Medieval family portrait in ivory
Carving ivory is an art. It is difficult to shape the hard material in such a way that meaning appears, something recognizable by someone who looks at it for the first time - like you do at this very moment. Meet Engelramus (right), master carver from the eleventh century, who portraits himself carving in the company of his son, Redolfo (left). The latter holds the material while the father chops away. We know so because the information was added to the plaque: the front reads “Engelramus et Redolfo filio”, as if it were a family snapshot. Most astonishingly, this unusual piece of art, giving face, literally, to a medieval artist, is only 60x45 mm in dimensions - smaller than a deck of cards. You can almost sense the two working on this difficult piece, making themselves slowly appear - hair, eyes, beard, hands - out of the ivory. Well done guys.
Pic: St Petersburg, State Hermitage Museum (made 1060-80). More about the object and the scene here.