Baptismal Font

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This large font is central to the legend of a holy woman named Christina (1150–1224), whose story was recorded by Thomas of Cantimpré, a famous thirteenth-century Dominican author. Troubled by an evil spirit as she passed the village church in Wellen, Christina reputedly jumped into this font. She emerged from the water having achieved newfound exemplary behavior and thereafter was known as Christina the Astonishing. Stone baptismal fonts from the Meuse Valley were exported throughout northern Europe. The four projecting heads on this example, each slightly different from the other, probably represent the Four Rivers of Paradise.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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.

Metropolitan Museum of Art