Cope

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The large pomegranate and parallel waving branch motifs make this a quintessential example of the opulent metallic and silk velvet textiles of the late 15th century. The scale and richness of the design give the cope a sense of grandeur appropriate for ecclesiastical purposes. The orphrey textile is also made from a classic Italian textile from the 17th century. Together, they illustrate how textiles used in ecclesiastical garments were kept and reused over time.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art