Four standing figures in an arcade

Four standing figures in an arcade

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This fragment was probably the neckline of a linen tunic. It depicts a Dionysian scene, drawing upon imagery common in late-antique dress and furnishing textiles. The figures exhibit a sense of exuberant movement that is typical of festive Dionysian retinues or Bacchanalian dance scenes. The placement of figures within arcades was popular in late Roman and Early Christian art, particularly in textiles, mosaics, and sarcophagi.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.