Crucifixion Group

Hans Wydytz I

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The carving of this animated Crucifixion scene closely relates to that on known works by the Upper Rhenish sculptor Hans Wydytz. This scene was probably the central tableau of a small private altarpiece or devotional shrine. A stylistically related work representing the Mount of Olives, now in Berlin, originally may have served as a wing or side panel. Wydytz, who worked in Freiburg im Breisgau, was particularly accomplished in small-scale wood sculpture. The densely populated composition, the dramatic integration of the groups of figures, and the variety of facial type and expression contribute to the compelling theatricality of the scene.

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