Crib of the Infant Jesus, Metropolitan Museum of Art

IN THE 15th and 16th century, small cradles for the Christ Child were used as devotional objects. They were sometimes given to women taking their vows. This example was made in 15th-century Netherlands and comes from the Grand Béguinage of Louvain, Belgium, which was opened in the 12th century for lay women. I saw this crib, which is only 13 inches in length, last weekend at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and was struck by its exquisite detail, with biblical scenes carved on the end pieces, angelic sentinels atop the posts, embroidered coverlet and tiny bells. Silk, gold thread, pearls and enamel are still visible all these years later.

This lavish object suggests the royal character of the humble infant born in the stable, the infant both divine and human who would change human history forever. A tender and supernatural love must have inspired the cradle’s creation and stirred those who venerated it.

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