The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of July 6, 2022

Front Cover for a Gospel Book of French Cardinal Jean La Balou (1421-1491)

c. 1467–68

Italy, Florence, 15th century

Nielloed silver plaques within gilt-silver borders

Overall: 41.6 x 29.6 x 1.6 cm (16 3/8 x 11 5/8 x 5/8 in.)

Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1952.109

Location

117A Italian Renaissance

Description

Scenes from Christ’s infancy decorate this cover that once adorned the front of a gospel book. It is made up of a series of silver plaques held together by gilt-silver borders. The plaques are engraved, and the resulting fine lines or depressions have been filled with a silver sulfide alloy, lustrous black in color, in a technique called niello. It is one of the finest examples of this decorative technique for which Florence was renowned in the 15th century. This cover and its manuscript once belonged to the French cardinal, Jean La Balou, who was jailed in 1469. He presented his gospel book to Pope Paul II as a gift, perhaps in the hope of receiving his freedom. The gospel book, of which its two covers have survived (the back cover is in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts), remained in the papal apartments until the end of the 18th century, perhaps leaving when Napoleon’s troops held the Vatican.

Provenance
Jean La Balue. Pope Paul II. The Vatican. Manfrin, Venice. Barker, England (1862). Baron Anselm de Rothschild (1864). Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild, Vienna. Baron Alphonse de Rothschild. (Rosenberg & Stiebel, Inc., New York).
Citations
The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 230 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. 80 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. 80 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. 91 archive.org
Exhibition history

Cleveland, Ohio: The Cleveland Museum of Art; February 8 - April 12, 1998. "Vatican Treasures: Early Christian, Reniassance, and Baroque Art from the Papal Collections," exh. cat. no. 33, pp. 111.

Florence and the Arts: Five Centuries of Patronage (1971), no.44

Cleveland, Ohio: The Cleveland Museum of Art; August 25-October 27, 2002. "Battle of the Nudes: Pollaiuolo's Rennaissance Masterpiece". exh. cat. number 22, p. 23.

Prints 1400-1800. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (December 18, 1956-January 10, 1957); The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL (February 1-March 3, 1957); Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN (November 1-December 1, 1957).

Florence and the Arts: Five Centuries of Patronage. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 29, 1971-January 2, 1972).

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).

Master Goldsmiths of the Renaissance: Their Models and Designs. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 2, 1982-March 20, 1983).

Lutes, Lovers, and Lyres: Musical Imagery in the Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 6-June 11, 1989).

All That Glitters: Great Silver Vessels in Cleveland's Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 23, 1994-January 8, 1995).

Vatican Treasures: Early Christian, Renaissance, and Baroque Art from the Papal Collections. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (February 8-April 12, 1998).

Battle of the Nudes: Pollaiuolo's Renaissance Masterpiece. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (August 25-October 27, 2002).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1952.109