Collection Online as of September 23, 2023

Miniature from a Manuscript of the Apocalypse: The War in Heaven

France, Lorraine, 13th century

Ink, tempera, and gold on vellum

Sheet: 12 x 14.2 cm (4 3/4 x 5 9/16 in.); Framed: 52.4 x 39.7 cm (20 5/8 x 15 5/8 in.); Matted: 48.9 x 36.2 cm (19 1/4 x 14 1/4 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 1983.73.2.b

Location

not on view

Description

The visionary text of St. John the Evangelist's Apocalypse, the final book of the New Testament, inspired these images of salvation, sin, and divine retribution. A large number of illustrated volumes of the Apocalypse appeared in Northern Europe, especially in England, after the year 1240--perhaps reflecting a fear of the world's end. These miniatures come from a manuscript produced in Lorraine, then artistically influenced by English models.

Provenance

Sotheby's, London sale, 25 April 1983, lot 50

Citations

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. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 180-185, no. 65

Exhibition history

The Cleveland Museum of Art (10/10/2004 - 10/02/2005); "Illuminated Manuscripts"

Bavarian Nationalmuseum, Munich (5/10/2007 - 9/16/2007), the J. Paul Getty Musuem, Los Angeles (10/30/2007 - 1/20/2008) and Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville, TN (2/13/2009 - 6/7/2009): "Sacred Gifts and Worldly Treasures: Medieval Masterworks from the Cleveland Museum of Art"

Illuminated Manuscripts. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (October 10, 2004-October 2, 2005).

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).