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Part of: Curios for Noel Consideration (46 resources )
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Curios for Noel Consideration

Copyright
All Rights Reserved
Created by
Julia Laplaca
Last Updated
May 25, 2022 1:35 p.m.

46 Items in this Learning Collection
Deep bowl with vegetal and calligraphic designs
The vibrant coloring of this deep bowl consists dark brown, muddy brown, yellow-green and ivory. The design is organized around an inscription which appears above the base far down on the side. Above the inscription running horizontally is a separate enclosed design which looks like arcaded doorways with a string with a ball on it cutting each arcade in half for a total of seven. Opposite this is a series of four and one-half arcades in a vertical direction. Between these two areas there is a design repeated on opposite sides of the bowl with floral circular motifs on each side of a large, abstracted pear-shape form. The circles are brown and yellow-green and the pear form is orange and brown. Beneath each circle is a 'base' narrowing towards the center and directing the eye to the base. The base is covered with a shield-like design of orange and brown. The ivory background is not filled in but certain lines have been incised to add greater interest.  <br />  
Collection Object
Prayer Book of Service for the Dead, manuscript page

Collection Object
Lamp

Collection Object
Libyan Sibyl, a leaf from an early printed book

Collection Object
Star-shaped tile with molded floral design
This star-shaped ceramic tile is decorated with floral patterns and shapes. This kind of tile seems to be very popular in the 15th and 16th centuries of the Iranian Islamic world. The relief decoration is moulded and unglazed while the ground is glazed in blues with black underglaze and covered with a clear overglaze. 
Collection Object
Tintern Abbey
A large, Gothic ruin dominates the scene. The west portal of a large church stands with full light, from the left, illuminating its portal. Along its second story ivy grows across the facade while trees cluster in the L-shaped angle toward the right and other vegetation is evident along the roofline of the structure. Several women enter through the main doorway of the building. A stone wall encircles the structure and two houses occupy the land immediately to the left of the church ruin. In the foreground a lane leads past the church with a man leading a black horse and a running hound in the right foreground, and a figure with its back to the viewer is visible at the left foreground. Behind the scene, dark, wind-swept clouds indicate a recent storm that has now passed, allowing golden light to suffuse the landscape.
Collection Object
Wolgund Sends a Message to Hugdieterich

Collection Object
Equestrian Statuette of Marcus Aurelius

Collection Object
The Virgin Mary

Collection Object
Head of Dionysus (or Apollo)

Collection Object
Head of Polydeukion (favorite pupil of Herodes Atticus)

Collection Object
Seated figure with tripartite crown
The moulded head of the terracotta figurine represents a royal personnage. He wears a three-lobed crown, spherical earrings, and a necklace. He is seated with his legs bent from the hips at right angles to the upper part of the body. The legs are crossed and thus form a circular base which allows the essentially two-dimensional figure to remain erect. The assembling of the limbs was apparently done after the figurine had been cast.
Collection Object
Mourning Virgin from Crucifixion group
This standing figure of the Virgin turns slightly toward the left with her head bowed and hands clasped before her in a restrained expression of grief. Her robe is gilded, which contributes a regal note to this somber figure.
Collection Object
Standing Christ
This figure of Christ wears a volumnious mantle and strides forcefully forward with his left leg. His hands, now broken off, once held either a cross-staff or a globe while he made of gesture of blessing with the other. His robe appears to have originally been gilded and then painted over with red to impart his garment with a lustrous quality.
Collection Object
Fragment from a Choir Stall
Carved animal figure on pedestal.
Collection Object
Carved Wood Panel

Collection Object
Pair of turned oak columns

Collection Object
Venus Marina

Collection Object
Crucifixion
Wooden scultpure of the body of Jesus Christ as it would appear crucified on a cross.
Collection Object
Study for a Chapel in Vienna
This study depicts a rectangular chapel with the side walls bent outward at an angle in order to provide a clearer view of the decoration. The chapel design centers upon a sarcophagus placed beneath a painted altarpiece of the Virgin and Child, which are both set within a semicircular architectural projection that extends dynamically from the wall. On the left the pair of angels that support a large oval-shaped painting reach vigorously outward, their wings overlapping the pilasters. On the right appears another sarcophagus surmounted by a pair of putti. Leaning out from the oval niche above the sarcophagus is a female half-figure—probably a portrait of the deceased—making a gesture of devotion toward the altar.
Collection Object
Bust of a Satyr
This small bust-length figure represents a mustached satyr turning his head toward his left. He wears an animal skin tied at his right shoulder over his bare chest. The liquid character of the cast bronze admirably captures the rippling muscles of the satyr's chest and the flowing curls of his hair and the animal pelt.
Collection Object
The Mourning Virgin

Collection Object
Panel

Collection Object
Panel

Collection Object
The Annunciation
In this painting, rendered entirely in gray monochrome, a technique known as grisaille, an angel descends on a bank of clouds toward a woman who kneels on the floor before a prie-dieu. She looks downward and turns away from the angel in a gesture of humility, and her head is illuminated by the light from a luminescent dove in the cloud above her. A bearded man looks down from the summit of the cloud, nearly engulfed in light, and a number of cherubim appear throughout the scene. The robust forms and grounded materiality of the woman's body and the furniture around her give way to light-filled clouds and diffused forms in the upper part of the canvas as the heavenly and worldly realms come together.
Collection Object
Angel Appearing to Hagar in the Wilderness

Collection Object
Christ on the Mount of Olives
This is a large semi-circular painting (lunette) with several figures arranged to accomodate the shape of the canvas. It is night time, so the scene is enveloped in darkness. In the top center area, there is an angel, surrounded by bright light, who holds out a golden goblet toward a man kneeling before him. This man, with arms outstretched, looks up toward the goblet and the face of the angel. His face is illuminated by the light. He is wearing a bright red robe and a dark blue cloak. In the left foreground, there are three men who are sleeping. Two are sitting on the ground and the third, an elderly man with white hair, is reclining in front of them. They have dark blue and brown cloaks wrapped around them. On the lower right, shown in the far distance, is a group of people walking toward the kneeling figure. This scene is painted in dark tones of brown, green, blue and gray, except for the red robe of the kneeling man and areas on faces, arms and legs which are highlighted by a bright light.
Collection Object
Choir Book Page

Collection Object
Leaf from a Bible (Glossary of Hebrew Names)

Collection Object
Leaf from a Gradual
A double-sided illuminated manuscript leaf with one column of seven staffs&nbsp;containing brown ink notes and Latin blackletter script. Some red rubrication is&nbsp;present. A large illuminated initial &ldquo;S&rdquo; is found on the verso, decorated with vegetal&nbsp;and floral forms in blue, green, scarlet, and gold leaf.
Collection Object
Leaf from a Book of Hours
This manuscript page contains a column of Latin text surrounded by generous margins. A pair of slender flowers with small green leaves run the length of the text along the left margin. Three decorated initials appear on the left edge of the text block. Each initial is painted gold on a pink and blue ground with white scrollwork and enclosed within a frame. Two rectangular line-fillers, colored pink and blue with white scrollwork, appear in the right half of the text column.
Collection Object
Leaf from a Book of Hours

Collection Object
Uniface Alexander VII

Collection Object
Francesco Carrara I (obverse); Angel with Lamb (?) (reverse)

Collection Object
Pope Paul IV (obverse), Christ Giving the Keys to Peter (reverse)

Collection Object
Pope Clement IX (obverse), and the Ponte Sant' Angelo (reverse)
The front (obverse) of the medal presents a profile portrait of a bearded man wearing a cassock, cap, and stole. The reverse depicts a bridge spanning a river. A winged figure flies above the bridge blowing a trumpet, while a nude male figure reclines below the bridge in the foreground and a wolf nurses at his feet. Inscriptions run around both the border edge of both sides of the medal.
Collection Object
Basin

Collection Object
Leaf from a Psalter
Double-sided illuminated manuscript leaf with two blocks of Latin blackletter script&nbsp;framed by floriated borders of blue, red, and gold leaf featuring interlace and an&nbsp;illuminated initial.
Collection Object
Illuminated Leaf
Illuminated manuscript page with Arabic calligraphy that is framed by floriated,<br /> cloud-band borders, stylized cartouches, and marginal vignettes.
Collection Object
Decorative Ewer with Satyrs
The ewer in this drawing is decorated with cavorting satyrs, lions, and grotesque masks.
Collection Object
Leaf from a Book of Hours

Collection Object
Cutting from a Secular Manuscript with Perceval Attacked by Twenty Knights

Collection Object
Leaf from a Bible with Daniel in the lions' den aided by the prophet Habakuk
Two columns of Latin text fill this page taken from a bible manuscript. A painting in a gold rectangular frame is located in the lower right column. An angel descends from a blue semicircular disc in the upper right corner of the painting and grasps a larger figure by the hair with both hands. This second figure holds a jug in his left hand and a plate with bread in his right. A third figure, dressed in a white robe, reaches up toward this larger figure from an enclosure below. He appears against a black background and four gray animal heads overlap his torso.
Collection Object
Sheepskin Manuscript Page I

Collection Object
Table

Collection Object
Hanging altar lamps

Collection Object
46 Items in this Learning Collection
Deep bowl with vegetal and calligraphic designs
The vibrant coloring of this deep bowl consists dark brown, muddy brown, yellow-green and ivory. The design is organized around an inscription which appears above the base far down on the side. Above the inscription running horizontally is a separate enclosed design which looks like arcaded doorways with a string with a ball on it cutting each arcade in half for a total of seven. Opposite this is a series of four and one-half arcades in a vertical direction. Between these two areas there is a design repeated on opposite sides of the bowl with floral circular motifs on each side of a large, abstracted pear-shape form. The circles are brown and yellow-green and the pear form is orange and brown. Beneath each circle is a 'base' narrowing towards the center and directing the eye to the base. The base is covered with a shield-like design of orange and brown. The ivory background is not filled in but certain lines have been incised to add greater interest.  <br />  
Collection Object
Prayer Book of Service for the Dead, manuscript page

Collection Object
Lamp

Collection Object
Libyan Sibyl, a leaf from an early printed book

Collection Object
Star-shaped tile with molded floral design
This star-shaped ceramic tile is decorated with floral patterns and shapes. This kind of tile seems to be very popular in the 15th and 16th centuries of the Iranian Islamic world. The relief decoration is moulded and unglazed while the ground is glazed in blues with black underglaze and covered with a clear overglaze. 
Collection Object
Tintern Abbey
A large, Gothic ruin dominates the scene. The west portal of a large church stands with full light, from the left, illuminating its portal. Along its second story ivy grows across the facade while trees cluster in the L-shaped angle toward the right and other vegetation is evident along the roofline of the structure. Several women enter through the main doorway of the building. A stone wall encircles the structure and two houses occupy the land immediately to the left of the church ruin. In the foreground a lane leads past the church with a man leading a black horse and a running hound in the right foreground, and a figure with its back to the viewer is visible at the left foreground. Behind the scene, dark, wind-swept clouds indicate a recent storm that has now passed, allowing golden light to suffuse the landscape.
Collection Object
Wolgund Sends a Message to Hugdieterich

Collection Object
Equestrian Statuette of Marcus Aurelius

Collection Object
The Virgin Mary

Collection Object
Head of Dionysus (or Apollo)

Collection Object
Head of Polydeukion (favorite pupil of Herodes Atticus)

Collection Object
Seated figure with tripartite crown
The moulded head of the terracotta figurine represents a royal personnage. He wears a three-lobed crown, spherical earrings, and a necklace. He is seated with his legs bent from the hips at right angles to the upper part of the body. The legs are crossed and thus form a circular base which allows the essentially two-dimensional figure to remain erect. The assembling of the limbs was apparently done after the figurine had been cast.
Collection Object
Mourning Virgin from Crucifixion group
This standing figure of the Virgin turns slightly toward the left with her head bowed and hands clasped before her in a restrained expression of grief. Her robe is gilded, which contributes a regal note to this somber figure.
Collection Object
Standing Christ
This figure of Christ wears a volumnious mantle and strides forcefully forward with his left leg. His hands, now broken off, once held either a cross-staff or a globe while he made of gesture of blessing with the other. His robe appears to have originally been gilded and then painted over with red to impart his garment with a lustrous quality.
Collection Object
Fragment from a Choir Stall
Carved animal figure on pedestal.
Collection Object
Carved Wood Panel

Collection Object
Pair of turned oak columns

Collection Object
Venus Marina

Collection Object
Crucifixion
Wooden scultpure of the body of Jesus Christ as it would appear crucified on a cross.
Collection Object
Study for a Chapel in Vienna
This study depicts a rectangular chapel with the side walls bent outward at an angle in order to provide a clearer view of the decoration. The chapel design centers upon a sarcophagus placed beneath a painted altarpiece of the Virgin and Child, which are both set within a semicircular architectural projection that extends dynamically from the wall. On the left the pair of angels that support a large oval-shaped painting reach vigorously outward, their wings overlapping the pilasters. On the right appears another sarcophagus surmounted by a pair of putti. Leaning out from the oval niche above the sarcophagus is a female half-figure—probably a portrait of the deceased—making a gesture of devotion toward the altar.
Collection Object
Bust of a Satyr
This small bust-length figure represents a mustached satyr turning his head toward his left. He wears an animal skin tied at his right shoulder over his bare chest. The liquid character of the cast bronze admirably captures the rippling muscles of the satyr's chest and the flowing curls of his hair and the animal pelt.
Collection Object
The Mourning Virgin

Collection Object
Panel

Collection Object
Panel

Collection Object
The Annunciation
In this painting, rendered entirely in gray monochrome, a technique known as grisaille, an angel descends on a bank of clouds toward a woman who kneels on the floor before a prie-dieu. She looks downward and turns away from the angel in a gesture of humility, and her head is illuminated by the light from a luminescent dove in the cloud above her. A bearded man looks down from the summit of the cloud, nearly engulfed in light, and a number of cherubim appear throughout the scene. The robust forms and grounded materiality of the woman's body and the furniture around her give way to light-filled clouds and diffused forms in the upper part of the canvas as the heavenly and worldly realms come together.
Collection Object
Angel Appearing to Hagar in the Wilderness

Collection Object
Christ on the Mount of Olives
This is a large semi-circular painting (lunette) with several figures arranged to accomodate the shape of the canvas. It is night time, so the scene is enveloped in darkness. In the top center area, there is an angel, surrounded by bright light, who holds out a golden goblet toward a man kneeling before him. This man, with arms outstretched, looks up toward the goblet and the face of the angel. His face is illuminated by the light. He is wearing a bright red robe and a dark blue cloak. In the left foreground, there are three men who are sleeping. Two are sitting on the ground and the third, an elderly man with white hair, is reclining in front of them. They have dark blue and brown cloaks wrapped around them. On the lower right, shown in the far distance, is a group of people walking toward the kneeling figure. This scene is painted in dark tones of brown, green, blue and gray, except for the red robe of the kneeling man and areas on faces, arms and legs which are highlighted by a bright light.
Collection Object
Choir Book Page

Collection Object
Leaf from a Bible (Glossary of Hebrew Names)

Collection Object
Leaf from a Gradual
A double-sided illuminated manuscript leaf with one column of seven staffs&nbsp;containing brown ink notes and Latin blackletter script. Some red rubrication is&nbsp;present. A large illuminated initial &ldquo;S&rdquo; is found on the verso, decorated with vegetal&nbsp;and floral forms in blue, green, scarlet, and gold leaf.
Collection Object
Leaf from a Book of Hours
This manuscript page contains a column of Latin text surrounded by generous margins. A pair of slender flowers with small green leaves run the length of the text along the left margin. Three decorated initials appear on the left edge of the text block. Each initial is painted gold on a pink and blue ground with white scrollwork and enclosed within a frame. Two rectangular line-fillers, colored pink and blue with white scrollwork, appear in the right half of the text column.
Collection Object
Leaf from a Book of Hours

Collection Object
Uniface Alexander VII

Collection Object
Francesco Carrara I (obverse); Angel with Lamb (?) (reverse)

Collection Object
Pope Paul IV (obverse), Christ Giving the Keys to Peter (reverse)

Collection Object
Pope Clement IX (obverse), and the Ponte Sant' Angelo (reverse)
The front (obverse) of the medal presents a profile portrait of a bearded man wearing a cassock, cap, and stole. The reverse depicts a bridge spanning a river. A winged figure flies above the bridge blowing a trumpet, while a nude male figure reclines below the bridge in the foreground and a wolf nurses at his feet. Inscriptions run around both the border edge of both sides of the medal.
Collection Object
Basin

Collection Object
Leaf from a Psalter
Double-sided illuminated manuscript leaf with two blocks of Latin blackletter script&nbsp;framed by floriated borders of blue, red, and gold leaf featuring interlace and an&nbsp;illuminated initial.
Collection Object
Illuminated Leaf
Illuminated manuscript page with Arabic calligraphy that is framed by floriated,<br /> cloud-band borders, stylized cartouches, and marginal vignettes.
Collection Object
Decorative Ewer with Satyrs
The ewer in this drawing is decorated with cavorting satyrs, lions, and grotesque masks.
Collection Object
Leaf from a Book of Hours

Collection Object
Cutting from a Secular Manuscript with Perceval Attacked by Twenty Knights

Collection Object
Leaf from a Bible with Daniel in the lions' den aided by the prophet Habakuk
Two columns of Latin text fill this page taken from a bible manuscript. A painting in a gold rectangular frame is located in the lower right column. An angel descends from a blue semicircular disc in the upper right corner of the painting and grasps a larger figure by the hair with both hands. This second figure holds a jug in his left hand and a plate with bread in his right. A third figure, dressed in a white robe, reaches up toward this larger figure from an enclosure below. He appears against a black background and four gray animal heads overlap his torso.
Collection Object
Sheepskin Manuscript Page I

Collection Object
Table

Collection Object
Hanging altar lamps

Collection Object

Copyright
All Rights Reserved ()

Leaf from a Bible with Daniel in the lions' den aided by the prophet Habakuk

Accession Number
1993/2.10

Title
Leaf from a Bible with Daniel in the lions' den aided by the prophet Habakuk

Artist(s)
French

Artist Nationality
French (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
circa 1290

Medium & Support
ink, tempera and gold on parchment

Dimensions
7 15/16 in x 5 11/16 in (20.2 cm x 14.4 cm);19 5/16 in x 14 5/16 in (49.05 cm x 36.35 cm);7 15/16 in x 5 11/16 in (20.2 cm x 14.4 cm)

Credit Line
Anonymous Gift in memory of Mrs. John Alexander

Label copy
As the sacred text of the Christian faith, the Bible was used continuously throughout the Middle Ages. By the 12th century, every monastery could be expected to own a Bible, typically produced in the monastic scriptorium, or scribal workshop, though often decorated by professional, lay artists working in the monastery. By the 13th century, professional scribes working in urban workshops, produced Bibles for preachers, scholars, and university students.
The demand for smaller and more affordable Bibles, such as this one, led to economical and ingenious use of the page. In this densely inscribed leaf, the rubrics (section headings so called because they are in red ink), are neatly and tightly integrated into the main text. At the bottom of the second column of text, the historiated initial "I" (which tells a story, or "history") shows the prophet Habakkuk—with an angel lifting him by the hair of his head—bringing food and drink to Daniel in the lions’ den.
Exhibition label text, collections gallery, by Curator Annette Dixon, April 2001
The demand for smaller and more affordable Bibles led to ingenious and economical use of teh page, as in rubrics (section headings) which are neatly integrated into the main text. The beginning of the Book of Daniel is marked by a historiated initial "I" showing Habakkuk, assisted by an angel, bringing food and drink to Daniel in the lions' den.

Subject matter
This manuscript page, taken from a bible, contains the prologue and opening text of the Book of Daniel. A diminutive rectangular painting marks the beginning of the book itself in the lower right column of text. Daniel, clothed in a white robe, appears at the bottom of this image within a dark enclosure surrounded by four lions. Above the enclosure stands the larger figure of the prophet Habakuk holding a jug of water and a plate of bread. With the help of an angel who suspends him by his hair, Habakuk miraculously delivers the sustaining food to Daniel.

Physical Description
Two columns of Latin text fill this page taken from a bible manuscript. A painting in a gold rectangular frame is located in the lower right column. An angel descends from a blue semicircular disc in the upper right corner of the painting and grasps a larger figure by the hair with both hands. This second figure holds a jug in his left hand and a plate with bread in his right. A third figure, dressed in a white robe, reaches up toward this larger figure from an enclosure below. He appears against a black background and four gray animal heads overlap his torso.

Primary Object Classification
Bound Work

Primary Object Type
manuscript

Additional Object Classification(s)
Painting

Collection Area
Western

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
Bibles
Christianity
angels (spirits)
bread
jugs (vessels)
manuscripts (document genre)

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