Bust of an Apostle

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Although this bust has lost its once-splendid gilding, its handsome sculptural quality is still apparent. It was one of a group of the twelve apostles created for the shrine of Saint Walburg in Groningen, the Netherlands. Situated near the North Sea, the city was a prosperous trade center. This group was among a large hoard of fragments found in 1911. It included busts of apostles and reliefs of Christ in Majesty and of the Adoration of the Magi. These are now in the museum in Groningen.

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