Aquamanile in the Form of a Rooster

Aquamanile in the Form of a Rooster

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The rooster’s majestic tail feathers splay in rhythmic arcs as he crows, full-throated. The artist who modeled the bird boldly balanced the body on its tiny talons. This elaborate water vessel was intended for handwashing. A specialty of metalworkers in German-speaking lands for centuries—from the twelfth to the fifteenth—they are called aquamanilia, from the Latin words for water (aqua) and hand (manus).

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Aquamanile in the Form of a RoosterAquamanile in the Form of a RoosterAquamanile in the Form of a RoosterAquamanile in the Form of a RoosterAquamanile in the Form of a Rooster

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.