Diptych of Boethius [SEP] material used
Diptych of Boethius
The Diptych of Boethius is an ivory consular diptych (24x18x2 cm), which dates from the end of the fifth century AD and is conserved in the Museo di Santa Giulia in Brescia.
Acquired by Cardinal Angelo Maria Querini during the eighteenth century, the worked passed to the Museo dell'Era Cristiana in his will.
History.
The piece was made by Roman artisans to celebrate Manlius Boethius' second appointment as praefectus urbi of Rome in 487. The purpose of the work was purely commemorative - diptychs
ordinary Consul and patrician." The inscription on the first tablet identifies the person being commemorated as Manlius Boethius.
The work shows signs of final decoration with a burin which was able to produce the different depths of relief (the sceptres, the figure of Boethius, the architecture in the background) and to create the light but plentiful embroidery of the tunics.
See also.
- Diptych of the Lampadii
Bibliography.
- Renata Stradiotti (ed.), "San Salvatore - Santa Giulia a Brescia.