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This tsuba depicts a lotus pond with lotus flowers blossoming. The plants are depicted in gold and silver relief. On the back of the tsuba, a water bug skims the water between the lotus. The lotus is associated with Buddha and a state of purity. The construction of this tsuba is unusual. The front is made of a copper and gold alloy called shakudo, while the back is silver. They have been fused together, creating a wavy pattern along the tsuba's edge.
Japanese
at center: 2 11/16 x 2 7/16 x 1/8 in. (6.9 x 6.13 x 0.34 cm)
medium: silver, shakudo, gold, copper
style: Goto School
culture: Japanese
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Gudea was the political and religious governor of Lagash, one of the oldest Sumerian cities. More than 2,400 inscriptions mention his name and describe his 20-year campaign of city improvements, including new temples and irrigation canals. He was also a patron of the arts. Of the more than 30 statues of Gudea that survive, this is one of the finest examples. Many statues had their heads severed in an effort to destroy their ritual potency. This figure’s clasped hands create a distinctive, unnatural gesture that recurs frequently in both seated and standing versions; it may be an expression of devotion, humility, or piety.
Mesopotamia, Neo-Sumerian, Iraq, Girsu
dolerite
Overall: 126 x 55 x 36 cm (49 5/8 x 21 5/8 x 14 3/16 in.)
Did you know...
Gudea was an ancient Sumerian ruler who governed the city of Lagash late in the 3rd millennium BC. This statue is missing its head, but it is identified as Gudea, the clasped hand gesture typical for representations of him. Statues like this one would have been votive dedications offered to the gods by Gudea, demonstrating his devotion and piety.
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Incorporating the first three letters of the city name—ΑΘΕ—with then-iconic images of the patron goddess Athena and her owl, the Athenian tetradrachm was among the most widely traded and most recognizable coins of the ancient world. The olive leaves on Athena’s helmet and the small crescent moon behind the owl date this coin after the Persian Wars.
Greek, minted at Athens (Attica)
silver
Overall: 2.4 cm (15/16 in.)
Did you know...
The three letters on the reverse—ΑΘΕ—mark this as an Athenian coin.
Gift of Harold W. Parsons
As the official miniaturist for the French court of Louis XVIII, Jean-Baptiste Jacques Augustin produced portraits of many elite personalities. This miniature features Louis Stanislas Xavier, King Louis XVIII, in military costume. Taking the throne after the fall of Napoleon Bonaparte, Louis ruled from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief period in 1815 when Napoleon escaped from exile and regained power. This type of official portrait in miniature was useful as a diplomatic gift and was probably commissioned in large numbers. In fact, there are two versions of this miniature in the museum's collection, one in watercolor on ivory and this one in enamel. Here, Louis wears the blue ribbon and the silver star of the Order of the Holy Ghost, the star and the cross of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Saint Lazarus, and the cross of the Order of Saint Louis. The complicated process of enameling prevented many artists from mastering it well enough to realize such precise details as seen here. To create an enameled portrait, layers of colored metal oxides are fired at various temperatures, affording many opportunities for imperfection. Once an enamel has hardened, however, it is impervious to fading and flaking, making it an ideal material in which to record famous likenesses. Augustin was one of a handful of miniaturists in this period who worked in both enamel and ivory. Ashley Bartman (May 2014)
France, 19th century
enamel in a stamped gilt metal mount
Framed: 7.7 x 6.8 cm (3 1/16 x 2 11/16 in.); Sight: 4.9 x 3.9 cm (1 15/16 x 1 9/16 in.)
The Edward B. Greene Collection
A work of art and a triumph of technology, the long-tailed sallet was the characteristic German war helmet of the later Middle Ages. This is a superb example. The flowing profile of the neck defense and mirror-like polish of the hammered, tempered steel could deflect the most formidable blows. The visor could be raised to provide better vision and easier breathing. It would have been used with a chin guard. It weighs 4 lbs. 12 oz.
This sallet is from the Princes of Liechtenstein collection at Vaduz.
German
10 1/16 x 8 7/8 x 15 9/16 in. (25.5 x 22.5 x 39.6 cm)
medium: steel, iron
culture: German
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
John Henry Twachtman
American, Cincinnati, Ohio 1853–1902 Gloucester, Massachusetts
14 x 17 5/8 in. (35.6 x 44.8 cm)
medium: Pastel on pumice paper, mounted on cardboard
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY 25.107.2 1925
Rogers Fund, 1925
In this tsuba, a farming woman stands outside her hut. With the two baskets in her hands, she is probably winnowing grains. Blossoms appear in the pine tree behind her. On the reverse are magnolia flowers. This may be a reference to a folk story.
Japanese
2 5/16 x 1 15/16 x 1/8 in. (5.8 x 5 x 0.37 cm)
medium: shakudo, copper, gold
style: Mito School
culture: Japanese
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
One side of the bead bears a detailed carving of an owl, a hieroglyph that has the same sound value as the English "m." The other side shows a victorious pharaoh raising his weapon to dispatch a cowering enemy. The plaque was probably created in the 18th or 19th Dynasty.
Egyptian
H: 3/8 x W: 1/2 (0.99 x 1.33 x 0.04 cm)
Ring inner Diam: 9/16 in. (1.35 cm)
Outer Diam: 3/4 in. (1.84 cm)
medium: carved yellow jasper and gold
culture: Egyptian
dynasty: 18th-19th Dynasty
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
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