Devotion and Splendor: Medieval Art at the Art Institute of Chicago (Museum Studies)

This striking publication features important works of medieval art ranging from the early Christian era to the later Middle Ages, from both Western Europe and Byzantium. An introductory essay by Christina Nielsen focuses on the Art Institute's history of notable medieval acquisitions, including items from the famous Guelph Treasure, which captivated American audiences in the 1930s.Written by a team of Art Institute curators, the catalogue section combines full-color reproductions and short entries on diverse works including drawings, glassware, carved ivories, illuminated manuscripts, metalwork, paintings, prints, textiles, and sculpture. Among the many highlights are a twelfth-century silver reliquary casket from Spain depicting the martyrdom of Saint Adrian; an early thirteenth-century head of an apostle from the cathedral of Notre-Dame, Paris; a fourteenth-century ivory triptych with scenes from the Life of Christ carved by the Berlin Master; Jacques de Baerze’s Corpus of Christ, commissioned by the Duke of Burgundy around 1390; and a fifteenth-century book of hours, complete with twelve full-page miniatures, painted by the Ghent Privileges Master.