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cmamedieval.bsky.social
CMA: Medieval Art
@cmamedieval.bsky.social
710 followers 3 following 2.3K posts
Sharing public domain works from the Medieval Art department of
the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Automated thanks to @andreitr.bsky.social and @botfrens.bsky.social
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Reposted by CMA: Medieval Art
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Bowl with Floral Scroll Design in Relief https://clevelandart.org/art/1918.483
Bowl with Floral Scroll Design in Relief
November 14, 2025 at 10:48 AM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Buckle with Embossed Head in Profile https://clevelandart.org/art/1948.23
Buckle with Embossed Head in Profile
November 27, 2025 at 5:51 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Spoon https://clevelandart.org/art/1952.6
Spoon
November 27, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Reposted by CMA: Medieval Art
edvardmunch.bsky.social
Death of Marat I 1907
https://botfrens.com/collections/90/contents/25532
Death of Marat I
November 14, 2025 at 6:16 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Sovereign (obverse) https://clevelandart.org/art/1969.169.a
Sovereign (obverse)
November 27, 2025 at 12:02 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Buckle https://clevelandart.org/art/1918.929
Buckle
November 27, 2025 at 8:17 AM
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Five Pounds https://clevelandart.org/art/1969.220
Five Pounds
November 26, 2025 at 6:31 PM
Reposted by CMA: Medieval Art
max-m-ernst.bsky.social
Surrealism and Painting https://www.wikiart.org/en/max-ernst/surrealism-and-painting-1942
Surrealism and Painting
November 12, 2025 at 7:55 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Hours of Queen Isabella the Catholic, Queen of Spain: Fol. 50v https://clevelandart.org/art/1963.256.50.b
This manuscript was illuminated by a circle of at least five highly organized manuscript painters active in the Flemish cities of Ghent and Bruges. The principal illuminator was Alexander Bening, who painted the majority of the book's miniatures. Manuscripts produced by this circle of artists are renowned for the decoration of their borders, which typically feature a rich variety of realistically-painted flowers, birds, and butterflies. This prayer book, called a book of hours, was intended not for a cleric, but for the private devotions of a lay person-in this case, Isabella the Catholic, Queen of Spain (1451-1504). Isabella's coat of arms embellishes the book's frontispiece. It is unlikely that the book was commissioned by the Queen herself; rather, she probably received it as a diplomatic gift from someone courting her patronage, perhaps Cardinal Francisco Jimenez de Cisneros. A Franciscan friar, Jimenez was dependent upon Isabella for his advancement, first to the post of Queen's confessor in 1492, and then to Archbishop of Toledo in 1495.
November 26, 2025 at 4:03 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Five Guineas [pattern] (obverse) https://clevelandart.org/art/1969.211.a
Five Guineas [pattern] (obverse)
November 26, 2025 at 12:36 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Antiphonary https://clevelandart.org/art/1930.661
The initial A with the resurrected Christ, shown here, was painted by an immediate follower of Girolamo da Cremona, who was likely working in Siena using the master's designs. Girolamo was intermittently active until 1474 in Siena, where he decorated choir books for the cathedral in collaboration with other North Italian illuminators. Antiphonaries like this one were usually made in several volumes for use by a clerical congregation. They were applied to the singing of the Daily Office, the cycle of daily devotions throughout the year. The chant introduced by this initial reads: Angelus Domini descendit de celo... (An angel of the Lord descended...). It is the First Matins Response for Easter.
November 26, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Reposted by CMA: Medieval Art
cmaphotography.bsky.social
Bridal Veil, Yosemite https://clevelandart.org/art/1992.12
In the 1850s, Carleton Watkins took up landscape as a field photographer, providing clients with views they could use to settle property disputes. He made his first trip to Yosemite in 1861 and returned many times, frequently as a member of geological surveys. This image is a remarkable example of Watkin's mammoth plate work (roughly 18 x 21 inches) in Yosemite and is among the greatest achievements in American photography. His landmark Yosemite photographs were distinguished by their early manifestation of a deliberately artistic point of view and for their systematic emphasis on the landscape as a pristine wilderness, untouched by civilization. The large glass negative and albumen printing process not only allowed Watkins to depict spectacular views with clarity and fidelity, but also enabled him to convey effects of light and atmosphere.
November 12, 2025 at 1:26 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Hunting Sword https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.1686
Hunting Sword
November 25, 2025 at 7:38 PM
Reposted by CMA: Medieval Art
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Black on Maroon
https://botfrens.com/collections/25/contents/4892
Black on Maroon
November 12, 2025 at 8:34 AM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Stained Glass Panel with Female Donor https://clevelandart.org/art/1919.1.2
The origin of these stained glass panels is unknown. They depict a male and female donor, presumably husband and wife, who gaze upon a now-lost central panel. The object of their devotions was likely a crucified Christ or a standing figure of the Virgin Mary. The man, dressed in armor, and the woman, wearing a bejeweled and richly embroidered gown, are accompanied by their coats-of-arms (unidentified). They are undoubtedly members of an aristocratic elite who commissioned these windows, perhaps for a family chapel.
November 25, 2025 at 4:00 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Book of Hours (Use of Rouen): fol. 25v https://clevelandart.org/art/1952.227.25.b
Book of Hours (Use of Rouen): fol. 25v
November 25, 2025 at 2:16 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Fol. 358v, Micah, historiated initial V, Micah kneeling, bust of God above https://clevelandart.org/art/2008.2.358.b
Biblical manuscripts were highly prized and important possessions of churches, monasteries, cathedral schools, and universities throughout medieval Europe. The biblical texts were known as the vulgate, the translations made by Saint Jerome in the fourth century from Hebrew and Greek into Latin, which became the definitive and official Latin version of the Roman Church. In the 13th century, the bible was, for the first time, produced as a single volume with an officially sanctioned sequence to its books and chapters as illustrated by this example. The very extensive decoration of this bible is arranged hierarchically to indicate the relative importance of the various texts so that full or almost full-page initials mark the openings of the first prologue, Genesis, and the first Gospel; historiated initials mark the beginning of each book and illuminated initials mark the Prologues.
November 25, 2025 at 12:34 PM
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cmaafrican.bsky.social
Female Figure https://clevelandart.org/art/1975.154
Female Figure
November 11, 2025 at 3:51 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Virgin and Child https://clevelandart.org/art/1965.236
This sculpture-damaged during the 19th century and now missing the figure of the Christ child-is a fine early example of the type known as the Schöne Madonna or "Beautiful Virgin." This type became popular around 1400 and emphasized the graceful curve of the Virgin’s posture combined with deep, slightly exaggerated drapery folds. This sculpture is known to have come from the Church of Mariapfarr in the Diocese of Salzburg. It was made using a casting technique known as "lost shape." The casting consisted of pulverized limestone combined with quicklime and milk curd poured into a mold. After the cement-like mixture set for several weeks, the mold was destroyed to remove the sculpture, which could then be filed, polished, and painted.
November 25, 2025 at 8:21 AM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Peter of Poitier's "Compendium Historiae in Genealogia Christi" (pair) https://clevelandart.org/art/1973.5
This manuscript roll, composed of four membranes formerly stitched together as one continuous unit, has been divided in the middle for easier visibility and study. The first part is on the left. If displayed as a continuous roll, it would measure over nine feet in length. The text is an abridgement of biblical history focused on the descent of Christ from Adam. It was written by Peter of Poitiers (about 1130-1205), who taught theology and history in Paris and was widely copied. The present roll is an English copy of Peter's text made shortly after his death. Although manuscript rolls were hung on the walls of a classroom as instructional aids to students, some of them have value beyond their textual and historical interest because of the fine quality of their drawings, as seen in this example. A comparison with Canterbury manuscripts and stained glass of around 1220 is the basis for the attribution to Canterbury. The Text of the Compendium Historiae in Genealogia Christi According to his necrologer, Peter of Poitiers, "being mindful of poor clerics, invented historical trees of the Old Testament which were painted on skins." Peter's aim in this project was to assist students prevented from mastering biblical history because of its length and because they were too poor to own books. His text on roll is the briefest possible summary of biblical history. It is arranged in six historical stages, denoting the six ages of the world, as decreed by theological tradition. The first five ages were inaugurated by individuals in the Old Testament: Adam, Noah, Abraham, David, and Sedecias. The birth of Christ heralded the sixth stage. Beginning at the top of the first membrane, the text consists of brief biographical entries on the ancestors of Christ (Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David) and other biblical personalities. These extend to the birth of Christ on the fourth membrane, ending with accounts of Hebrew and Roman kings and the Apostles. Each Compendium shows the names of the ancestors inscribed within circles-those of direct descent placed vertically in a central column, others scattered in clusters to the right and left. The Decoration of the Compendium Historiae in Genealogia Christi The decoration of the roll consists of a series of medallions of diverse geometrical frames filled with either a figural drawing or a diagram. The style of these pen-and-ink drawings-some illuminated in tempera or tinted with wash-stems from English manuscript and glass painting attributed to the school of Canterbury Cathedral. The style of the museum's illustrations is so close to the stained glass panels made for Trinity Chapel at Canterbury (about 1220) to suggest that an artist active as a glazier in the Cathedral workshop may also have executed the manuscript. In the least, the painter of the roll manuscript was familiar with the style of the painted glass, and on this basis, a date of about 1220 seems appropriate. Additional evidence is supplied by a Psalter (Paris, Bibl. nat., MS. Lat. 770) illuminated at Canterbury shortly before 1220. The figurative scenes in this psalter were apparently illustrated by the same hand that executed the line and wash drawings in the museum's roll.
November 24, 2025 at 6:55 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Crossbow Bolt https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.1761
Crossbow Bolt
November 24, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Reposted by CMA: Medieval Art
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Single Miniature Excised from Boccaccio's Des Cleres et nobles femmes: Queen Medusa and Her Court https://clevelandart.org/art/1924.1015
This miniature comes from the French translation of a book by the Italian poet Giovanni Boccaccio (1313–1375). A compilation of biographies of famous women, Boccaccio’s work remained popular in France throughout the 1400s, especially with aristocratic bibliophiles, and was usually beautifully illustrated in the form of a deluxe manuscript. Shown here is the miniature introducing the chapter dealing with the legend of Queen Medusa. Surrounded by her courtiers, Medusa instructs the reader on the disadvantages of possessing wealth, which brings fear and superstition as well as loss of sleep, security, and peace of mind.
November 11, 2025 at 12:02 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Hours of Queen Isabella the Catholic, Queen of Spain: Fol. 167v, St. Michael https://clevelandart.org/art/1963.256.167.b
This manuscript was illuminated by a circle of at least five highly organized manuscript painters active in the Flemish cities of Ghent and Bruges. The principal illuminator was Alexander Bening, who painted the majority of the book's miniatures. Manuscripts produced by this circle of artists are renowned for the decoration of their borders, which typically feature a rich variety of realistically-painted flowers, birds, and butterflies. This prayer book, called a book of hours, was intended not for a cleric, but for the private devotions of a lay person-in this case, Isabella the Catholic, Queen of Spain (1451-1504). Isabella's coat of arms embellishes the book's frontispiece. It is unlikely that the book was commissioned by the Queen herself; rather, she probably received it as a diplomatic gift from someone courting her patronage, perhaps Cardinal Francisco Jimenez de Cisneros. A Franciscan friar, Jimenez was dependent upon Isabella for his advancement, first to the post of Queen's confessor in 1492, and then to Archbishop of Toledo in 1495.
November 24, 2025 at 1:26 PM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Leaf Excised from a Psalter: Massacre of the Innocents https://clevelandart.org/art/1953.145.7
Traditional locations within manuscript psalters were designated by decorated initials or, as is the case here, full-page miniatures. These locations marked the major divisions of the psalms as used in the daily office. The extraordinary quality of these miniatures suggests they once decorated a deluxe psalter made for a wealthy or aristocratic patron, possibly a cleric.
November 24, 2025 at 11:54 AM
cmamedieval.bsky.social
Sovereign https://clevelandart.org/art/1969.170
Sovereign
November 24, 2025 at 10:38 AM