Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Gemellion with Kneeling Knight
(Medieval Europe )
A gemellion (from the Latin geminus, meaning "twin") is one of a pair of basins used for hand washing, either at home or during the Mass. Water was poured from the spouted bowl and was caught in the second bowl placed below. Many gemellions made in the enamel manufacturing center of Limoges, France, were decorated with secular-themed designs of birds, beasts, or courtly scenes. This example shows a knight kneeling before his lady in the central medallion and women holding coats-of-arms on the surround.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Desmottes of Lille; Sale, Hôtel Drouot, Paris, March 19-23, 1900, no. 7; Jacques Seligmann, Paris, by purchase; Henry Walters, Baltimore, May 16, 1906, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
France, Limoges (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 1 3/8 x Diam: 8 7/8 in. (3.5 x 22.5 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1906
Location in Museum
Not on view
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.
44.74