King Arthur

Colin Nouailher

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Three of the four heroes depicted in this case—Alexander the Great, King Arthur, and Godefroy de Bouillon—were based on woodcuts from the "Nine Heroes" series by the Dutch artist Jacob Cornelisz. van Oostsanen (before 1470–1533). Jan van Boendale’s poem Der Leken Spieghel (The Layman’s Mirror) introduced the heroes to the Netherlands shortly after Jacques de Longuyon’s romance appeared in France.

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