Hanging Lamp in the Form of a Mermaid (Lüsterweibchen)
Date1665
CultureGerman
MediumPolychromed and gilded wood
ClassificationSculpture
Credit LineMuseum purchase, 1949
Object numberSN1225
Hanging lamps in the form of mermaids were commonly made in Renaissance Germany for important places such as guild halls. A. Everett Austin, Jr., the first director of the Ringling Museum, who served from 1946 to 1952, bought this example. Austin, widely recognized for his imaginative approach to presenting art, thought to enliven Lucas Cranach's portrait of Cardinal Albrecht of Brandenburg as Saint Jerome by juxtaposing it in a Ringling gallery with an object similar to the one in the painting.
On View
On viewLocation
- Museum of Art, Gallery 03, Wall West
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