another walrus ivory carving showing Judas at the Last Supper. This carving was found in a house in Wakefield, Yorkshire, in or before 1769, and given to the V&A in 1949 (mus. no A.34-1949). Some of the details, for example the naturalistically carved hands and tubular drapery, are identical in both pieces. The two walrus ivories, both carved almost in full relief, are similar in size and proportion. The construction of the back of both objects is also the same: each have dowel holes and very distinctive shelves carved into their backs near the top, which were probably used for mounting them onto a back support. These stylistic and structural similarities suggest that both pieces were made in the same workshop, and that they once formed part of the same ensemble.
Stylistically, the carvings fit into a Northern English milieu of the late twelfth century, and a place of production in York, close to the finding spot of the carving of Judas at the Last Supper, is very likely. In the years around 1200, York was a major centre of sculptural production, and sculptors working both at the Minster and at nearby St Mary's Abbey were aware of the latest artistic developments in France and the Low Countries. The Deposition from the Cross is therefore closely connected to York as one of England's most important medieval centres of artistic patronage, trade, and religion. The carving's uniqueness and importance are further highlighted when seen in the context of the English Reformation, which saw the wholescale obliteration of much of early English art production up to that point.

A.10-2024