The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 19, 2024

Dragon's Head

Dragon's Head

1100–1150

Description

This exceedingly rare medieval carving, which recalls the more monumental carvings on Viking ship prows, may have been a finial for a diagonal member of a folding chair. The character of the head, the stylized acanthus leaves, and the foliage-spouting mask on the neck are characteristic of north European and Anglo-Norman Romanesque styles.
  • Thomas P. Miller, Raleigh, North Carolina.
  • Gertsman, Elina and Barbara H. Rosenwein. The Middle Ages in 50 Objects. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018. Mentioned: p. 68-71; Reproduced: p. 69
  • {{cite web|title=Dragon's Head|url=false|author=|year=1100–1150|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1975.258