Lion, from a Doorway

Unknown

early 13th century · Limestone (Red limestone) · The Cloisters

Alert and looking toward each other, both lions jealously protect their prey—a lamb in one case and a calf in the other—beneath massive paws. The pair originally supported columns that would have been attached to their backs and probably flanked a small doorway of a church. By the mid-eighteenth century, they were placed at the door of a chapel near the village of Quattro Castella, near Reggio Emilia.

Artist

Unknown

Date

early 13th century

Medium

Limestone (Red limestone)

Culture

North Italian

Department

The Cloisters

Credit line

The Cloisters Collection, 1953