The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 23, 2025

Christ Gathering Roses, Centerpiece of an Altar Cloth(?)

early to mid-1400s

Germany

Linen: plain weave; silk: embroidery (split stitch)
Overall: 85.1 x 92.1 cm (33 1/2 x 36 1/4 in.)
Gift of Elizabeth and Martin David in memory of the Heidenhain family 2021.238
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

The Christ child has put aside his globe to devote himself entirely to picking flowers.

Description

The altar cloth was probably made for a southern German convent in the 15th century. While the focus on the Christ child is typical for female spirituality in the late Middle Ages, there are no comparative examples for the Christ child picking flowers. The detailed depiction of plants and flowers is of unusual quality for the embroideries of this period.
  • Before 1930s
    Haidenhain Family, Tübingen, Germany, through inheritance to Elizabeth and Martin David
    -2020
    Elizabeth and Martin David, Oberlin, OH, gifted to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2020-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Lutz, Gerhard. “Christ Child.“ In Riemenschneider and Late Medieval Alabaster, edited by Aumaine Rose Smith, 142-145. Cleveland, Lewes: The Cleveland Museum of Art; D Giles Limited, 2023. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 144-145, fig. 64a,b
  • Liturgical Textiles from Late Medieval Germany. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 11, 2023-August 4, 2024).
  • {{cite web|title=Christ Gathering Roses, Centerpiece of an Altar Cloth(?)|url=false|author=|year=early to mid-1400s|access-date=23 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2021.238