Main Menu

Bishop and Two Men

Skip to main content
Collections Menu

Bishop and Two Men

Place of OriginFrance, probably Burgundy
Dateabout 1400-1450
Dimensions25 × 16 3/4 × 6 1/2 in. (63.5 × 42.5 × 16.5 cm)
base: 2 1/4 × 16 3/4 × 6 1/2 in. (5.7 × 42.5 × 16.5 cm)
MediumLimestone
ClassificationSculpture
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number
1926.151
Not on View
Label TextThis sculptural group probably once formed part of a carved stone Christian altarpiece in the Burgundy region of France, perhaps a narrative of the life of a saint. Their gestures and interactions suggest the three men react to an unknown event taking place to their right. The figure on the left probably represents a bishop, as he wears a miter (ecclesiastical headgear) and carries an elaborate crosier (staff) with foliate decoration. He points to his right, while turning his head to converse with the man standing just behind him. The hooded individual appears to listen intently. The third figure in the group wears a heavy, full-length garment belted at the waist with puffy, bag-like sleeves characteristic of French fashion in the early 15th century. This man’s fur-trimmed cuffs, heavy neck chain, and money bag or alms purse hanging from his belt indicate his wealth. In addition, his twisted turban of crushed fabric distinguish him as a prosperous man probably from the East. Turbans were frequently employed in medieval Western European art as a sign of being foreign. Artists depicted figures wearing turbans to stereotype them as Muslims, Jews, or more generally as men from the East, or as individuals far removed in time, like from the Old Testament.Published References

Gillerman, Dorothy, ed., Gothic Sculpture in America, II: the Museums of the Midwest, Turnhout, Brepols, 2001, p. 381-383, no. 272, repr. p. 382.

Virgin and Child
School of Troyes
about 1500
Amphitrite
Michel Anguier
1654-1658
Saint Catherine
about 1500-1525
Reliquary in the Form of a Shrine
Byzantine Empire
6th-7th century
Bronze Head of a Black Woman
Constantin Brancusi
1926
Statue of Raramu and Ankhet
Old Kingdom, Dynasty 5, about 2400 BCE.
Jackal-Headed Shabti of Djehutymose
Dynasty 18
about 1450-1250 BCE, 18th-19th Dynasties
Statue of Raramu with Reliefs of His Son and Daughter
Old Kingdom, Dynasty 5, about 2400 BCE.
Fragment of a Tomb Relief with Male Head
New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, about 1350 BCE.
Fragment of a Relief of a Man from Maru Aten
Dynasty VIII (1570-1349 BCE), Amarna Period (1372-1353 BCE)

Membership

Become a TMA member today

Support TMA

Help support the TMA mission