The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 20, 2024

Head of an Apostle

Head of an Apostle

c. 1325–1350
limestone, with traces of polychromy
Overall: 36.2 x 24.2 x 20.4 cm (14 1/4 x 9 1/2 x 8 1/16 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1960.170
Location: 106B Romanesque & Gothic Sculpture

Description

This detached head with deeply incised hair was likely that of a large, nearly life-sized figure of an apostle. It would have originally stood more than 6 feet in height and was gilded and painted. The head was formerly affixed to a halo carved from the same block of stone, and the head would have been slightly angled downward. Though its original context is unknown, the style is generally suggestive of sculptural programs in Toulouse during the early 1300s.
  • probably from the Chapelle de Rieux; (Mrs. Paul Mallon, New York).
  • Cleveland Museum of Art, “Recent Acquisition Press Release,” September 9, 1960, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 52 archive.org
    Wixom, William D. Treasures from Medieval France. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1967. Reproduced: p. 191; cat. no. V- 11 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 53 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 59 archive.org
  • Set in Stone: The Face in Medieval Sculpture. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (organizer) (September 26, 2006-February 19, 2007).
    Metropolitan Museum of Art (9/26/2006 - 2/19/2007): "Set in Stone: The Face in Medieval Sculpture"
    Treasures of Medieval France. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 16, 1966-January 29, 1967).
    Juxtapositions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (September 11-October 10, 1965).
    Year in Review - Nineteen Hundred Sixty. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 30, 1960-January 1, 1961).
  • {{cite web|title=Head of an Apostle|url=false|author=|year=c. 1325–1350|access-date=20 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1960.170