Half of a Prayer Bead with the Crucifixion

Date: early 16th century

Culture: Netherlandish

Medium: Boxwood

Dimensions: 2 1/4 × 2 11/16 × 1 5/16 in. (5.7 × 6.8 × 3.4 cm)
With finial: 2 1/4 × 2 11/16 × 1 7/16 in. (5.7 × 6.8 × 3.6 cm)

Classification: Sculpture-Miniature-Wood

Credit Line: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917

Accession Number: 17.190.473b

Description

To give the events depicted all the drama of a stage set, the artist who created this prayer bead worked in layers. Some members of the crowd gathered for the Crucifixion were carved on a separate piece of boxwood that was then secured in place behind the Cross. They appear against the backdrop of a town with stepped facades and towers that look Netherlandish, not at all like the biblical city of Jerusalem.

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