Plaque with the Ascension

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Ascension of Christ, that moment forty days after his resurrection when he ascended bodily into heaven, was a favored theme among carvers of ivory plaques in the early Middle Ages. The subject seemed to lend itself to an array of visual interpretations: though artists repeatedly turned to the subject, they never settled on rote depictions. Christ might leap to heaven with enthusiasm, step in a more purposeful way, or even fly. The amazed onlookers vary in number and display a variety of reactions. In this instance, Christ seems to float upward, looking and pointing toward the hand of God who reaches out, unusually, with a wreath of victory. Christ is flanked by two astounded apostles, while lively depictions of the personifications of Earth and Ocean appear below him, allusions to the physical world he leaves behind.

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