Alb

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The alb is the most ancient of liturgical vestments. This well-preserved example contains complex and beautiful details, which include pleating and various lace elements. The alb was worn under other garments, including the dalmatic and chasuble; only the interlaced bands at the hem would have been visible. The use of white linen is symbolic; it is meant to signify innocence and purity.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art