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Attributed to the workshop of
MASTER PIETRO DI ALBERIGO
Italian, active 1164-ca. 1210
Romanesque Portal Lioness with Cubs, ca. 1200
Pink marble. 33 1/2 x 15 1/2 x 26 in. (85 x 66 x 39 cm)
Robert Sterling Clark Foundation Fund. 73.11
The term "Romanesque" refers to a style that dominated art
and architecture in Europe from around 1000 to 1200; it was especially prevalent
in churches and ecclesiastical buildings. Romanesque sculpture, such as
this lioness, often served as both decorative and supporting elements in
architecture. The lioness, for example, supported a column on her back and
is thought to have come from one of the side entrances, called the Portal
of the Lions, of the Cathedral of San Pietro in Bologna. This doorway is
thought to have been carved by Master Pietro di Alberigo, who is also credited
with carving the figured capitals of columns in Santo Stefano in Bologna.
The Portal of the Lions was dismantled at some point in time, but an extremely
similar Lioness with Cubs still exists, now in the interior of the
Cathedral of San Pietro in Bologna.
This sculpture represents a seated lioness suckling two cubs between her
front legs. Parts of the two cubs are missing, as is the lower jaw of the
lioness. Several related pieces are now in the collection of the Cleveland
Museum of Art. |
