Collection record · Objects & craft
Plaque: The Journey to Bethlehem
The collection record classifies this work as ivory. It is dated c. 1100–1120. Recorded culture or place: South Italy, Amalfi, Romanesque period, 12th century.
Explore the object recordOBJECT RECORD
A closer look at the details.
- Museum title
- Plaque: The Journey to Bethlehem
- Date
- c. 1100–1120
- Culture / origin
- South Italy, Amalfi, Romanesque period, 12th century
- Materials and technique
- ivory
- Dimensions
- Overall: 16.3 x 11 x 1 cm (6 7/16 x 4 5/16 x 3/8 in.)
- Artist / maker
- Not specified by the museum
- Museum
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Accession number
- 1978.40
FROM THE MUSEUM
In the museum’s words
The following description is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art’s original English record.
This ivory plaque depicts Mary, Joseph, and one of his sons from a previous wife on their way to Bethlehem. The scene is set within an architectural frame that combines Byzantine decorative elements (such as the acanthus leaf column capitals) with Islamic architectural motifs (most notably, the distinctively rounded arches). The blending of Byzantine, Islamic, and Western iconographic elements and decorative motifs is typical for the art produced in the city of Amalfi, a prosperous merchant town near Naples in South Italy.
FOLLOW THE SOURCE
Text and image sources
The Cleveland Museum of Art · Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund · CC0
The summary is based on public collection data. Refer to the museum’s latest record for the title, date and attribution.
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