#sad lions

[letsgostealthelouvre]

I was going to say it’s nice to see that even as late as the 15th century we’re still getting the undying motif of the sad lion, but I enlarged this painting so you could really see St. Jerome removing the thorn from the lion’s paw and

This lion isn’t just sad, he’s traumatized. 

[ID: Two images; top image is a painting of St. Jerome removing a thorn from the lion’s paw in a portico of a church; the painting advances narratively to the right, where it shows the lion returning a donkey and two camels laden with goods after the donkey was stolen by thieves. Bottom image is a detail close-up of Jerome and the lion; the lion is drawn rather figuratively, with a massive mane of hair, a frowning mouth, and huge staring eyes.]

[letsgostealthelouvre]

The lions of the Louvre have not been universally sad in some time, but I like this lion for looking extremely determined about something. 

[ID: A large flat-bottomed plate or basin, with several concentric borders of foliage in green; in the center is a lion, with a magnificent mane and an expression of sober determination, prowling amongst the plants, topped with a fleur-de-lis probably representing a crown.]

[letsgostealthelouvre]

In the Louvre’s records, the title of this translates to English as “Crying” and you know what, legit. I feel you, bud. 

The Louvre tells me that this is a decoration from the tomb of Anne of Burgundy, daughter of John the Fearless and wife of John of Lancaster, the Duke of Bedford. Her brother commissioned the monument; this figure was one of the “mourners” adorning the tomb prior to the church’s destruction (I believe during the Revolution). 

[ID: A small figurine of a person; their body is concealed under a bulky robe capped with a cowl, and only their face is visible. Their eyes are closed and their mouth is frowning slightly; they appear to be crying, but very elegantly so.]

[letsgostealthelouvre]

This is not at all from the Louvre but a little closer to (my) home, in the Cleveland Museum of Art; I found it way back in ancient history when I was googling Hercules and the Lion, and saved it in drafts until we hit that point in history. This comes from Italy, 1467-1528, and even though the image is of Hercules slaying the lion, the dynamism of the lion really struck me. The detail is also stupendous given that the whole thing is about 3″ by 2″, roughly the size of a credit card.

[Description: A bronze plaque relief depicting Hercules, naked, in profile with feet planted wide; he is holding a lion up off the ground, while the lion visibly struggles with its back legs. The lion’s head is hidden in its mane where Hercules’ arms disappear into it as he strangles it.]

[letsgostealthelouvre]

It’s time for Comb History with LetsGoStealTheLouvre! It’s probably not very academic of me, but anecdotally it’s very interesting how as we move from “ancient” art of Egypt and the middle east to medieval and specifically Christian medieval art, we start to move from antelopes, a prey or domestic herd animal, to lions, an undomesticated predator. Lions of course have other meaning in Christian iconography, and the “predator” aspect of them in Christian imagery is rarely touched on, but it’s a fascinating thought to consider, nonetheless. 

[ID: The remains of an ivory comb excavated near a church and almost certainly used as a “liturgical comb” even as we admit we don’t know what liturgical combs were used for exactly. The comb has lost all of its tines and most of its handles at the edge; the center, between two sets of tines, is carved with two crouching lions, facing each other but with their heads turned away.]

[letsgostealthelouvre]

A while back I was faintly concerned that the Louvre’s public catalogue had some, shall we say, inconsistencies, and I’m slowly seeing those be corrected now -- duplicates of stuff I’ve posted in the past are popping up with their correct date attributions, at least as far as I can tell. I thought this fellow was one of those; I was sure I’d posted him before, but I couldn’t find him in the Sad Lions tag, so possibly not. In any case, please enjoy this lion waterspout, which originated probably in a Spanish fountain somewhere.

[ID: a carved stone lion, crouching with front legs extended, and a visible opening in his mouth where water would emerge; otherwise his mouth is full of sharp bared teeth. He has a mane, but it’s slicked back like he’s the hero of a greaser flick from the 60s, and overall he looks more sleek than sad.]

[letsgostealthelouvre]

The 7th century Egyptian version of the Brady Bunch looks fuckin’ awesome. 

[ID: A textile square, black on white (or cream) linen and wool. In the border of the square are twelve circles with faces in them, each distinct, some looking sideways, some wearing fancy hairstyles; in the center is a square that they all border, depicting a “feline” (probably a lion).] 

[letsgostealthelouvre]

Behold a happy lion! 

[ID: A a bronze door knocker consisting of a round ring, clenched in the jaws of what is described as a lion by the Louvre; it looks a little like a dude trying to look like a lion, but does have long cat’s eyes, a kind of muzzle-nose, and lionlike ears.]