Title

Carved ivory mirror back, c1310-1320, (1881). Creator: D Jones.

Caption

Carved ivory mirror back, c1310-1320, (1881). Etching of a mirror case made in Paris in the early 14th century. The Gothic design incorporates four crawling monsters or lions carved around the outer edge. The God of Love sits enthroned with crossed legs, holding a falcon, and an arrow which he points towards the heart of a kneeling young man. A lady, the subject of the young man's ardour, kneels at the right. Both the lovers raise their hands as if in prayer. More pairs of lovers fill the surrounding space. Such objects were given as gifts, and featured almost exclusively secular subjects. From "The South Kensington Museum", a book of engraved illustrations, with descriptions, of the works of art in the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum in London (formerly known as the South Kensington Museum). [Sampson Low, Marston, Searle and Rivington, London, 1881]

Date

1881

Credit line

Photo12/Heritage Images/The Print Collector

Reference

HRM19F37_013

Model release

NA

Property release

NA

License type

Rights managed

Available size

61,9Mb (2,9Mb) / 15,3in x 15,8in / 4578 x 4726 (300dpi)

Keywords

people love couple religious arts carving country French France religion book museum decorative medieval deity God Gothic carved location century literature ivory artefact concept lovers lover artifact goddess 19th century B W Middle Ages Victoria and Albert Museum 14th century Fourteenth Century nineteenth century The Print Collector Museum of Ornamental Art South Kensington Museum etching engraving Victoria & Albert Museum V&A mirror case mirror back V&A Museum Sampson Low The South Kensington Museum Marston D Jones Jones D Jones D. D. Jones