Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Casket with the Story of the Prodigal Son
(Renaissance Europe )
The coats of arms on the lid indicate that the casket was a gift to Viktor von Gumppenberg zu Schenkenau, governor of Schrobenhausen, at his wedding on February 4, 1560. He was in the service of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria, and his wife was a lady-in-waiting to the duchess. The parable chosen for the decoration reminded the nobleman that it was time to abandon idle leisure for the duties of married life.
The narrative panels in reverse-painted glass provide the chief ornament of the casket; they are complemented by graceful decorative borders of little birds entwined in foliage, setting off the gilded-metal armature (framework) of the casket itself.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Raoul Heilbronner; Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
Germany, Augsburg (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 8 1/16 × W: 11 5/8 × D: 8 9/16 in. (20.5 × 29.5 × 21.8 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
46.4