Ivory Plaque with Enthroned Mother of God ("The Stroganoff Ivory")
The Mother of God is seated on a lavishly carved, high-backed throne. Two angels hover above, drawing attention to the Christ child poised in her lap. Representations of the enthroned Virgin and Child have a long tradition in Byzantine art, stretching back as far as the 6th century. With one hand raised in blessing, the other holding a scroll, Christ is portrayed here as an emotionless and supernatural child, visualizing for the pious beholder the mystery of his incarnation.
Details
- Palette
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- Medium
- ivory
- Dimensions
- overall: height 0.253 m, width 0.172 m, depth 0.018 m
- Department
- Medieval Art
- Holding institution
- Cleveland Museum of Art
- Image provider
- cleveland-museum-of-art
- License
- CC0-1.0
- Credit
- Gift of J. H. Wade
Art Genome Taxonomy
10 tags
Subject Matter
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Madonna and Child Both · 99%
The central figure visibly holds Christ on her lap, matching the catalog's identification of the Mother of God with the Christ child.
Styles and Movements
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Medieval Art Metadata · 99%
The Cleveland Museum of Art classifies the object as Medieval Art and dates it to 950–1025.
Visual Qualities
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Highly Ornamented Visual · 98%
Floral roundels, beaded borders, geometric bands, patterned supports, columns, capitals, and elaborate throne details make the surface highly ornamented.
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Symmetrical Visual · 97%
The central enthroned figure establishes a vertical axis, with paired angels and closely balanced architectural elements on either side.
Medium and Techniques
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Relief Visual · 99%
The figures, throne, columns, ornament, and inscription are raised and recessed through carving within a shallow rectangular plaque.
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Carving Both · 98%
The museum describes the object as lavishly carved, and the image shows extensive fine carving in the figures, drapery, throne, architectural supports, and base.
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Frontal Perspective Visual · 92%
The principal figures face outward and the throne is presented in a predominantly direct, frontal arrangement.
Materials
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Ivory Metadata · 99%
The museum identifies the classification and medium as ivory.
Cultural and Religious Styles
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Byzantine Art Both · 99%
The catalog identifies the place of origin as Byzantium, Constantinople, and describes an enthroned Virgin and Child; the image shows the formal frontal composition associated with Byzantine devotional art.
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Christian Art and Architecture Both · 99%
The catalog identifies the Mother of God, Christ, angels, blessing gesture, and scroll, all of which are represented in the carved relief.
Source & rights
Unknown artist. Ivory Plaque with Enthroned Mother of God ("The Stroganoff Ivory"). Cleveland Museum of Art.