Panel (part of a set)

Nicolas Castille

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The panels’ decorations, which include putti holding heraldic shields or strings of beads, floral scrolls, masks, and fabulous creatures, correspond to French adaptations of Italian motifs derived from prints and other sources. The portraits represent the donor, Georges d’Amboise (1460–1510), in his cardinal’s hat and cloak and Louis XII (1462–1515; ruled 1498–1515) surrounded by a wreath topped by a porcupine, a symbol of the monarch’s courage and ability to defend his kingdom. These panels and the ones displayed nearby are from the now-destroyed chapel of Cardinal d’Amboise’s château de Gaillon.

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