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Prayer Bead in the Form of a Skull with the Temptation, and the Crucifixion

German (?)

Not on view

The interior of this fruitwood carving resembles those of miniature boxwood prayer beads, but the exterior has been transformed into a skull, presenting death with all the intensity of boxwood miniature coffins. Related examples trace to sixteenth-century German owners. Perhaps these fruitwood beads were carved in German lands by an artist eager to have a share of the flourishing boxwood market established in the Netherlands.

Prayer Bead in the Form of a Skull with the Temptation, and the Crucifixion, Fruitwood, German (?)

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