The Cloisters Cross: Its Art and Meaning
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The twelfth-century English Cloisters Cross, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, is one of only three complete medieval ivory crosses extant. This comprehensive study examines the history of the cross, its complex and ornate iconography, its function, liturgical context and intellectual setting. The authors also examine the cross's possible theological and artistic connections with the abbey of Bury St. Edmunds, and its place in English Romanesque art.Library JournalAcquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1960, the Cloisters Cross has been the focus of much speculation and study. Parker (art history, Fordham Univ.), editor of The Cloisters: Studies in Honor of the 50th Anniversary (LJ 9/1/92), has collaborated here with Little, curator of medieval art at the museum, to produce an in-depth examination of this carved ivory cross. The authors place the cross in context with other religious art of the l1th and 12th centuries while exploring theological and cultural influences. To their credit, they have provided an extremely detailed dissection of the cross, closely scrutinizing all carvings and inscriptions and comparing it with art of the same era, thus giving the book some breadth. A fascinating, albeit specialized, work. Recommended for medieval art collections or large academic libraries.-Karen Ellis, Baldwin Boettcher Lib., Humble, Tex.
Foreword7Authors' Preface9Ch. 1Introduction: The Cross and Its History13Ch. 2Word and Image: The Iconography of the Cross43Ch. 3The Function of the Cloisters Cross119Ch. 4The Liturgical Context149Ch. 5The Intellectual Setting175Ch. 6The Bury St. Edmunds Connection197Ch. 7Epilogue: The Place of the Cross in English Romanesque Art229Appendix I: The Inscriptions on the Cross241Appendix II: The Olso Corpus253Notes to the Text261Bibliographic Abbreviations300Selected Bibliography of the Cloisters Cross303List of Illustrations of the Cloisters Cross306List of Comparative Illustrations307General Index309Photograph Credits316
