Floor plan

Time and placeThe 14th century

The 14th century

Book Cover, by Italian (Sienese) Painter
Hanging scroll (mounted on panel)
The Crucifixion, by Pietro Lorenzetti, 1340s
Spring Dawn over the Elixir Terrace, by Lu Guang, ca. 1369
This is a drawing of a decorated manuscript page. The image features an ornate design with illuminated letters and intricate floral borders. The text is in Latin, written in a Gothic script, with larger, stylized letters at the beginning of paragraphs. Floral motifs and vine patterns, painted in vibrant colors including gold, blue, and red, frame the text. Illustrations of a bird and a peacock are integrated into the decorative borders. A small heraldic shield appears just below the middle of the page, adding a heraldic element to the composition. The craftsmanship and artistry associated with illuminated manuscript traditions are showcased, inviting viewers to appreciate the detailed embellishments and the skillful blending of text and imagery.
The Fourth King of Hell, late 1300s
Fan (mounted as album leaf)
Shown from the waist up, a woman wearing a garnet-red robe rests a book and a palm frond against a spiked wheel, all against a gold background in this arched, vertical painting. The woman’s light skin is tinged with pale green, and her cheeks are faint pink. Her shoulders face us, and she slightly looks up and off to our right with gray eyes under curved brows. She has a long, straight nose, and her small, full, bow-shaped lips are closed. Her wavy blond hair is parted down the middle and pulled back at the base of her head. Her red robe has a pattern of delicate diamond shapes and the underside is white, visible where it turns over around the neck. The robe is fastened with a round, gold disk the size of a DVD. Letters there read, “S.K.A.T.E.R.I.N.A.” around the perimeter of a four-lobed, red, blue, and gold geometric design at the center of the brooch. The sky-blue garment beneath her robe has a marine-blue collar. She clasps the palm frond in her left hand, to our right. The hand rests on the book, which is propped against the wheel in front of her, so the frond reaches beyond and above that shoulder, nearly to the edge of the painting. The wheel is edged with short, curving spikes like talons. The woman’s gold crown and round halo blend into the shimmering gold background, which is visibly cracked in some areas. The top of the panel curves up as if into an arch but is cut across the panel over her halo.

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Works made in the 14th century, anywhere in the world.

First room, north wall

  1. Book Cover, by Italian (Sienese) Painter
    Book CoverItalian (Sienese) PainterCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Hanging scroll (mounted on panel)
    The dragon king revering the BuddhaChen Hongshou, 1368-1644Courtesy of the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution
  3. The Crucifixion, by Pietro Lorenzetti, 1340s
    The CrucifixionPietro Lorenzetti, 1340sCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. Spring Dawn over the Elixir Terrace, by Lu Guang, ca. 1369
    Spring Dawn over the Elixir TerraceLu Guang, ca. 1369Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

First room, south wall

  1. This is a drawing of a decorated manuscript page. The image features an ornate design with illuminated letters and intricate floral borders. The text is in Latin, written in a Gothic script, with larger, stylized letters at the beginning of paragraphs. Floral motifs and vine patterns, painted in vibrant colors including gold, blue, and red, frame the text. Illustrations of a bird and a peacock are integrated into the decorative borders. A small heraldic shield appears just below the middle of the page, adding a heraldic element to the composition. The craftsmanship and artistry associated with illuminated manuscript traditions are showcased, inviting viewers to appreciate the detailed embellishments and the skillful blending of text and imagery.
    Manuscript Leaf from a Book of Hours (incip. Passionis)Unrecorded French maker, 1390Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. The Fourth King of Hell, late 1300s
    The Fourth King of HellUnrecorded Korean maker, late 1300sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  3. Fan (mounted as album leaf)
    Wild geese descending to a sandbarJiang Shen, 1368-1644Courtesy of the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution
  4. Shown from the waist up, a woman wearing a garnet-red robe rests a book and a palm frond against a spiked wheel, all against a gold background in this arched, vertical painting. The woman’s light skin is tinged with pale green, and her cheeks are faint pink. Her shoulders face us, and she slightly looks up and off to our right with gray eyes under curved brows. She has a long, straight nose, and her small, full, bow-shaped lips are closed. Her wavy blond hair is parted down the middle and pulled back at the base of her head. Her red robe has a pattern of delicate diamond shapes and the underside is white, visible where it turns over around the neck. The robe is fastened with a round, gold disk the size of a DVD. Letters there read, “S.K.A.T.E.R.I.N.A.” around the perimeter of a four-lobed, red, blue, and gold geometric design at the center of the brooch. The sky-blue garment beneath her robe has a marine-blue collar. She clasps the palm frond in her left hand, to our right. The hand rests on the book, which is propped against the wheel in front of her, so the frond reaches beyond and above that shoulder, nearly to the edge of the painting. The wheel is edged with short, curving spikes like talons. The woman’s gold crown and round halo blend into the shimmering gold background, which is visibly cracked in some areas. The top of the panel curves up as if into an arch but is cut across the panel over her halo.
    Saint Catherine of AlexandriaBartolomeo Bulgarini, c. 1335/1340Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Second room, south wall

  1. The Assumption of the Virgin, by Bernardo Daddi, 1337–38
    The Assumption of the VirginBernardo Daddi, 1337–38Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Simple Retreat, by Wang Meng, ca. 1370
    Simple RetreatWang Meng, ca. 1370Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. "Gushtasp Slays the Rhino-Wolf", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings), by Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, ca. 1330–40
    "Gushtasp Slays the Rhino-Wolf", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, ca. 1330–40Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Second room, north wall

  1. Su Shi (Dongpo) in a Bamboo Hat and Clogs, by Zuigan Ryūsei, before 1460
    Su Shi (Dongpo) in a Bamboo Hat and ClogsZuigan Ryūsei, before 1460Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. "Bahram Gur Hunting with Azada", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings), by Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, dated 753 AH/1352 CE
    "Bahram Gur Hunting with Azada", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, dated 753 AH/1352 CECourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. Saint Catherine of Alexandria, by Pietro Lorenzetti, ca. 1342
    Saint Catherine of AlexandriaPietro Lorenzetti, ca. 1342Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Third room, north wall

  1. Folio from a Mu'nis al-ahrar fi daqa'iq al-ash'ar (The Free Man's Companion to the Subtleties of Poems) of Jajarmi, by Muhammad ibn Badr al-Din Jajarmi, dated 741 AH/1341 CE
    Folio from a Mu'nis al-ahrar fi daqa'iq al-ash'ar (The Free Man's Companion to the Subtleties of Poems) of JajarmiMuhammad ibn Badr al-Din Jajarmi, dated 741 AH/1341 CECourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Album leaf
    Mounted traveler and servant bearing a zitherWu Wei, 1368-1644Courtesy of the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution