Chest

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

In addition to the luxurious and decorative jewel caskets of ivory and leather, iron coffrets and chests of varying sizes, designed primarily for security, were common. Used in the household to safeguard valuables or important documents, they were likewise employed in business establishments to protect both the profits of the day’s trade and valuable merchandise. On the front of this coffret are three hinged reinforcing bands; the outer two are fitted with hasps, while the central band both covers the keyhole and provides an attachment for a padlock. The internal locking mechanism, activated by a turn of the key, sends a metal bar through the iron hasps of the side bands.

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