The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Ivory Pyx (Box)

500s

Byzantium

ivory
Diameter: 12.7 cm (5 in.); Overall: 8.5 cm (3 3/8 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1951.114
Location: 105 Byzantine

Description

Elaborately carved from a section of an elephant’s tusk, this ivory pyx (Greek for "box") depicts a number of New Testament scenes, namely the Annunciation, Christ’s entry into Jerusalem, Christ raising Lazarus, and Christ healing the blind man. It also depicts a Christian altar with chalices, possibly indicating the box’s use in a liturgical context.
  • the pyx was found in Lyons during the demolition of the Church of Saint-Étienne adjoining the Cathedral of Saint-Jean. Forgotten, hidden, it emerged as the choice object in a family collection in Lyons. According to W. M. Milliken, tradition says that to satisfy a family heritage it was eventually divided into three parts, roughly one third, which was in the collection of M. G. Chalandon (the piece bought in 1951 by the CMA), and the remaining two thirds which went into the Récamier collection, and then into the collection of Claudius Côte (purchased by the CMA in 1952).
  • Milliken, William M. “A Byzantine Ivory of the Early Christian Period.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 38, no. 10 (December 1951): 227–229. Mentioned: p. 227-229; Reproduced: Cover www.jstor.org
    Milliken, William M. “The Completed Ivory Pyxis.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 39, no. 4 (April 1952): 63–64. Mentioned: p. 63-64; Reproduced: Cover www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 64 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 37 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 37 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 38 archive.org
    Kateusz, Ally. "Women at the Altar of Jesus's Tomb in the Anastasis." Metropolitan Museum Journal 59 (2024): 8-25. Mentioned: p. 14, 15, 16; Reproduced: p. 14, fig. 8
  • When Angels Bent Near the Earth to Touch Their Harps of Gold: The Christmas Story. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 1, 1981-January 17, 1982).
    Art of the Late Antique. The Rose Art Museum, Waltham, MA (organizer) (December 17, 1968-February 16, 1969).
    Exhibition of Ancient Ivories (Mostra Degli Avori Antichi). Italian Ministry of Public Education, Roma, Italy (organizer) (August 1-October 31, 1956).
    35th Anniversary Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 20-September 30, 1951).
  • {{cite web|title=Ivory Pyx (Box)|url=false|author=|year=500s|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1951.114