Medieval Ivory Carvings 1200-1550

Description

The V&A's collection of ivory carvings from the period 1200 to 1550 is one of the most important in the world, and this is the first catalogue of it to be published since 1929. Together with the earlier volume, Medieval Ivory Carvings: Early Christian to Romanesque (V&A, 2010), the books make available over 400 pieces of the ivory carver's art, discussing in detail many of the most celebrated ivories of the Middle Ages. Included here are masterpieces from the most important centres of ivory carving in the Gothic era. Among them are the Salting Leaf and Soissons Diptych from thirteenthcentury France; the early-fourteenth-century Salting Diptych from England; Giovanni Pisano's Crucified Christ and the Aldobrandini Crozier from Italy; and the unique Wingfield-Digby Crozier from fourteenth-century Norway. Additionally, important groups of Virgin and Child statuettes, tabernacle polyptychs, diptychs, triptychs, writing tablets, croziers, mirror backs, caskets and the products of the Florentine and Venetian Embriachi workshops are catalogued. Appendices include a small group of post- Byzantine and Russian ivories and the results of radiocarbon-dating of selected works. Each entry provides a comprehensive physical and scholarly discussion that incorporates much new research; also included are carvings of dubious authenticity, which are discussed as fully as the genuine pieces. Beautifully illustrated with new colour photography, Medieval Ivory Carvings 1200 - 1550 is the authoritative guide to the V&A's collection and an accessible survey of the subject.

Paul Williamson is Keeper of Sculpture, Metalwork, Ceramics & Glass at the V&A. and has written and lectured extensively on medieval ivory carvings. His many books include Gothic Sculpture 1140 - 1300 (1995), The Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection: Medieval sculpture and works of art (1987), Northern Gothic Sculpture 1200 - 1450 (V&A, 1988) and Netherlandish Sculpture 1450 - 1550 (V&A, 2002). He was co-editor of the exhibition catalogue Gothic: Art for England 1400-1547 (V&A, 2003). His companion volume to the present catalogue, Medieval Ivory Carvings: Early Christian to Romanesque, was published in 2010. Glyn Davies is a Curator in the Department of Sculpture, Metalwork, Ceramics & Glass at the V&A. He has published and lectured widely on medieval and Renaissance art and was co-author of Medieval and Renaissance Art: People and Possessions (V&A, 2009). He was co-curator of the exhibition Depth of Field: the Place of Relief in the Time of Donatello (Leeds, 2004), and a contributing curator to the touring exhibition Medieval and Renaissance Treasures from the V&A (2007 - 9).