German and Netherlandish Paintings and Sculptures

On View: West Building, Main Floor

93 artworks on view.

We look slightly down onto a scene with people gathering in small groups in a cobblestone town square lined with rows of brick, wood, and stone buildings, many with stepped rooflines, in this horizontal painting. Singly or in pairs or trios, men, women, and children walk across the square, move goods around, or talk to merchants. All the people have light skin. Many of the men have mustaches and wear hats, and some carry swords. In tones of black, olive green, brick red, and plum purple, they wear hip-length cloaks over jackets, with white collars or ruffs and brass buttons, and knee-length breeches over yellow or black stockings. The women all wear long dresses in salmon pink, coral red, or golden yellow, with white collars or ruffs, and many wear black, ankle-length cloaks, some with hoods. Closest to us, a sumptuously dressed man and woman walk toward us while another similarly elegant couple walks away. Also facing away from us, to our left, a man wearing a large drum strapped around his waist raises one drumstick as he looks over his left shoulder. Nearby, a woman peers up out of a cellar door that opens on an angle to the street. More couples gather around a well across the square, and two women and a child talk to a third woman selling wares at a wooden table to our right. A pair of hooded priests or monks walk near a man blowing on a trumpet on horseback. The buildings are mostly shades of brick red and brown, and most have three or four stories with steeply pitched roofs. More people walk along side streets leading off the main square. One gap in the buildings across from us leads to a nickel-gray stone church with a pointed spire and square tower. A grassy, green hill rises steeply beyond the buildings to our right, leading down to a waterway that extends up and away into the distance. A few boats float in the water, which reflects the leaden-gray sky. Beyond the town square, a brown stone structure like a fortress with turret towers and crenellated walls looms along the ridge of the hill to our right. Tiny in scale, people on horseback and tending sheep dot the hillside below. The date “1590” is painted on the front of one of the buildings across from us while another date, “1597,” is painted on the end of a short wall near the lower left corner.

The Marketplace in Bergen op Zoom

Abel Grimmer

probably 1590 and 1597

Oil on panel Accession ID 1979.50.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M41

Coconut Cup with Silver Gilt Mounts

Netherlandish 16th Century

c. 1540

Coconut mounted in gilded silver Accession ID 2024.125.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M35

Four women, six men, and seven babies and children are gathered in three rows in this freestanding, painted wooden sculpture. The people all have pale, peachy skin with rosy cheeks, round faces with double chins, and thin, curving brows under high foreheads. They mostly wear gold robes over garments in gray, dark blue, plum purple, spruce green, or red. The four women sit hip-to-hip across the middle of the grouping. The two center women angle slightly in toward each other. To our left in that pair, Mary holds a nude baby Jesus on her lap. Mary’s long, loose, light brown hair is held back with a twisted band. The chubby Jesus on her lap reaches for the woman to our right, Saint Anne, who wears a voluminous wimple that covers her face, chin, neck, and shoulders. The women to either side of the central pair hold books, one open and one closed, and wear turban-like headdresses over long, wavy hair. Six children play together in two groups at the women’s feet. Some are nude and others wear dark or gold robes. A pair eat grapes to our left. The right-most child rides a hobby horse and holds onto the hand of the woman behind him with his tiny hand. In the top row, a man stands behind each of the four women except for Saint Anne, who has three men standing over her shoulder. Two of the six men are cleanshaven, and the others have beards. Some are bareheaded and others wear turbans or a cap. Their faces are lined, and they look down or off into the distance, most under furrowed brows. The gold on the robes is tooled to create patterns.

The Holy Kinship

South German 15th Century, Swabian 15th Century, Franconian 15th Century

c. 1480/1490

Polychromed wood Accession ID 2002.13.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M35

Putto with Arms of Jacques Coëne [reverse]

Bernard van Orley

c. 1513

Oil on panel Accession ID 1952.5.47.b

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M41

This painting depicts an older woman from the chest up, looking toward us. She has a fair complexion, with wrinkles on her forehead, deep-set brown eyes, and thin, pink lips. She is wearing a white cap and a black garment with a white ruffled collar. The background is a mottled, muted brown. There is a small amount of text in the top left and right corners.

Portrait of a Woman Aged Sixty-Eight

Maarten de Vos

1569

Oil on panel Accession ID 2015.156.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M35

The Raising of Tabitha

Netherlandish 15th Century

c. 1460

Tapestry: undyed wool warp, dyed wool and silk weft Accession ID 1970.20.2

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M40

The image shows a figure in medieval attire kneeling in prayer within an ornate architectural setting. The figure is richly dressed, kneeling with hands clasped in prayer. The architectural framework is decorated with Gothic elements. An angel hovers above the figure, holding a scroll with text. To the left, there is a small depiction of a man fighting a lion, integrated with the columns. The upper portion of the image contains text in a medieval script and ornate coats of arms. The color palette includes muted reds, blues, golds, and beiges. The intricate designs, heraldic imagery, and symbolic content suggest a narrative or devotional theme common in medieval European art. The style is reminiscent of medieval tapestry art, blending religious and illustrative elements typical of that period.

The Vision of the Centurion Cornelius

Netherlandish 15th Century

c. 1460

Tapestry: undyed wool warp, dyed wool and silk weft Accession ID 1970.20.3

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M40

This is a painting of a heraldic coat of arms with a helmet and swan motif at the top. The painting prominently features a shield with diagonal stripes in black and gold tones. Atop the shield is an ornate silver helmet adorned with decorative golden flourishes. Seated above the helmet is a white swan. A scroll bearing the phrase "TART SVIS VENV" twists behind the swan, while another scroll at the base of the painting reads "DE HONDECOVTRE" along with the date "1543." The rest of the painting features elaborate leaf motifs in golden yellow and dark gray on the black background.

Crested Coat of Arms [reverse]

Antwerp 16th Century

1543

Oil on panel Accession ID 1953.3.3.b

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M41

Coral Spoon

Elias Schweiglin

c. 1570

Red coral, gilded silver Accession ID 2024.51.1

On View: West Building Main Floor, Gallery M35