Door Pull in the Form of a Lion's Head

c. 1500

South German 16th Century

Associated Names
South German 16th Century

Sculptor

The sculpture is a door knocker featuring a lion's face. The lion's mane is intricate, flowing around the face symmetrically. Its eyes are closed, and it has a restful expression. The sculpture is made of dark metal, possibly bronze, with a weathered patina. The lion's mouth holds a round metal knocker ring of the same material. The design is mounted on a flat surface with visible attachment holes for a door.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    brass

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Janos Scholz

  • Dimensions

    diameter: 26.67 cm (10 1/2 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1993.42.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Graf von Wilczek, Kreuzenstein, Austria. (E. and A. Silberman Galleries, Inc., New York), by 1940; sold to Janos Scholz [d. 1993], by 1968; bequest 1993 to NGA.[1]
[1] Provenance from curator's acquisition proposal.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1940

  • Arts of the Middle Ages: A Loan Exhibition, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1940, 83, no. 295, as Lion's Mask by Italian 14th Century (exh. cat. by Georg Swarzenski).

1945

  • An Exhibition of Medieval Art, Indiana University, Bloomington, 1945.

1948

  • Medieval Art Taft Museum, Cincinnati, 1948-1949.

1969

  • Medieval Art from Private Collections: A Special Exhibition at the Cloisters, The Cloisters, New York, 1968-1969, no. 111, as Door pull by Austrian XV Century (cat. by Carmen Gómez-Moreno).

Bibliography

1981

  • Mende, Ursula. Die Türzieher des Mittelalters. Berlin, 1981: 118-120, 176, 185, 293-294, cat. 196, fig. 314.

Wikidata ID

Q63860685

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