Saint Francis of Assisi

Saint Francis of Assisi

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

In a work on this scale the sculptor had to incorporate the curve of the tusk into the composition. Here, the main figure is carved in one piece, but the tusk was not broad enough to carve the arms as well so they were attached separately; time has exposed the joins. The ivory surrounding the hollow lower portion of the figure is quite thin where the elephant's dental nerve once ran, and parts of the fragile surface have broken off. The Caucasian features of this Saint Francis have made its attribution uncertain, but the quality of the ivory suggests an Indian or Sri Lankan origin.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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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.