Triptych with the Passion of Christ

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This appears to be the only intact devotional triptych to survive that is decorated with mother-of-pearl plaques in openwork relief. By focusing on each scene, the owner would have been able to follow the narrative of the final moments leading up to the Crucifixion of Jesus. Curiously, the story begins in the second scene from the top at the left and proceeds clockwise. Above and below the central scene are symbols of the authors of the Gospels, and also images of Jesus and of Saint Michael slaying the dragon.

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