Fragment of a Figure

Fragment of a Figure

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

With a water flask slung over its shoulder, this figure may represent Joseph on the Flight into Egypt or the apostle James the Great, patron saint of pilgrims. In this period, niches with figures of pilgrims ornamented the pilgrimage routes. The extensive use of the drill and the swirling drapery pattern are hallmarks of sculpture produced in Lucca around 1200.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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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.