The Crucifixion and the Flagellation
Diptych Leaf
ca. 1330-1350 (made)
ca. 1330-1350 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This is the left leaf from an ivory Diptych, made in France, Paris in ca. 1330-1350. The panel is divided into two tiers each of which is surmounted by a triple arch of trefoil arches. The top section depicts the Crucifixion while the lower section shows the Flagellation. The other leaf is in the Liverpool museum. The Liverpool leaf depicts the Carrying of the Cross in the lower registe and the Deposition in the upper.
The devotional diptych is in many ways the object type most associated with the notion of Gothic ivory carving. The earliest examples probably date to the 1240s; these are complex, large and ambitious works that emerged, somewhat surprisingly, with no obvious precursors. The owners of ivory diptychs sometimes appear within their images. Such portraits indicate that they were special requests on the part of their commissioners, and they parallel the similar figures that appear in manuscripts and panel paintings of the period. The iconography of Gothic diptychs oscillated between two poles. The first of which is the desire to present narratives (Life of Christ and Virgin Mary) for envisaging. The second was the use of non-narrative images to form the focus of devotion.
The devotional diptych is in many ways the object type most associated with the notion of Gothic ivory carving. The earliest examples probably date to the 1240s; these are complex, large and ambitious works that emerged, somewhat surprisingly, with no obvious precursors. The owners of ivory diptychs sometimes appear within their images. Such portraits indicate that they were special requests on the part of their commissioners, and they parallel the similar figures that appear in manuscripts and panel paintings of the period. The iconography of Gothic diptychs oscillated between two poles. The first of which is the desire to present narratives (Life of Christ and Virgin Mary) for envisaging. The second was the use of non-narrative images to form the focus of devotion.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Crucifixion and the Flagellation (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Elephant ivory |
| Brief description | Ditych leaf, left, Ivory, with the Flagellation and the Crucifixion, French (Paris), ca. 1330-1350 |
| Physical description | Left leaf of an ivory diptych carved with scenes from the Passion of Christ. Divided into two compartments, each tier surmounted by a triple arcade of trefoil arches, above is the Crucifixion and below, the Scourging of Christ or Flagellation. The right leaf is in The Liverpool Museum. In the Flagellation Christ is shown with his wrists bound to the column. He stands with his legs splayed, while to either side stand his tormentors, wielding flails. While Christ is barefoot, both tormentors wear shoes. In the Crucifixion scene Christ hangs on the cross beneath the central arch, while two groups of three figures are disposed under the flanking arches. The group on the left shows the Virgin collapsing in grief, her hand flung out to either side, and supported from behind by her sister Mary, the wife of Cleophas, while Mary Magdalene stands behind, holding her ointment jar. On the right, St John the Evangelist recoils in horror, raising his hand to his face in grief while holding a brook in his left. Behind the tow Jews are shown in dialogue, the figure at the front pointing to Christ with his right hand, and holding a blank speech scroll in his left. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | Purchased from Henry Willet, Brighton, in 1896 (with Mus. no. 162-1896, for £70). Nothing is known prior to that. Willet (1823-1905) was one of the founders of the Brighton Museum, and is best known for his internationally important collection of Englsih ceramics. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This is the left leaf from an ivory Diptych, made in France, Paris in ca. 1330-1350. The panel is divided into two tiers each of which is surmounted by a triple arch of trefoil arches. The top section depicts the Crucifixion while the lower section shows the Flagellation. The other leaf is in the Liverpool museum. The Liverpool leaf depicts the Carrying of the Cross in the lower registe and the Deposition in the upper. The devotional diptych is in many ways the object type most associated with the notion of Gothic ivory carving. The earliest examples probably date to the 1240s; these are complex, large and ambitious works that emerged, somewhat surprisingly, with no obvious precursors. The owners of ivory diptychs sometimes appear within their images. Such portraits indicate that they were special requests on the part of their commissioners, and they parallel the similar figures that appear in manuscripts and panel paintings of the period. The iconography of Gothic diptychs oscillated between two poles. The first of which is the desire to present narratives (Life of Christ and Virgin Mary) for envisaging. The second was the use of non-narrative images to form the focus of devotion. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 161-1896 |
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| Record created | January 6, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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