Cleveland Museum of Art
Roof Boss
- Date
- 1400s
- Medium
- limestone with traces of polychromy
- Culture
- Northern Spain, 15th century
- Department
- Medieval Art
- Institution
- Cleveland Museum of Art
- Object ID
- 99453
From the Cleveland Museum of Art record
In medieval architecture, a "boss" refers to an ornamentally carved, often painted and gilded, keystone. It was placed at the intersection of ribs in a vaulted roof in order to lock its members into position. Noteworthy examples are found in many of Europe's monastic cloisters and cathedrals. This example and the other shown nearby are reportedly from the vaulted ceiling of a monastery in Northern Spain. Their principal decorative motif consists of a spray of acanthus leaves.
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Provenance & credit
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- Credit line
- Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust
- Provenance
- reportedly from the vaulted ceiling of a monastery in northern Spain. (P. W. French and Co., New York).
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