The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Daniel in the Lion's Den

Daniel in the Lion's Den

c. 1125–50
Overall: 72.4 x 68.6 x 36.2 cm (28 1/2 x 27 x 14 1/4 in.)

Did You Know?

During the 12th century, churches used images to teach the faithful who were illiterate. While Daniel lived before Jesus, he is depicted holding a bible, alluding to the continuity between the Old and New Testaments.

Description

According to the Old Testament, Daniel was cast into a lion’s den as punishment for his belief in a single god, but he was miraculously delivered from harm on account of his faith. This story is related here, with Daniel flanked by lions and the angel sent by God to save him. Together with other decorated capitals, this imposing work of Romanesque sculpture once decorated the interior of the church of Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, a city in central France.
  • ?-1923
    (George Joseph Demotte, Paris, France and New York, NY, (1877-1923))
    1923-1957
    The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, MN
    1957-?
    (Victor D. Spark (1898-1991), New York, NY)
    ?-1962
    (Wolfgang Hofstätter, Vienna, Austria, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1962-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • "Demote's Gift of Gothic Sculpture," Minneapolis Institute of Art Bulletin 12 (March 1923). p. 18
    "Recent Gift of Early French Sculpture" Minneapolis Institute of Art Bulletin 12 (April 1923). pp. 26-28
    Green, Rosalie B. Daniel in the Lions' Den As an Example of Romanesque Typology. 1948. pp. 10-11, 63, no. 1.7.
    Lee, Sherman E. "Year in Review 1962." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 49, no. 9 (1962). no. 16 www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 46 archive.org
    Wixom, William D. Treasures from Medieval France. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1967. Mentioned: p. 66; reproduced: p. 69; fig. 12 archive.org
    W. Cahn, Gesta VII (1968). pp. 57-8
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 46 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. 51 archive.org
    Cahn, Walter, and Linda Seidel. Romanesque Sculpture in American Collections. New York: B. Franklin, 1978. no. B III 6, 155-156
    Wixom, William D. "Romanesque Sculpture in American Collections XVII," Gesta 18, no. 2 (1979). pp. 42-3
    Scheifele, Eleanor L.. “A French Romanesque Capital of Daniel in the Lions' Den.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 81, no. 3 (1994): 46-83. Reproduced and Mentioned: p. 46-83 www.jstor.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art, and Holger A. Klein. Sacred Gifts and Worldly Treasures: Medieval Masterworks from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. p. 154-5, no. 53.
    Eikelmann, Renate, Holger A. Klein, Stephen N. Fliegel, and Virginia Brilliant. The Cleveland Museum of Art: Meisterwerke von 300 bis 1550. München: Hirmer, 2007. cat. 58, p.196
  • Sacred Gifts and Worldly Treasures: Medieval Masterworks from the Cleveland Museum of Art. National Museum of Bavaria, Munich, Germany (May 10-September 16, 2007); J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, CA (October 30, 2007-January 20, 2008); Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN (February 13-June 7, 2009).
    Traditions and Revisions: Themes from the History of Sculpture. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 24-November 16, 1975).
    Treasures of Medieval France. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 16, 1966-January 29, 1967).
    Year in Review - 1962. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 24-November 25, 1962).
  • {{cite web|title=Daniel in the Lion's Den|url=false|author=|year=c. 1125–50|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1962.247