gemellion
1 media/49.56.8_thumb.jpg 2022-06-15T13:09:33-07:00 Brooke Hendershott b0a907cd0f989ee79e94592378a1545647719cfb 39447 2 Gemellion with the arms of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem, made in Limoges (France), ca. 1250–75. Copper and champlevé enamel (22.5 × 23.5 × 3.5 cm). New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1949, 49.56.8. Image © Metropolitan Museum of Art. plain 2022-06-15T13:10:02-07:00 Working Title/Artist: Gemellion with Arms of JerusalemDepartment: Medieval ArtCulture/Period/Location: HB/TOA Date Code: Working Date: 3rd quarter of 13cphotographed by mma in 1995, transparency 4bscanned by film and media 3/02/01 Brooke Hendershott b0a907cd0f989ee79e94592378a1545647719cfbThis page is referenced by:
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Gemellion with the Arms of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem (MET 49.56.8)
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45.86495571295619, 1.2796065925871487
By Nina Masin-Moyer '22
This gemellion, or handwashing basin, was made in the renowned metalworking region of Limoges in France. The term gemellion derives from the Latin word meaning “twin”; gemellions were typically made and sold in pairs, with a pouring basin and a catch basin. Water would be poured over a person’s hands from one vessel, and the second would be used to catch the excess water below. This piece was the pouring basin, as the small gargoyle spout on the left edge indicates.
In the early twelfth century in Limoges, as well as elsewhere in northern Europe, craftsmen began to use a metalworking technique called champlevé. In this technique, shallow recesses were engraved in copper in order to pour in melted glass. The piece might be fired several times in order to achieve different colors: here, shades of blue. Metalwork from Limoges became known for its smooth surfaces, brilliant colors, lustrous sheen, and characteristic scrolled foliage, all visible on this gemellion.
During the crusades, there was an increase in Mediterranean trade as a result of shifting politics and rulership, including crusader control of the coastal cities of Syria and Palestine. Around this time, an increasing awareness of hygiene and handwashing techniques began to circulate in western Europe, partly inspired by the habits of the Islamic nobility. The creation of gemellions in increasing numbers can perhaps be tied to practices of hygiene and feasting that changed in Latin Europe during the period of the crusades.
The center of this gemellion shows a Jerusalem cross, also known as a crusader cross, which is believed to have originated from the coat of arms of Godfrey of Bouillon during the First Crusade; eventually it became the heraldry for the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. Surrounding the central cross are four pairs of fighters, engaged in combat that reinforces the gemellion’s context in the era of the crusades.
Suggested Reading:
Al-Ferzly, Michelle. “Enviable Possessions: Patronage, Commerce, and Display of the Thirteenth-Century Gemellions of Limoges.” MA thesis, Bryn Mawr College, 2016.
Boehm, Barbara Drake. “131. Armorial Gemellion.” In Enamels of Limoges: 1100–1350, edited by Barbara Drake Boehm and Elisabeth Taburet-Delahaye, 374. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996.
Ittu, Constantin. “Heraldry and Art in the World of the Crusades States.” Sargetia: Acta Musei Devensis, n.s., 5 (2014): 125–33.
