#Aquamanile

[artifacts-archive]

Aquamanile in the Form of a Lion

German, ca. 1400

This elaborate water vessel was intended for handwashing. A specialty of metalworkers in German-speaking lands for centuries—from the twelfth to the fifteenth—they are called aquamanilia, from the Latin words for water (aqua) and hand (manus).

[theancientwayoflife]

~ Aquamanile in the Form of a Lion.

Artist/Culture: German or Netherlandish

Date: late 13th or early 14th century

Period: Late Medieval

Medium: Brass

▪︎This unusual example bears a Hebrew inscription on one side that reads: (On the side and rear hip of the lion): ברוך אתה ה אלהינו מלך העולם א��ר קדשנו במצוותיו וצוונו על נטילת ידים ; [Translation] Blessed be God, King of the Universe, who blessed us and instructed us to wash our hands (Baruch ata adonai alokhenu meleh Ha-olam asher Ridshanu bemitsvotsar vetsivanu al netilas yadayim).

[jstor]

These 13th- and 14th-century aquamanilia from the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection on JSTOR (which includes nearly half a million open access images for everyone) are really something else. Our favorite is the one of Aristotle and Phyllis. Sure, the story behind it is as sexist as you may expect, but we prefer to interpret it as the triumph of woman over insufferable mansplainer.

[arthistoryanimalia]

#MetalMonday :

Lion Aquamanile, c.1200–1250

Germany, Lower Saxony, Hildesheim, Gothic period

Bronze: cast, chased, punched

26.4 x 29 x 15 cm (10 3/8 x 11 7/16 x 5 7/8 in.)

On display at The Cleveland Museum of Art 1972.167

“An aquamanile is a water vessel used for washing hands both at church altars and at the dinner tables of upper-class patrons. They often took the form of fantastic beasts such as dragons and unicorns or animals such as horses, birds, dogs, and lions, like this one.”

[polymorphousculturevulture]

Aquamanile in the Form of Aristotle and Phyllis, Bronze, Quaternary copper alloy, South Netherlands, 14th – 15h century.

source: nobrashfestivity

[philoursmars]

Il y a une petite quinzaine, je suis allé avec Julien et Katie, au Louvre-Lens pour une expo temporaire : “Animaux Fantastiques”. Une très belle expo ! Ici des licornes :

monument pour Renée d'Orléans Longueville, licorne tenant ses armoiries - église des Célestins, Paris, 1515

aquamanile en laiton, licorne - Nuremberg, 1420

André Thévet - "Cosmographie Universelle'" le "camphruch", sorte de licorne amphibie censée vivre en Indonésie - Paris, 1575

dent de narval + bronze et soie - 1600

Maître S.K. - "Orphée jouant du violon devant les animaux"- 1583

Ehrard Reuwich, illustration pour le livre de Bernhard von Breydenbach - ''Pèlerinage en Terre Sainte'' - Mayence, 1502

voir 1

[commiepinkofag]

Unicorn Aquamanile, ca. 1425–50

[justincase-77]

Now I need to oogle Phyllis riding Aristotle! Lol

Aquamanile in the Form of Aristotle and Phyllis, Bronze, Quaternary copper alloy, South Netherlandish, 14th – 15h century.

[milkywayrollercoaster]

Caquesseitão

Aquamanil

século XVII/ prata/China ou Sudoeste da Ásia

Museu do Oriente/Lisboa

in: SAPO viagens

[panafrocore]

Leopard Aquamanile, 16th-19th century Nigeria, (Edo people)

The Leopard Aquamanile, dating back to the 16th-19th century in Nigeria, holds immense cultural and historical significance in the region. This exquisite ceremonial object plays a pivotal role in the traditional Ugie Erha Oba ceremony, where the Oba honors his paternal ancestors. As the Oba prepares for this sacred ritual, he adorns himself in traditional attire before engaging in the symbolic…

[fox-teeth]

Took my beaft stickers to The Met Cloisters to meet their real medieval counterparts.

Artworks Featured:

Basilisk panel from Arch with Beasts, French c. 1150-75

Panther door mount, French early 11th century

Aquamanile in the Form of a Dragon, German c. 1200

Siren detail from Dragon fresco, Spanish after 1200

The Unicorn Rests in a Garden, French/South Netherlandish 1495-1505

(stickers for sale in my shop if you want a beaft to take to the museum)

[artifacts-archive]

Aquamanile in the Form of a Mounted Knight

German, ca. 1250

Aquamanilia, from the Latin words meaning "water" and "hands," served to pour water over the hands of priests before celebrating Mass and of diners at table. This aquamanile, in the form of a horse and rider, exemplifies the courtly ideals of knighthood that pervaded Western medieval culture and influenced objects intended for daily use. It depicts a type of armor that disappeared toward the third quarter of the thirteenth century. Unfortunately, the shield—which probably displayed the arms of the owner—and the lance are no longer extant.

[memories-of-ancients]

Brass aquamanile in the form of a dragon, Northern Germany, circa 1200

from The Metropolitan Museum of Art

[metmuseum]

Aquamanile in the Form of a Rooster. 13th century. Credit line: The Cloisters Collection, 1989 https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/469920

[yiddishknights]

Aquamanile in the shape of a lion, 12th century. The body of the lion features a later Hebrew inscription, probably added sometime after the mid-16th century, naming Berekhiah Segal as the donor of the vessel to a German synagogue.

Source: The Jewish Museum

[chaoticdesertdweller]

Aquamanile depicting Phyllis riding Aristotle — a scene from the legend in which Phyllis, Aristotle's lover, humiliates him by riding on his back after he warned Alexander the Great about the dangers of women. Made of copper alloy, this piece originates from the South Lowlands, dating to the 14th-15th century AD.

📸 The MET Museum