Effigy of an Abbot (c. 1225): Art, History and Details

Effigy of an Abbot (c. 1225) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This funerary effigy represents one of the abbots of Cerne Abbey in Dorset, in southern England. His identity is unknown. Portrayed with tonsured (shaved) head and tightly curled beard, the abbot clasps a book in his left hand and traces of his crozier (staff) may be seen in his right hand—symbols of his office and pastoral authority. The figure is carved from "Purbeck marble," a limestone unique to the Purbeck Hills of Dorset. Very little remains of Cerne Abbey today, but it is known to have existed as early as the 9th century. The abbey was dissolved in 1539 by King Henry VIII during the English Reformation, at which time its buildings were razed to the ground. This is the only work of art that survives from the abbey and, though buffeted by time and history, retains much of its fine sculptural character. The sculpture has the additional distinction of being the only monument of its type in an American museum.

Object facts

• Title: Effigy of an Abbot
• Date: c. 1225
• Culture: England, Dorset, 13th century
• Type: Sculpture
• Technique: Purbeck marble
• Dimensions: Overall: 105.1 x 48.3 x 22 cm (41 3/8 x 19 x 8 11/16 in.)
• Collection: MED - Gothic
• Department: Medieval Art
• Accession number: 1977.71

A detail from the museum

Researchers have been trying to identify which abbot is depicted here but so far have had no luck.

Collection credit

Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• Hutchins, John. The History and Antiquities of the County of Dorset, John Bowyer Nichols and Sons, 1863.
• G. Dru Drury, "Early Ecclesiastical Effigies in Dorset," Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society Procs. III (1931).
• Royal Commission on Historical Monuments, An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, I, West Dorset (1952).

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.