Madonna and Child

Jürgen Kriebel

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Kriebel, one of the few North German sculptors, carved this plaque from a single piece of ivory. He took advantage of the material’s softness to create a background of clouded sky. Paper thin and translucent, the ivory allows light to pass through and illuminate the Madonna’s downturned head as she gazes adoringly at her sleeping child’s peaceful face. The pair’s smooth skin is enhanced by the surrounding folds of layered drapery of the Madonna’s clothing and of the blankets cradling the infant Christ.

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