Seated Figure in the Cloisters, Sept. 2007

Seated Figure (Prophet or Apostle?)
Carrara marble and lead inlay
Italy, Tuscany (Lucca), about 1180-1200
Attributed to the Master of Santa Maria la Bianca

Accession # 47.101.19

The drapery of this seated prophet is characteristic of late-twelfth-century sculpture in Lucca, in particular the works of the Master of Santa Maria la Bianca. The architectonic function of the figure is uncertain, but it may originally have supported a public lectern and have been adapted to support a column or an arcade. Because of liturgical reforms, many medieval Italian pulpits were dismantled and their parts reused in other structures. The ropelike folds and ample use of drill work derive from the work of the Pisan sculptor Master Biduino but here are developed abstractly, emphasizing surface pattern.

Text from the Cloisters label.