House altar
WB.234
1550–1600 •
Pearwood panels, ebony and silver-gilt •
altar-piece
Curator's Description
Retable imitating altar; ebony; four panels of pear wood set in middle, two mounted as doors to conceal others; carved in relief with subjects from the Passion: Agony in the Garden, Betrayal, Christ before Caiaphas, Pilate washing his hands, Mocking of Christ, Bearing of the Cross and Crucifixion.
This object was collected by Anselm von Rothschild and bequeathed to the British Museum by Ferdinand Anselm Rothschild.
How big is it?
12.5 cm wide, 49 cm high, 12.2 cm deep, and it weighs 2 kg
Detailed Curatorial Notes
Provenance: Baron Anselm von Rothschild, Vienna, by 1866 (cat no. 30).
Commentary: The panels are carved with scenes from The Passion of Christ as a focus for private prayer.
Bibliography
- Charles Hercules Read, 'The Waddesdon Bequest: Catalogue of the Works of Art bequeathed to the British Museum by Baron Ferdinand Rothschild, M.P., 1898', London, 1902, no. 234
- O.M. Dalton, 'The Waddesdon Bequest', 2nd edn (rev), British Museum, London, 1927, no.234.
- Read 1902: Read, Charles Hercules, The Waddesdon Bequest. Catalogue of the Works of Art Bequeathed to the British Museum by Baron Ferdinand Rothschild, M.P., 1898, London, BMP, 1902
- Dalton 1927: Dalton, Ormonde Maddock, The Waddesdon Bequest : jewels, plate, and other works of art bequeathed by Baron Ferdinand Rothschild., London, BMP, 1927